REVIEWED: SEASON 1 (ALL EPISODES) | WHERE TO WATCH: NETFLIX
J.G. Quintel has followed up Regular Show with an eccentric and ludicrous trip through the early years of adulthood. Close Enough focuses on married couple Josh (Quintel) and Emily (Gabrielle Walsh) as they deal with everything from parenting woes to the revelation that they are only getting older. They live with a recently divorced couple in a rented house and trust their daughter to a yoga-hippie school teacher every day of the week. And animals can talk. Sometimes.
Close Enough is colourful and pacy – most of the ‘episodes’ are less than 15 minutes, but Netflix bunch two together at a time to form a first season of (almost) eight double bills. Quintel’s direction of humour is very distinctive, absurd situations blended with more down-to-earth concerns about L.A. geography and the woes of becoming a fully fledged adult. The result is a show that feels close to home, but also incredibly funny. Compared to the likes of Rick & Morty or BoJack Horseman, it can’t handle the big topics or individual characters with the emotional nuance that the best adult animations have become known for. Depth is not Close Enough’s strong suit. Rather than letting you sit back and think, it whisks you away on a bizarre journey of VR ladder climbing and British snails with hats that slow down time.
With immediately likeable characters and a sound number of full belly laughs, Close Enough just barely justifies a place in the increasingly competitive animation market. It’s relatable enough to have a certain pull, but strange enough to leave you bewildered and wanting more.