Even the most popular commercial spokespeople grow tiresome after a while, but ABC forgets that important lesson with the less-than-evolved sitcom “Cavemen.” This half-hour show could easily make the sitcom an endangered species.
“Cavemen” is based, of course, on the Geico Car Insurance Ads
For the last few years, Geico has been running an interrelated series of television ads poking fun at caveman’s low intelligence. Though the premise of these ads was that Geico didn’t know that Neanderthals were still around, the primetime sitcom shows the cavemen as contributing members of modern society.
The Cavemen are the Smart Ones on this Show
Set in San Diego, “Cavemen” revolves around Joel (Bill English), a Neanderthal who works at an upscale home goods store with an unpronounceable name. In a few scenes, Joel has to show his dimwitted Homo Sapien co-worker how to open up a sleeper sofa. Joel also dates Kate (Kaitlin Doubleday), a pretty blonde, but he’s afraid that she doesn’t want to tell her friends that she likes a caveman.
Nick, the Intellectual Slacker
Supposedly working on his dissertation, Nick (Nick Kroll), Joel’s roommate, spends most of his time playing video games and online poker, but he isn’t above going out and spending money, especially when it’s someone else’s cash.
Andy, the Hopelessly Romantic One
Played by Sam Huntington (“Superman Returns”), Andy, Joel’s brother, comes to San Diego to forget his girlfriend Susan, but he ends up calling her in almost every scene of the show. In the pilot, Andy brought a pile of traveler’s checks with him that Nick cheerfully helps him spend.
A “Flintstones” Joke or Two
Less than one minute into the pilot, the characters make a couple of really bad “Flintstones” jokes. Reportedly, the first pilot shot for “Cavemen” was horrifyingly bad, but with humor like this, the debut episode really isn’t that much better.
Advice From the Cavemen on Inter-Species Dating
“Keep Your Penis in Your Genus.”
“Crave the Cave.”
“You could do worse than dating a Sape.”
The Bottom Line: “Cavemen” Will Become Extinct After Week Two
With bad writing, no sense of comic timing and actors without any charm or appeal whatsoever, these “Cavemen” won’t even make it to episode 3. Let’s hope that no one tries to give the Geico gecko his own series after this disaster.
“Cavemen” is shown Tuesdays at 8p.m. EST on ABC.
