Category: TV Review

WILFRED is one of the weirdest shows on U.S. TV, which probably is why we love it. Turns out, though, that this heartwarming saga of a man and his neighbor’s dog is in danger of cancellation. Here’s what’s happening, and what you can do about it:

Please don’t let them put Wilfred to sleep
by The Bitter Script Reader

I’m going to ask you guys for a favor. If it is at all within your power, please check out the sitcom WILFRED this Thursday night at 10pm on the FX Network.  I’ve heard rumblings that the show’s low ratings this season have cast doubt on the show’s chances for a renewal for a fourth year.  In fact, this week could make all the difference for the show’s survival.  If this season truly is the end of the line, then that would be a shame as WILFRED is one of the most unique shows on TV. In fact, it’s one of my favorite current shows. (Full disclosure: I’m friends with one of the actors, but I’d be a fan of the show regardless.)

I think of WILFRED as sort of an adult Calvin & Hobbes if Hobbes was a dog – and a Machiavellian sociopath.  Elijah Wood plays Ryan, a former lawyer who starts seeing his neighbor’s dog Wilfred (Jason Gann) as a human in a dog suit.  Wilfred has a biting sense of humor and a near omnipotent ability to manipulate a situation to his ends, even when Ryan thinks he’s seen through the dog’s agenda. Many of Wilfred’s schemes involve playing on Ryan’s crush on Wilfred’s owner Jenna (Fiona Gubelmann), with the dog alternately seeming to help Ryan look good in front of Jenna or often putting him in compromising situations for reasons that suit Wilfred’s ends.  After another couple of seasons, TVTropes.com might have to rename “the Xanatos Gambit” to “The Wilfred Gambit.”