For the very first show of the season I bring you "A to Z". "A to Z" is a romantic comedy about a guy named Andrew, played by "Mad Men" alum Ben Feldman, who is a hopeless romantic and looks up to his parents perfect marriage. Then there is Zelda, played by "How I Met Your Mother" cast member Cristin Milioti, who comes from a broken family and does not have any luck when it comes to the dating department. We have all seen this concept before and I am here to tell you that it is nothing but the same story with a modern twist.
Not only is the concept extremely familiar but the timeline of the story is also something that audiences have seen before. The show chronicles the relationship from the moment they meet from the moment their relationship dies. The first few minutes of the show you will ask yourself if you are watching the famous indie movie, "500 Days of Summer." You're not, you are just watching a very dim pilot episode of a show that just misses.
Katy Sagal, who is well known for her roles in "Married with Children" and "Sons of Anarchy," narrates the show describing both the past relationships and trials of both Andrew and Zelda. Turns out Andrew and Zelda have crossed paths many times because their offices are right across from one another in a business complex. Zelda meets Andrew when she comes to the online dating website called 'Wallflower' to complain about someone she was matched up with. Yes, as if it could not get any cheesier, Andrew who is a hopeless romantic spends his time working for an online dating service to match up strangers in hopes that they will go to the distance. As for Zelda, she's an extremely guarded lawyer who barely has time for a shower let alone dating.
Andrew feels that it is love at first sight with Zelda but after she leaves the office abruptly he is determined to find her again. Turns out she found him first. She gives him a call and when he answers the phone he turns to look out the window to see that Zelda's office has been directly across from him this whole time. Small world? Coincidence? Or just an awful and cheesy plot line? You can decide that one.
The two decide to go out for drinks and it is during this date that Zelda tells Andrew that she feels like she's seen him before. Within a matter of seconds Andrew is able to pull a memory from a few years back to where he saw a girl in a grey dress at a concert and made a connection with her from across the crowd. He tells Zelda he thinks that girl is her. Zelda immediately freaks out and tells Andrew that maybe they should be friends.
Andrew knows that Zelda is the girl he saw that night and chalks it all up to fate. He brings in two tech people, who also work for the online dating service, to cyber stalk Zelda and find pictures of her at the same concert wearing the grey dress. It doesn't take long for the tech nerds to pull up evidence and in a unrealistic run in at the office courtyard both Andrew and Zelda are joined by the two tech nerds where they tell Andrew that Zelda was wearing a red dress and she was actually at the same concert but the night before. Andrew feels like an idiot and apologizes to Zelda but she is so appalled she walks away.
Cut to a scene of Zelda in her closet pulling out the grey dress. Turns out she does have the grey dress and she was the girl wearing it! Ooh plot twist. Bet you didn't see that one coming did you?
Long story short Zelda calls Andrew late at night when they are both at work and she apologizes to him for the way she acted and ends up asking him to go out and have a few drinks. Andrew is extremely confused because he basically scared some girl and now she's calling to apologize to him. She tells him that she actually lied about the whole thing and she is indeed the girl in the grey dress. The call then goes dead and Zelda looks across the court yard to see that Andrew left his office. The two then meet in the courtyard and make out. Katy Sagal's voice enters and repeats how the couple will date for 8 months, 3 weeks, 5 days and 1 hour.
While the premise of the show has the potential to do things audiences haven't seen before, the writing falls flat. It's a romantic comedy that just reaches the surface level and leaves nothing to the imagination for the viewers. It's predicable and will leave you with the feeling that you are watching a condensed version of "500 Days of Summer." We all know how this one is going to end so save your DVR space. It will thank you.