Free Agents

(NBC, Wednesdays 8:30/7:30 Central – Premiere: Wednesday, September 14 at 10:30/9:30 Central)

Sep 14, 2011 By Lily Moayeri
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Roles are reversed in the American adaptation of the British sitcom Free Agents. Newly divorced Alex (Hank Azaria) bursts into tears when hearing elevator music and can't get over a one-night stand. His partner-in-stand, Helen (Kathryn Hahn), has an easier time hitting-and-quitting with her stash of bulk-bought condoms. Helen has relationship demons of her own, however, on display in framed, blown-up photographs. As co-workers, Alex and Helen can't avoid each other. Unable to deal with Alex's clinginess, Helen decides to help him pull himself together. The rest of the office is equally involved, to the point of calling a conference room meeting where assisting Alex in his love life is the only topic. Meanwhile, scared of being pitied, Helen herself is markedly defensive in her interactions. The strong central characters have a dry tone to their instinctual comic timing, which is effortlessly natural. Their shortcomings make them all the more real and the laughs are sympathetic rather than derisive. Free Agents has all the right ingredients to become the next The Office. (www.nbc.com/free-agents)

Author rating: 7/10

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