RateItAll: The Opinion Network

Pretty funny, too bad it was canceled.

one of the least viewed best shows ever, jason bateman, yeah.

Unique, Intelligent, and Irreverent -- no wonder it didn't last..
by Robert H. Goretsky

Arrested Development was one of those rare television shows that truly broke the mold, and in doing so, created a genre unto itself. Similar to 'The Office', the cinematography led you to believe you were watching hidden cameras showing you people behaving as they normally do -- quite different from the staged look and laugh tracks that usually accompany sitcoms. The dialogue, while sometimes a bit contrived, rewards the intelligent viewer who is paying close attention (similar to 'Scrubs' in this regard). Furthermore, unlike the other programs that were accompanying this show on Fox's Sunday night lineup (Family Guy, Simpsons, etc.), you could not attain the full enjoyment from this show by just sitting down and catching any half-hour episode. I started watching toward the end of the first season, and since going back and catching up, it's amazing how much more of the dialogue takes on new (and hilarious) meaning..

While it's a shame this show didn't survive any longer, I highly recommend grabbing the DVD set, starting from the first episode, and enjoying this great show. Review by Robert H. Goretsky of Hoboken, NJ

I dont know what's up with the programmers here in the UK when they'll give primetime slots to cr@p reality shows but fantastic comedy imports often get the graveyard slot. This happened with Seinfeld, stuck on the minority BBC2 channel at 11pm and it's also happened to Arrested Development. I dont know anyone else who's seen it as it's got well buried. Shame, because along with My name is Earl, Cheers and Seinfeld it's the best US comedy show of the last 25 years to cross over to the UK. Very wry and unobvious with very smart and tight scripting. Class act.

Very funny. You have to watch more than one episode until the humor really clicks in. first discovered this show by recording and watching the four season-ending episodes that were all on together in Februray 2006 - the first one was weird, by the third one I was laughing out loud continuously.

This is the best show on television. It has the best writing and the best acting. Fox needs to promote the snot out of this show. People need to watch this show. It is as smart and witty as Seinfeld.

wow what a show, arrested development at least should me the martyr of the sitcom genere

This show is hilarious and is easily comparable to the likes of Seinfeld. It is witty and is too funny to miss. I have been watching since Season 1, and unlike many other comedies it has not lost its touch yet. Keep going, Arrested Development!

i dont understand how this so called comedy attracts people its boring there is nothin funny about this show i only watched it because my friend told me that its possibly the best show in america i watch an episode and it didnt put one simle on my face this crap is boring even the show will and grace can do better then this.

Best Comedy show on television! It has won Best Comedy and 6 other emmys. It is pure genius with wonderful actors. I have both seasons on DVD and have watch every episode numerous times. I am shocked to hear that it being cancled and I will do anything and everything in my power to save the best show on television.

one of the best tv shows ever. with all of the mediocrity on television, it's hard to imagine this one may be cancelled.

Best show on TV!!!

smartest, most addictive comdey out there

Best show ever.

Such a great show thats true to its fan base, please let them keep writing this ingenious material FOX.

The best show on television hands down!

This is the best show I have ever seen on TV. IT is smart and witty and very fast paced. I absolutely love it! If you haven't seen this show you need to go out and just buy the season 1 and 2 DVDs, you won't be disappointed!

It just doesn't get any better than this. If arrested development were a woman I would marry her or at least give her my virginity, that is all

Arrested Development is the best comedy on TV right now. It might take an episode or two to see it but it really is unlike nearly everything else out there. What other show could have a 14 year old kid, buying weed from his uncle, for his other uncle's girlfriend (Liza Minelli!) only to be 'busted' by a bunch of strippers posing as cops!

I LOVE this show. I bought season 2 and it's worth every penny!!

Greatest show on Earth!!

BEST SHOW ON TV. BEST SHOW ON DVD. BEST SHOW EVER! NOW STOP SHOWING FLIPPIN BASBEBALL ALL THE TIME AND PICK A BETTER MARKETING DAY THEN MONDAY, GOING UP AGAINST MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL! COME ON FOX, GET IT TOGETHER YOU IDIOTS! I HOPE ANOTHER NETWORK BUYS AD AND GIVES THEM THE MARKETING THEY DESERVE!

