Trial and Error features a similar format to The Office where it's filmed like we're watching a documentary about the unfolding legal proceedings in East Peck and we get cutaways and snippets with several characters explaining their point of view on the situation. I was not as big of a fan of The Office, I've only seen episodes here and there but I get the appeal of the format. I can't give Trial & Error credit for pioneering the formula but I do think it fits what they're trying to achieve in this genre. What also helps the decision is how silly all the characters are, nothing in Trial & Error is subversive or done with too much obfuscating. It's a deliberate parody and while the show has clever moments, it never tries to reach outside of it's grasp and I think that plays to the show's favour.
Each season of Trial & Error centres around a murder having been committed in the fictional town of East Peck, South Carolina and then we watch our main players continually bumbling through the trial process. A lot of the jokes are being made at the expense of the townsfolk and their backward ways but I was quickly charmed by Trial & Error and how ridiculous the lives of the residents of East Peck were (the mass surrender of the town, the rules around lady drivers, Mickey Moose etc.). Critics may call out the show for being a little repetitive but I impressed continually at how Trial & Error would just introduce some wacky rule or completely shift a scene instantaneously (in a comedic sense). The show is never offensively crude and never even approaches the line of being controversial. I never tired of the madcap and slapstick nature of the proceedings and I laughed hard throughout.
The show is led by Nicholas D'Agosto as nerdy New York lawyer Josh Segal. I've seen D'Agosto in comedies before (Fired Up comes to mind) but this is a fun switch because he's playing a hugely unflattering but inherently sweet character. There's an earnestness in his portrayal that help keeps the show humming and he bounces off of Boyer, Shepherd, and Mays to some continually amusing results. Jayma Mays gets second billing as icy and comically ruthless prosecutor Carol Anne Keane and she also works well in lampooning the no-nonsense woman who has to work twice as hard as any man to get ahead trope. My favourite performances that stole the show are Steven Boyer and Sherri Shepherd as Josh's inept defence team members investigator Dwayne Reed and assistant Anne Flatch respectively. They're both chewing on the scenery, they're going BIG as they're the goofiest characters in the show. Despite that caveat, they're both gut-bustingly funny as these lucky-to-still-be-alive idiots. I have to tip my cap both to Steve and Sherri for some magnificent work. I also want to congratulate both Krysta Rodriguez and Bob Gunton as Summer Henderson and Jeremiah Davis. They both feature in the 1st season and they both shine (I'd never seen Gunton in a non-dramatic role and he nailed it here) in their scenes.
I'd be happy to continue to heap praise on Trial & Error but there is one small drawback. Each season of the show has a featured player as the accused murder, it's John Lithgow in season 1 as Larry Henderson and it's Kristin Chenoweth as town darling Lavinia Peck-Foster in season 2. Chenoweth is really good as the eccentric and pint-sized Lavinia but the show never hits the same heights after Lithgow departs in season 1. He's just so pitch perfect as the constantly dumbfounded Larry (let alone his surprisingly strong comedic chemistry with D'Agosto that just can't be replicated) that I can't put the two seasons on equal footing. There isn't a catastrophic drop off in the quality of the show but it is noticeable.
I've now watched this series through twice and T&E holds up quite well. The first season is the stronger of the two (in my opinion) but both seasons deliver what's needed. If you're looking for a simple and mostly good-natured send up of a court procedural with some Office style formatting, this could be for you. I laughed a lot throughout Trial & Error and I'll be revisiting this show again for sure. I wish we had gotten more seasons and I wish the show was easier to find but T&E is the dictionary definition of a hidden gem and I'd wholeheartedly recommend you check it out if you're interested. I'd also be interested in a series revival.... even if we're not likely to get one, we can always hope.
Each season of Trial & Error centres around a murder having been committed in the fictional town of East Peck, South Carolina and then we watch our main players continually bumbling through the trial process. A lot of the jokes are being made at the expense of the townsfolk and their backward ways but I was quickly charmed by Trial & Error and how ridiculous the lives of the residents of East Peck were (the mass surrender of the town, the rules around lady drivers, Mickey Moose etc.). Critics may call out the show for being a little repetitive but I impressed continually at how Trial & Error would just introduce some wacky rule or completely shift a scene instantaneously (in a comedic sense). The show is never offensively crude and never even approaches the line of being controversial. I never tired of the madcap and slapstick nature of the proceedings and I laughed hard throughout.
The show is led by Nicholas D'Agosto as nerdy New York lawyer Josh Segal. I've seen D'Agosto in comedies before (Fired Up comes to mind) but this is a fun switch because he's playing a hugely unflattering but inherently sweet character. There's an earnestness in his portrayal that help keeps the show humming and he bounces off of Boyer, Shepherd, and Mays to some continually amusing results. Jayma Mays gets second billing as icy and comically ruthless prosecutor Carol Anne Keane and she also works well in lampooning the no-nonsense woman who has to work twice as hard as any man to get ahead trope. My favourite performances that stole the show are Steven Boyer and Sherri Shepherd as Josh's inept defence team members investigator Dwayne Reed and assistant Anne Flatch respectively. They're both chewing on the scenery, they're going BIG as they're the goofiest characters in the show. Despite that caveat, they're both gut-bustingly funny as these lucky-to-still-be-alive idiots. I have to tip my cap both to Steve and Sherri for some magnificent work. I also want to congratulate both Krysta Rodriguez and Bob Gunton as Summer Henderson and Jeremiah Davis. They both feature in the 1st season and they both shine (I'd never seen Gunton in a non-dramatic role and he nailed it here) in their scenes.
I'd be happy to continue to heap praise on Trial & Error but there is one small drawback. Each season of the show has a featured player as the accused murder, it's John Lithgow in season 1 as Larry Henderson and it's Kristin Chenoweth as town darling Lavinia Peck-Foster in season 2. Chenoweth is really good as the eccentric and pint-sized Lavinia but the show never hits the same heights after Lithgow departs in season 1. He's just so pitch perfect as the constantly dumbfounded Larry (let alone his surprisingly strong comedic chemistry with D'Agosto that just can't be replicated) that I can't put the two seasons on equal footing. There isn't a catastrophic drop off in the quality of the show but it is noticeable.
I've now watched this series through twice and T&E holds up quite well. The first season is the stronger of the two (in my opinion) but both seasons deliver what's needed. If you're looking for a simple and mostly good-natured send up of a court procedural with some Office style formatting, this could be for you. I laughed a lot throughout Trial & Error and I'll be revisiting this show again for sure. I wish we had gotten more seasons and I wish the show was easier to find but T&E is the dictionary definition of a hidden gem and I'd wholeheartedly recommend you check it out if you're interested. I'd also be interested in a series revival.... even if we're not likely to get one, we can always hope.