Actors starring in various projects alongside their children is nothing new, but it is a concept that has proven successful time and time again. Take for instance, Shall And Jade Smith in the 2006 drama The Pursuit of Happinesswhere their on-screen dynamism gives the film an extra effective emotional punch. Andie MacDowell And Margaret Qualley shared the screen together to riveting reviews in the limited Netflix series Domestic help, with the former receiving some of the highest praise of her career. Then there is of course Eugene And Dan Levi in the Emmy award-winning comedy Schitt's Creek, who not only introduced the world to the younger Levy, but also revived his father's career. The list goes on and on with the new Netflix workplace comedy Unstable, Rob Lowe And John Owen Lowe are the latest father and son teaming up on screen. They've starred in projects together before, but not in this capacity, where the entire series is built around their relationship.
Unstable finds the elderly Lowe playing Ellis Dragon, the world-famous billionaire entrepreneur of the biotech company Dragon. He is something of a celebrity - not only in the workplace, but also on the street. After the sudden death of his wife, Ellis has hit a new low. He has become estranged from his son Jackson (John Owen Lowe), his assistant Anna (Sian Clifford) grows tired of having to cover his tracks, his co-worker Malcolm (Aaron branch) still won't leave him alone, and the therapist hired by the company has mysteriously disappeared. Hoping to give the company a better outlook, Anna has Jackson, who works as a flute teacher in New York, fly to California to try and get Ellis back on track - and hopefully make him a more stable boss. Of course, Jackson is reluctant, and while there's an obvious familial love between him and his father, there's also a lot of tension and snark.
The series is co-created by Victor Frescowho was behind the criminally underrated Netflix zom-com Santa Clarita Diet, and features an impressive cast that both support Lowes with a concept that holds the promise of breathing some new air into the time-tested workplace comedy. Both Lowe men do strong work as Ellis and Jackson. Their chemistry and their snarky back and forth are where this new series shines brightest. Rob Lowe channels a lot Parks & Recreation energy in the character of Ellis; sometimes he really feels like Chris Traeger as a scientist, somehow even more neurotic. Meanwhile, John Owen Lowe takes the role of the uptight guy pretty well. It would have been easy to make Jackson sassy and obnoxious, but he has a lot of charisma that takes the character to the next level. Clifford is another bright spot in the role of Anna, with a particular storyline about her "office fanfiction" causing the series' biggest laughs. Like Rob Lowe, the series lets Clifford play to the strengths of her previous roles as she brings the dry humor she did so well in. Flea bag. Unstable also knows his welcome not to stay too long; with all eight episodes lasting under 30 minutes each, it makes for a quick and light-hearted binge.
Alas, as for the rest of Unstable, Netflix's latest sitcom is a bust. Fresco has proven to be incredibly creative with his other projects such as Andy Richter controls the universe and the above Santa Clarita Diet, but alas, his latest series seems uninspired and surprisingly lazy in his writing. Setting the series at a biotech company has the potential to give Unstable a greater sense of style and creativity, but instead the show seems more focused on providing storylines that have been done much better before. The love triangle between Jackson and Luna and Ruby (Rachel Marsh And Emma Ferreira) lacks any chemistry and is the series at its most predictable. It's mostly repetitive, as every single episode plays in the will-they-won't-they angle between the three characters. The other storylines, including Anna fighting the pesky tech brothers Chaz and TJ (JT Parr And Tom Allen), lack any kind of bite, and when the series tries to set up high-stakes scenarios, the result is disappointing and even wiped out at the start of the next episode.
Branch is entertaining to watch as Malcolm, but the writing for his character feels built entirely around stereotypes and character archetypes. Not only is he the kiss in the office, he's also the wisecracking sidekick and the constantly bullied and undermined social reject. The jokes miss more often than they hit and despite the talent in front and behind the camera, Unstable seems woefully ignorant of some of its greatest assets. The usually reliable Fred Armisen returns in the show, but his character is almost too exaggerated and cartoonish as a crazy therapist, which is a weird thing to say for a series called Unstable. The series tries to set up Ellis as an unpredictable wild card while also trying to establish his grief, but for the most part, he seems almost too grounded and becomes more and more tense as the finale progresses. Rob Lowe will never be an entertaining actor to watch on screen, but Unstable never quite lives up to its title.
As some of the biggest Netflix shows come to an end, Unstable had the potential to be the streamer's next big comedic hit, but instead it's just another cliché-riddled workplace comedy with all the tropes done much better before. It's not without some merit - the series really comes to life when the Lowes clash, encountering insults, passive aggressiveness and compassion. In the end, though, it's hard to even see who the target audience is for Unstable. With many great workplace sitcoms currently on the air, this series seems destined to be forgotten in a month.
Judgement: C-
All eight episodes of Unstable are now available to stream on Netflix.
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