There is not a funnier or smarter comedy on television. If you don't pay close attention, you'll miss alot of the jokes. Ron Howard's narration is great. It's impossible to pick a favorite character. Everyone is so well written. The first series I've ever bought on dvd.

GREATEST SHOW EVER

Most frickin' brilliantly written and acted show ever. Period.

The only TV series I have ever bothered to purchase on DVD.

Best comedy ever. Even better on DVD.

One of the funniest comedies ever to air on TV -- ever! Never sappy, never predictable, and always hilarious.

Best comedy writing ever. Each episode demands to be watched several times since they are packed so densely with jokes.

I too can't see the humor in this piece of garbage. It is not that well written. The cast is a good one, which should have made the writing easy, but the characters are just not at all believable. We know they are quirky and crazy, but lets pull in the reigns and quit beating that idea to death. Sure they are all disfunctional and bizarre, but that is not a basis for a comedy. Especially when the elite family is so distant from its audience. I think Arrested development could have been good, but it is just weak in so many ways.

This show is my second favorite thing next to Burger King... did you know you can get a free refill on any size drink? It's a *great* restaurant.

I Loooooove this show! You non-watchers do NOT know what you're missing!!

Most creative thinking person's comedy of our time.

Definly need to watch this series from the start or at leat the begining of season 2 to get the brilliant humour. The smartest, darkest, funiest show to ever hit TV, Ever. Has a huge clt following for a good reason. Please go pick up or rent the first to seasons of this amazing show and see what evryone is talkig about.

Arrested has that pure genius quality where the jokes are coming so fast and there is so many that you can watch it over 5 more times and catch another joke every time. The humor is quite often dry, but perfectly timed and brilliantly filmed all of the camera angles work well, and the narrator of Ron Howard is the icing on when awesome cake. Its just about the best show on television, SO WATCH IT DANGIT!

easily the best show on TV

The fact that this show averages 3-4 million viewers a week just proves that the average television watching public is filled with retards. Go watch this show! Buy the DVDs!

This show is just too funny, the only problem is I think most people who dont like dont get the characters, and dont get all the references (inside jokes). You really have to pay attention to really get why this show is so hilarious. My all time fav!!

The best show on television. Watch this show!!

This show gives me hope for American TV

Greatest comedy on the face of the Earth. And that's putting it mildly.

The funniest TV show of all time!

Sharp, quick and devastatingly funny.

Best show on T.V. It's actually funnier than family guy...

The only TV show that I would buy on DVD because you need to watch it a second time to catch the little background jokes that you don't notice the first time. In every episode there is a chance to laugh until you cry, no matter what your taste in humor. It's a zany ride that you'll want to go on again and again. Best comedy ever!

Unbelievably clever witty unique tv show that is sadly missed by so many people

The cast on this show is exquisite. I've never seen anything cast so perfectly. I always laugh throughout the entire show. Every episode is as great as the next. You will fall in love with these characters and storylines. From embezzlement and racist puppets to sibling jealosy and co-dependency, this family will have you hooked instantly.

This is the best show on television. Period. And I don't mean Maeby.

Greatest show of all time!

This show is the funniest show ever made. Of all time. Make's Seinfeld feel like church.

With the quality drop-off on SCRUBS, this Fox sleeper is more than ready to take over as the best comedy show on television. Everyone decries the lack of intelligent TV (and its eventual death), so a network FINALLY puts something on that's smartly paced, wickedly clever, cleanly cast, lung-poppingly funny, and what happens? It hangs on for dear life. This is why I'm such a believer in snagging the DVD compilations that are all the rage. They're the best way to hang onto the "good stuff" that ekes its way onto the small screen. In the case of ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT, a completely-searchable backlog of shows is a must for overlapping plotline clarification and the wealth of jokes and commentary you're likely to miss on a first viewing. Make no mistake, this is interactive television at its zenith (no pun intended); zombified "couch flippers" should nestle in with the sledgehammered subtlety of FEAR FACTOR and KING OF QUEENS. Seasons One and Two are now out on disc, and Season Three (while somewhat zanier) should be a fine companion to a much-beloved series that's running against the grain.

Hands down the funniest show on television today. In fact after many years of watching Nick at Night it, in my opinion, it is one of the funniest shows of all time. I can only pray that a 4th season is in the picture.

