I really wanted to like this show. The previews looked as though it could have been genuinely funny, a clever mashup of traditional family sitcom clichés and "demons on earth" craziness. Sadly, after catching an episode or two, I have to report that this is not the case. The commercials boast that NFH is produced by the studio that brought you Family Guy. However, when the similarities between the two shows are so glaring, it may not be a great idea to point that out. If you've seen one episode of Family Guy, you know who these characters are supposed to be: fat, stupid "relatable" dad; hot, sometimes-caring-and-sometimes-amoral mom; self-centered teen daughter; younger-version-of-dad son; talking dog; "wacky", flamboyantly gay and inexplicably British-accented final family member. Wow, they're all here! Even cast member Patton Oswalt, who's normally great, sounds like he's channeling Family Guy's Mr. Herbert when voicing family mutt Pazuzu. (Not that Family Guy isn't equally guilty of recycling sitcom tropes, but not usually this blatantly.) Unfortunately, the jokes and the supporting cast, which often save Family Guy from mediocrity, are not nearly as strong and produce few laughs. If there's one saving grace of the show, it's the animation, which is better than the average cartoon fare and more textured and nuanced than the "McFarlane House Style" (which I actually love, but that's not the point.) If anything, the decent animation serves to remind us of the disappointment of the other aspects of the show, and makes us wish someone took the same care and effort writing the comedy contained within. Neighbors from Hell is anything but groundbreaking, and only mildly and sporadically entertaining.
