Gob and Buster team up for some magic tricks with the help of Buster's fake hand, but when Tony Wonder, a rival magician, starts to mentor them, somebody gets the finger. Meanwhile, Michael is forced to delegate some work when he's hospitalized and Lindsay teaches George Michael how to drive using the staircar.
Gob and Buster team up for some magic tricks with the help of Buster's fake hand, but when Tony Wonder, a rival magician, starts to mentor them, somebody gets the finger. Meanwhile, Michael is forced to delegate some work when he's hospitalized and Lindsay teaches George Michael how to drive using the staircar.
[7.3/10] A bit of a come-down by *Arrested Development* standards, but still plenty of big laughs. I think the biggest ones in this for me are, as is often the case, from Tobias, whose awkward leap across Michael’s desk to take notes, angry efforts to kick people out of Michael’s office, and continuing hilarity as Mrs. Featherbottom are all great.
I wasn’t the biggest fan of the main story, about Michael being such a control freak that it makes him sick. It’s a solid idea, and makes for a decent throughline, but the “George Michael learns to drive” subplot is half-baked, and the whole “doctor makes ridiculous decisions” thing isn’t as funny as it should be. It pains a huge *Simpsons* fan like me to say it, but Dan Castellaneta is wasted here.
I also wasn’t the biggest fan of Tony Wonder on this rewatch. It’s odd, because I remember the character, and Ben Stiller’s performance fondly, but there’s something just a hair broader than the show normally goes for about his presence that didn’t click for me this time. That said, GOB and Buster make for a great pairing as always, and the byzantine rules of magic sanctuary and their magic show mishaps are all great.
Overall, this one is a little weaker than the rest of Season 2, but it’s *AD*, so there’s plenty of great bits to laugh at.