Put The Grinder on your “to watch” calendar – this show is worth checking out! The Grinder premieres on Fox on Tuesday, September 29th at 8:30/7:30c. The show has a powerhouse lineup, starring Rob Lowe as Dean Sanderson, Fred Savage as his brother, Stewart, and William Devane as their father, Dean Sr. Both Stewart and Dean Sr are lawyers while Dean just finished an eight year run as a tv lawyer on the show Grinder. When I first heard about the show, I assumed he was on a Judge Judy type show and was an actual lawyer, but Dean is just an actor.
I’m a fan of both Lowe and Savage, and both are simply terrific in this show. The acting by all is top notch. In the Pilot, the opposing attorney, Leonard, is played by Kumail Nanjiani, who you may know from
Silicon Valley or
Franklin and Bash – or too many other things to list here! Nanjiani is terrific, and I hope we’ll see him again. Stewart’s wife, Debbie, is played by Mary Elizabeth Ellis. William Devane is also terrific as their dad. It was recently announced that Christina Applegate will be guesting as Lowe’s former girlfriend.
The show is shot single-camera with rich production values. The screener that I saw didn’t have a laugh track and I hope they don’t add one before air because the show doesn’t need one. Like a number of other Pilots this season, it was also recently announced that the original showrunner, Greg Malins has left the show after the first two episodes. The show has a top heavy creative team with Andrew Mogul, Jarrad Paul, Nick Stoller, and Jake Kasdan all exec-producing. Mogul and Paul are also the creators while Kasdan directs and will assume showrunning duties at least in the short term. Hopefully, these behind the scenes issues will be worked out quickly.
In the Pilot, Dean has returned home to Idaho to visit his family and try to figure out what to do next with his life. As with any family, there is clearly a lot of history between the two brothers who are very different. While Savage is the more clearly likeable brother, it’s hard not to like Lowe too. There’s a nice touch that Lowe’s character wears a necklace with a guillotine on it – no one mentions it, so I’m really hoping this becomes a gag in a future episode. As someone with a legal background (it’s my day job), I’m often offended by either the complete ignorance of the law displayed by tv shows or the disrespect shown to the profession (Bad Judge last season is a prime example). The Grinder does neither of these things. Just when you think it may be going down that road, the show surprises you – or me anyway!
If you’re looking for a good comedy – that’s both smart and funny – but isn’t afraid of a good prat fall either – you won’t want to miss
The Grinder on Tuesday September 29th at 8:30/7:30c on Fox.
About the Author - Lisa Macklem
I do interviews and write articles for the site in addition to reviewing a number of shows, including Supernatural, Arrow, Agents of Shield, Agent Carter, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones, The X-Files, Defiance, Bitten, Killjoys, and a few others! I'm active on the Con scene when I have the time. When I'm not writing about television shows, I'm often writing about entertainment and media law in my capacity as a legal scholar. I also work in theatre when the opportunity arises. I'm an avid runner and rider, currently training in dressage.
