Our Friend Wilfred Returns

You did not need to do too much deep thinking (unlike Newsroom) to enjoy Thursday's (June 28) return of Wilfred on FX.  Ryan (Elijah Wood) and his delinquent dog Wilfred (Jason Gann) are back for another series of adventures.  While the show can be juvenile and simply gross at various points, it also has plenty of moments where it digs a little deeper into the human psyche (and still finds something juvenile and gross, of course). 

For a sitcom, it can be pretty dark as it starts with Ryan's attempted suicide and his later delusions concerning Wilfred, but the constant pot smoking, awkward sexual moments (okay, some are with stuffed animals), and off-color humor bring it to a level not reached by other sitcoms.  Wilfred is basically the bad angel sitting on Ryan's shoulder, though he has a number of endearing qualities and useful insights that can set Ryan right.  And for some odd reason, mixing the talented Elijah "Frodo" Wood with the equally talented yet zany Australian Jason Gann really works (could it be Elijah's time down in New Zealand helped him work better with actors from that part of the world?). 

I was not sure if Wilfred would return for another season since the rating for season one were so so, but that is the advantage of starting on FX where there are fewer shows to cancel.  ABC would have probably pulled it after the first three episodes.  Luckily, the network cowardice has not bled through to the smaller players. 

You should watch the June 21st between season episode to catch up on the show.  You will get to see Robin Williams playing Ryan's doctor as Ryan tries to come to grips with his life and the role of Wilfred.