Season #: 2, 1
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While Intelligence’s first episode could have been a skosh funnier, Mohammed, Schwimmer and the rest of the cast do such a strong job of embodying their characters that we’re eager to see where things go.
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“Intelligence” goes rollicking along, with much to commend it, chiefly its wit and energy—and unexpected little touches, among them the divine Noël Coward singing “There are bad times just around the corner” at the end of each episode. It doesn’t hurt, either, that its brief chapters are a liberating 30 minutes, commercials included.
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Intelligence is a sharp, crisp, and fun-as-hell sitcom, a show I have no doubt will keep tightening the screws as it goes on in its run. If you have the patience for its overly slow storytelling and its “ironically progressive regressive politics,” you will find a charming ensemble cast delivering excellent jokes with the utmost professional skill, and you’ll laugh, hard, often.
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Dryly funny, rude in a polite way, restrained even when it gets grotesque or slapstick, the show is kept from brittleness by the fretful, the hangdog — the Ross — that Schwimmer’s character hides inside, and his growing dependence on Nick Mohammed’s sweet, slow, hero-worshiping computer analyst.
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As TV comebacks go, Intelligence doesn’t have anywhere near the same impact for Schwimmer as American Crime Story did, if only because he’s not really breaking any new ground as an actor. That said, the old ground he’s treading is still pretty damned funny.
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Each 22-minute episode delivers a few chuckles — but is almost instantly forgettable.