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In the 20 years since the American version of “The Office” debuted on NBC, the mockumentary sitcom format has largely worn itself out, and even with current successes like “Abbott Elementary” and “St. Denis Medical,” I wasn’t expecting a lot out of NBC’s new cheerleading mockumentary “Stumble.” Unlike the “Office”-copying “The Paper” on Peacock, though, “Stumble” turns out to be a delightful surprise, a sweet and funny sitcom with none of the cringe humor that characterizes too many mockumentaries. I’ve watched the first two episodes of “Stumble” twice now, noticing new puns and background jokes each time. The concept is a basic underdog sports story, but sibling creators Jeff and Liz Astrof fill it with appealingly offbeat characters, clever world-building and just the right amount of heart. That makes “Stumble” the best new network sitcom I’ve seen in quite some time. ‘Stumble’ makes the most of its simple premise The Astrofs have said that they were inspired by Netflix docuseries “Cheer” to create a show set within the intense world of junior college cheerleading, and “Stumble” has the same immediate hook of competitive drive and personal drama. It’s taken to a heightened level of absurdity here, but the characters on “Stumble” are not much more ridiculous than the subjects of a typical sports reality show. Jenn Lyon stars as driven coach Courteney Potter, who’s one championship away from becoming the winningest coach in junior college cheerleading history. She’s confident in her squad at Texas’ Sammy Davis Sr. Junior College, but a mild scandal involving a team party gets her booted from her cushy position. Forced to reinvent herself, she starts over at a new school 80 miles away, the much lower-profile Heådltston Junior College in Oklahoma. Of course, Courteney has to build up a new cheerleading program essentially from scratch, and of course, her team is full of misfits and outcasts. It’s no surprise when, in the second episode, Courteney’s former school is transferred into the same division as Heådltston, setting up a rivalry between her and her hyperactive former assistant coach Tammy Istiny (Kristin Chenoweth), which is set to play out over the course of the season. I haven’t seen any episodes beyond the first two, but I can already guess that Heådltston will have to take on Sammy Davis Sr. Junior College in some sort of high-stakes showdown in the season finale. The distinctive characters give ‘Stumble’ its comedic edge Lyon is warm and witty as the determined but compassionate Courteney, who has a lot in common with TV’s greatest-ever sports coach, Kyle Chandler’s Eric Taylor from “Friday Night Lights.” Her inspirational mantra of “We can, we will, we must” may not be quite as elegant as “Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose,” but it provides the same rallying point for her team. Courteney even has a Taylor-like supportive relationship with her husband Boon (Taran Killam), her onetime high school sweetheart who now coaches football at Sammy Davis Sr. Junior College. The spouses often call each other “coach” at home and always root for each other to win, even though they’re now working at rival schools. Boon is an endearingly dopey wife guy whose occasional lapses in judgment stem from a head injury he suffered during his brief career as a college quarterback. The members of Courteney’s new squad are equally endearing, including Heådltston’s only previous cheerleader, the enthusiastic Madonna (Arianna Davis), who suffers from inconvenient bouts of narcolepsy. Courteney also recruits her previous star pyramid anchor Stevie (Ryan Pinkston), now a rental-car assistant manager who’s pushing 40 but never technically graduated from junior college. Courteney picks up agile thief Peaches (Taylor Dunbar) while Peaches is attempting to rob Courteney’s car, and she recruits arrogant former football player Dimarcus (Jarrett Austin Brown) after he walks off Boon’s team. These characters have the weirdo qualities of the people who populate Christopher Guest’s influential mockumentary movies, and it’s not hard to imagine Guest himself making a film about competitive cheerleading, to go with his previous comedies about dog shows and mascots. But while Guest often invites the audience to laugh at his characters, “Stumble” is more earnest, treating its characters with compassion even when they’re acting totally silly. ‘Stumble’ is a comedy worth cheering for That investment in the characters is what keeps the plot engaging, even when the structure is predictable. When Courteney manages to poach the biggest star from her old squad at Sammy Davis Sr. Junior College, it’s easy to guess that something will happen quickly to derail that win. But there’s no time to dwell on the predictability when “Stumble” is throwing out hilarious jokes nearly at the same rate as a Guest movie, with deadpan puns about character and place names, and a gleefully jaded take on the whole cheerleading-industrial complex. Anyone looking for a fun, breezy watch to offset heavy, drawn-out dramas and “comedies” that are more morose than funny should check out “Stumble.” It’s the kind of refreshingly simple and consistently entertaining comedy that’s been in short supply during the streaming era, and a sign that broadcast TV networks can still deliver on a format that they’ve always done best. “Stumble” airs Fridays starting Nov. 7 on NBC (via Sling, Fubo or YouTube TV) , and episodes stream the following day on Peacock. Follow Tom's Guide on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. More from Tom's Guide
