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Parents' Guide to

The Great Indoors

By Kari Croop, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Throwback comedy pits Gen-Xers against millennials.

TV CBS Comedy 2016
The Great Indoors Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

age 13+

Based on 3 parent reviews

age 17+

WARNING...

Too many non-funny sex-related jokes. The best jokes are when they are about the quirky people and the generational divide (but these good jokes are far too rare). We think you are better off watching the shows The Big Bang Theory or Last Man Standing instead.
age 12+

Workplace Comedy Has laughs is missed.

The Great Indoors was a great show. It had a lot of laugh's. A buddie of mine also loves this show as well. I think it is good of a show. Their is meant for older teens because of language and their is a lot of suggestive humor and dialogue. Highly Recommend.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (3 ):
Kids say (1 ):

Take every criticism you've ever read about so-called millennials, set them to a laugh track with a charismatic lead who seems reluctant to repeat them, and you've got a comedy with good potential. Not because it's particularly clever or original -- the multi-camera format feels like a throwback, and most of the jokes rely on stereotypes -- but rather because it manages to put an acceptable spin on otherwise mediocre material. Having McHale in the lead helps a lot, but so does the fact that, at times, The Great Indoors seems willing to cop to its own shortcomings with wry deliveries and self-deprecating digs, even as the tired millennial jokes march on (and on).

While it's true that The Great Indoors makes fun of multiple generations, the millennials really do get short shrift, so it's hard to imagine the series appealing to anyone who falls squarely in that demographic. It's also hard to imagine the show's younger actors not texting each other during a table read about how ridiculous this dialogue makes them sound, which made us wonder what The Great Indoors would be like if they were the ones telling the story -- or at least had more of a say in it.

TV Details

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