Review: 'Hiller And Diller'

When I was in high school, I was driving an old powder blue 1964 Ford Galaxie. Well, to be precise, I spent most of my time pushing it to various mechanics and roadside garages. The thing seemed incapable of running for more than two days in a row, and it broke down so often that tow trucks used to follow me around. But I loved the car because it seemed as if better things were always just around the corner. It looked good in theory, and every time it would break down, I'd think to myself, "Well, it can only get better now."

And in that some irrational way, I love Hiller And Diller.

Every week, I turn the show on and I think to myself, "C'mon, this is the week that this show really snaps into place. Show me what you can do!" And every week I turn off the tv feeling as if I'm wearing this t-shirt that reads "I'm a moron."

Kevin Nealon stars as Hiller, a man who is as married to his comedy writing partner Diller as he is to his family. Hiller is happily married, with three relatively normal kids. Lewis is divorced and his kids are, well just about as normal as you would expect if Richard Lewis was your dad.

The series was created by the screenwriting team Babaloo Mandel and Lowell Ganz and is supposed to be loosely based on their lives. If that's the case, these two guys' lives need a quick rewrite.

Most of the episodes concern themselves with the antics of various kids. And while there is nothing inherently wrong with that, there's just not much interesting going on with them.

On the other hand, the scenes of the two guys at work are hilarious. They're stuck as writers on a show named Katey, and even they admit that it may be the worst show on television. When Rob Petrie had troubles at the office, he at least had the consolation of knowing that he worked on a show that was funny once it hit the air. These guys work with a star who seems to have perfect knack for taking a script and fiddling with it until every bit of promise is beaten out it.

The big surprise in the show is Eugene Levy, who makes a brief appearance every episode playing their boss. It's not that he doesn't care about the work they do--he just has the attitude that if Katey is happy, it doesn't really matter whether the show is entertaining or not. In short, he's the exact representation of most studio hack bosses.

All of which doesn't really explain why I keep watching the show. I suppose it has something to do with the fact that when I talked to my 10-year-old nephew the other day, he mentioned that he had just watched a show "with that guy who looks and acts like you on it." Apparently (and much to my regret) he was talking about Kevin Nealon and not George Clooney....