'DELOCATED is the story of a family in the witness protection program who gets their own reality show. Moved to New York City from the small town the government placed them in, they wear ski masks at all times to protect their identities, trying to live anonymous lives on camera while attempting to avoid being murdered by the Russian Mob.'
I'm actually kinda surprised by how much I've enjoyed watching seasons 1 and 2 of Delocated, created by Jon Glaser (Emmy nominated writer and performer from Late Night With Conan O'Brien). The storyline is so quirky and out of the ordinary that it is VERY addictive to watch!
The series follows the life of 'Jon', played by Glaser, who is moved to New York City under the witness protection program with his family. With that, his life becomes a reality show which is extremely popular in this fictitional world...it even included a realty spin-off featuring the man who is trying to kill Jon! His wife Susan and son David don't last too long wearing the ski masks however, and soon their identity is revealed and with that their relationship degrades rapidly.
The first series contains seven episodes that each run for about eleven minutes - a great episode length in my opinion which allows for the story told within the episode to be told alot quicker. Within this first season, we follow Jon as he is settling into his new life in New York, and adapting to the places and people that surround him. He finds himself a new girlfriend Kim who seems to stick by his side through thick and thin! Constantly being attacked by a Russian Mob throughout both seasons, Jon somehow manages to escape everytime unharmed (unlike some of his body guards and decoys!).
Into the second season, episodes run at a double length of around 20 minutes each, which allows for a more in-depth look at the storyline behind each episode. In the second season, the comedy aspect of the show dies off quite a bit compared to the first and the drama and violence picks up. We're introduced to new characters who put a whole new perspective on the show as we see Jon suffer mental breakdowns, murder of the people close to him and a face transplant!
There is a storyline that floats throughout the two series so audiences would find it hard to pick up on the show mid-season, even one episode in might be too late! Thanks to the recaps after the opening of each episode, we're kept given an insight into some of the ideas and characters that might be involved in the episode.
The DVD itself also contains some great special features including deleted scenes, outtakes, episode commentaries plus much more.
I highly recommend this DVD set to anyone who loves a different style of comedy from the usual gags. I'd also recommend the show to fans of The Office, as I found many similarities between the two...mainly both surround a reality show inside a reality show. And of course, fans of the [adult swim] programming block will enjoy this program as much as those dedicated fans have enjoyed everything else!
Enjoy checking out DELOCATED, maybe you can 'binge' on the series like I did...I watched all the episodes in one day, quite an achievement for me I think! I can't wait to check out the third and final season, hopefully coming to a DVD near you soon!
★★★.5☆☆
Delocated - Seasons 1 & 2 can be purchased on DVD NOW!