This show is simply hilarious! Smart, funny, biting, and irreverent. If what you want is another by-the-book, lame sitcom, go watch one of those. If you want tons of marvelous actors being amazingly funny, and writing that always surprises you, and a lot of hysterical in-jokes, then watch this show. I'd not heard of it until my wife got me the first season on DVD. I watched it in about 2 weeks, and then got to watch the second season when it aired - now I can't wait for seaon 2 on DVD, and I'm loving the first episodes of season 3. It's just hilarious.

This is my FAVORITE show ever!!!!!!!!!!! I don't understand why more people are not watching it!

This show is simply amazing. It has no laugh track. The jokes are so incredibly witty and plentiful that you can watch it over and over and laugh out loud each time. But if your idea of funny is Steve Carell urinating on his own face in "The 40 Year Old Virgin", this show might not be for you. But here's the undeniable bottom line: those who have seen the show and liked it become obsessed. If you have not seen the show you can't risk not watching it. You have nothing to lose and you risk missing out on one of the best and most original comedies ever made.

Quirky just for the sake of being quirky. Don't get the hype on this one. A group of very unlikeable, unfunny people. Hopefully this is the last season Fox gives it a free pass. This dreck stays on and "Joan of Arcadia" is gone. Unreal...

Easily, the funniest show on TV. I wish more people watched.

Simply the best and funniest show on TV.

All the people who are saying this show is overrated, and it sucks....you are way off! You judge by one episode? I certainly hope not! I challenge you to rent the first season and watch at least the first two discs. Of course the first couple episodes wont be hysterical, its basically introducing everything , but I guarantee if you keep watching that 90% of you will fall in love with the show! It is very well written, Very funny, and the best show on TV!! Also these shows are kinda linear and you might not get all the jokes if you havent watched them in order. Either that or intelligent jokes are not within your grasp. So please give up a little time and discover a Great show that doesn't have just Cheap Laughs, but well written humor that you can watch several times and most the time catch a subtle joke you missed! Also...Another roseanne or married with Children????? HARDLY None of them shows are anything like Arrested Development. Also I cannot believe not having a laugh track is a bad thing!!! I hate laugh tracks....but i guess people that must follow the herd need to be told when to laugh.. Thanks.

I am saddened that people here are actually not liking this show. Arrested Development is by far the funniest show ever to be on TV, and this is quite apparent in the fact that in its first 2 seasons, it has racked up 18 Emmy nominations, and won all but 2 it was nominated for in the first season. The people that call this show overrated, boring, and stupid are the kind of people that love crap comedies like Life On A Stick and Stacked. Meaning these are the people who cannot stand a comedy unless it is very easy to understand, with no hidden jokes, and tons of outrageous behavior that makes you giggle all night. This show makes you think, is clever and witty, and I have not found a single critic EVER who did not absolutely love this show. If you don't like it, go back to your slapstick humor, but don't rate the show that won Best Comedy Emmy in its first year anything lower than what it deserves- a 5.

How many more Roseanne, Simpsons, Married With Children shows do we need? This is about as funny as a cholera epidemic.

Boring. I watched three episodes and found it to be way overrated and not the least bit funny.

This show is cleverly written, with just the right injection of wit and dry humor to keep me chuckling throughout.

this show is way overrated.

This is another bad show on fox I would rather see King of The Hill then this garbage.

You either get it, or you don't. Anything with David Cross deserves a 5.

soooo overrated. i heard that this was a great show, very funny, very cool, the best - so i decided to watch it. and let me tell you- i did'nt even laugh once. it was horrible. cheap comedy or should i say no comedy, untalented actors, and pathetic plots(if you can call it a plot). i have no idea why people like it because in my opinion IT SUCKS !!!!!!

I think this show is one of the funniest ever! The cast of relatively unknowns (Now, obviously famous) blends together to form the perfect dysfunctional family. The comedy is so hilarious you will be laughing almost the entire episode guaranteed. It is definitly dry humor but the over-the-top type of humor has been done too many times before and failed. This is definitly one of the best comedy shows EVER!

funny show. Ron Howard narrates this program about a dysfuncional Bluth family. Great characters, well acted a bit of dark humor. I hope this show stays one of the better comedies this year.