Rooster TV Review: Steve Carell and Bill Lawrence deliver another winning HBO comedy

Plot: A comedy set on a college campus centering on an author’s complicated relationship with his daughter.

Review: Bill Lawrence is on a hot streak these days. With Ted Lasso, Bad Monkey, and Shrinking all hits for AppleTV, the Scrubs creator went back and revived his beloved medical sitcom just a few weeks ago and is now poised to deliver yet another instant classic, this time for HBO. Partnering with frequent collaborator Matt Tarses, Lawrence’s new series, Rooster, has the same heart and soul as his aforementioned sitcoms, with a great cast at its core. Led by Steve Carell, Rooster also features Scrubs star John C. McGinley, Ted Lasso‘s Phil Dunster, Danielle Deadwyler, and Connie Britton along with newcomers Lauren Tsai and Charly Clive who all inhabit, Ludlow College, a fictional New England liberal arts college that serves as the setting for bestselling author Greg Russo to experience higher education at a very different phase in his life than you would expect. Relatable and, above all, funny, Rooster is really good.

Steve Carell stars as Greg Russo, a best-selling author of popular fiction novels, who gives a talk at the same university where his daughter (Charly Clive) works. There to check up on her after her husband Archie (Phil Dunster) left her for another woman, Greg is offered a job by Walter Mann (John C. McGinley), the college’s president, to serve as writer-in-residence for the semester. Greg, who is divorced himself and looking for a chance not only to help his daughter but also to shake himself out of his midlife doldrums, takes the semester-long job and moves to campus. Greg never attended college, so his experience now as a teacher, parent, and single guy is put to the test as he navigates modern higher education and its pitfalls. This creates many obstacles, some of which are far more complex than you might expect. But they all share the same wit and authenticity we have come to expect from Ted Lasso and Shrinking.

Having seen the first six episodes of the eight half-hours that comprise the first season, I loved every minute of Rooster. Steve Carell has long been one of the funniest actors working and manages to balance his dramatic side with his comedic timing masterfully. Carell plays Greg as a relatable guy who wants the best for his daughter but doesn’t always know how to let her fail safely on her own. Through the series, Greg learns to let Katie be on her own, even as she gets into her own complex emotional knots. Charly Clive is a great choice as Katie is very much like her father, and both parent and child get themselves into some crazy situations. Whether it be a fire, a fight, or a human resources violation on campus, both Carell and Clive are great on their own or when Greg and Katie present a united front. The supporting cast is very good to boot, with Danielle Deadwyler playing Dylan, another professor who befriends Greg and must navigate campus politics. Phil Dunster, who was brilliant as Jamie Tartt on Ted Lasso, plays a very different but equally charming role here alongside Lauren Tsai as Sunny.

As he tends to do, John C. McGinley delivers a standout performance as Walt, the quirky college president who is a friend and mentor as well as a boss to most of the ensemble. McGinley is forever associated with playing Dr. Cox on Scrubs, and Walt is very much like that role. Both characters are blunt and honest while harboring a deeply supportive core. McGinley is always a treat to see in comedic roles, and his long association with Bill Lawrence helps them maintain consistency in their collaborations. There are minor roles from Connie Britton, Annie Mumolo, and Alan Ruck, as well as Steve Carell’s wife, Nancy Walls, that round out this ensemble. There are also fun roles for newcomers, including students on campus, that add to the depiction of a New England institute of learning. Memorable students include Tommy (Maximo Salas), who is a fan of Greg’s novels, and Ronni (Sophia Macy), who is not. Comedian Robby Hoffman is a fun addition as Sunny’s roommate. All of these actors, newcomers and veterans alike, make up an ensemble without a weak spot.

Created by Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses, who also serve as writers on the series, Rooster is directed by Jonathan Krisel. Best known for creating the brilliant Zach Galifianakis series Baskets, Krisel captures the odder elements of the characters in Rooster without overplaying them. There are small moments that pepper the quirkier side of this series, but they never overshadow the natural awkwardness of situations. Krisel takes the writing from Lawrence and Tarses and lets it play out with the actors’ charisma and energy, without hitting you over the head with cues to laugh. Rooster has another enviable soundtrack full of deep-cut songs, classic tracks, and contemporary music that would make for a fantastic mixtape. Bill Lawrence’s sense of humor has always been welcome on television, and I am glad to see yet another great project getting a major release, this time on old-fashioned HBO, where it will be a solid one-two punch with DTF St. Louis on Sundays.

Rooster is another winning comedy from HBO and represents another investment the cable network makes in mature storytelling from the best talent. Bill Lawrence’s roster of shows across platforms is an impressive mix of shows about finding the funny in the dramatic. These shows work because they never pander or rely on artificial scenarios to build the comedy; instead, they find it in what makes us all deeply flawed human beings. Steve Carell is a unique actor who can play a silver fox in equal measure with a clumsy dork and still make us laugh as much as we empathize. Rooster could have turned into a college romp about sex, drugs, and discovering yourself. Actually, it is all of those things, but it does it without turning into a mockery of itself. Rooster is another great show from one of the top television creators working today.

Rooster premieres on March 8th on HBO.