The Bluths are back in business for “Arrested Development” season four! Only on Netflix!
Now the story of viewers who lost their favorite show and the dedicated fans who kept hope alive. It’s “Arrested Development.”
The Final Countdown has finally begun.
They said they weren’t optimistic it could be done. But, we wouldn’t take not optimistic it could be done for an answer! Seven years later, we’re here to say “Mission Accomplished!”
The pipe dream that began when the final “Arrested Development” episodes aired is now a reality. We have Saved Our Bluths!!!
Netflix will release 15 new episodes featuring our favorite dysfunctional family on Sunday, May 26. One week from today!!! All the episodes will be released simultaneously, which will undoubtedly lead to all-night viewing parties for fans who have been dreaming of this moment since February 2006.
We wrote letters to Fox executives, we signed online petition after online petition and told everyone we knew to watch this show.
At the time we were bewildered. How could people not know about this show!?! Of course, much of the blame falls to Fox who didn’t know how to properly market a show that didn’t involve celebrities on ice, laugh tracks, or hordes of wannabe pop stars.
The brilliant writing revealing multi-layered, intelligent jokes in 30-minute increments is still unmatched. Many times, a joke was set up in one episode and would pay off three episodes later. There’s just never been anything like it before or since. Several shows, such as “Modern Family,” have tried to copy AD’s formula, but haven’t been able to execute it nearly as well. The cast’s comedic timing was impeccable and Ron Howard’s narration was the perfect tone. The best part? They didn’t care if you got the joke. You couldn’t watch this show while checking your Facebook wall and reading an article about French film. You were expected to pay attention.
Series creator Mitch Hurwitz never gave up on the promise he made when Maeby Funke pitched the series to Howard in the final scene.
The years of ‘will they, won’t they’ grew tiresome. Every now and then, we’d get a glimmer of hope from a cast member doing press for another project that yes, they were still working on the movie. But, no they didn’t know when it’d begin. When the AD cast reunited for a panel for the New Yorker, the bombshell dropped that the Bluths would finally get the fourth season they deserved.
Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, Jeffrey Tambor, Jessica Walter, Tony Hale, David Cross, Portia de Rossi, Michael Cera and Alia Shawkat celebrated this news with a cast-wide chicken dance.
Hurwitz initially planned 10 episodes, but had so much new material and story boards that the season swelled to 15.
The advance in technology since AD’s premiere has steadily grown the fan base, so it’s not just a “cult” TV show anymore. Through iTunes, Netflix, YouTube and other streaming video services, there are dozens of us now. That’s not including the cable outlets that picked up the series, such as IFC.
All the clips I’ve seen and the newly released trailer are making me more excited than winning ‘best hair’ in high school. This season will bring us up to speed on our Bluths since we last saw them aboard the Queen Mary. Each new episode will focus on one main character. Subsequent episodes feature the same events, but from different characters’ perspectives. According to Portia De Rossi, the order in which you view the episodes is unimportant, but can lead to some pretty incredible changes in your perception of the others.
For an inexplicable reason until we see the new episodes, an ostrich has moved into the Bluths’ Bolboa Towers condo. We also see George Michael riding Gob’s segway and a Michael Bluth Company logo.
Our revived Bluths will be joined by some of our favorite guest stars including the Bluths’ bumbling lawyer Barry Zuckerkorn (Henry Winkler,) the attorney with a mouthful of a name, Bob Loblaw (Scott Baio), George senior’s secretary Kitty Sanchez (Judy Greer), the Bluths’ vertigo afflicted neighbor, Lucille Austero (Liza Minelli) and rival illusionist Tony Wonder (Ben Stiller).
Add Tobias’ acting coach Carl Weathers and baby you’ve got a show going!
We’re planning to celebrate with some frozen bananas dipped in delicious brown treat and perhaps some new cut-offs for our chihuahua, Tobias, named of course, after the world’s first analrapist.
This party is going to be Off. The. Hook!
If you want the full viewing experience:
1. Start a viewing party at 11:30 PM on Saturday night.
2nd-of-ley. Prepare omelettes as an entree (since no one should ever order the Skip Scramble).
3. For dessert, serve frozen, chocolate covered bananas on a stick.
4. Have a John Grisham paperback or two on the coffee table (just in case Pop Pop comes down from the attic).
5. Send an email to Fox Network telling them that you’re watching Netflix and reminding them that they dropped a multiple Emmy Award winning/Golden Globe Winning/Future Classic/Television Critic/Writers Guild of America/Young Artist award winning show.
6. Hold a fundraiser during your party for TBA.
7. If you’re going to give out invitations, be sure to fill them with glitter and a tongue-in-cheek threat that “I know where you live! haha”, just in case they don’t show up.
8. Grab a juice box and whole thing of candy beans and happy viewing!
Lastly, enjoy. This show is not a typical television show, so don’t expect the dumbing-down approach of reality television.
