“Mockingbird Lane” is a TV curiosity in a myriad of ways, the first being its existence. Originally produced as a series, NBC got cold feet and shut down production after the first episode was finished.

Rather than letting the show gather dust on network shelves, NBC instead premiered it as a Halloween special. If ratings were good enough, hey, the network just might give it a full season order. Most likely, however, this is the first and last we will see of “Mockingbird Lane,” and that’s a shame. Even though it isn’t spectacular, there are a lot of good things in this hour alone.

The show is an updating of an old ’60s black-and-white sitcom about a group of supernatural oddballs that live in a creepy house that is not called “The Addams Family.” Rather, it’s “The Munsters” coming back from the dead.

The plot centers around the son, Eddie, who has most recently come into “Munster” maturity by unknowingly turning into a werewolf, and then turning on the members of his Boy Scout troop. The catastrophe forces the family to move to their new, titular street address as his parents wrestle with revealing to Eddie his real, paranormal identity.

There’s also a subplot about his father, Herman, the stitched-together Frankenstein’s monster of the group, and how all the trauma is quite literally breaking his heart. A father dealing with stress. A son growing up. A grandfather being a vampire.

The creators have put an emotional core under what is a dark, stylized update of the classic horror genre. I was surprised at how both graphic the visuals were and how dark the humor was. To elaborate, viewers see Grandpa operating on Herman’s broken heart and then zip Herman’s open chest back into its quasi-functional place. I might expect that at the movies, or on HBO, but my mouth was left agape at the sight of a vampire preying on a mountain lion being broadcast on NBC.

That successfully dark style stems from some solid talent in front of and behind the camera. “Mockingbird” was created by Bryan Fuller of much loved but often canceled cult series, such as “Wonderfalls,” “Dead Like Me” and most recently, “Pushing Daises.” He has always brought a tinge of macabre fantasy to all of his work, and it’s never so playful as it is here in the hand of skilled comedic actors.

Jerry O’Connell does a decent job as Herman, if slightly underplaying emotion at times, but Portia de Rossi and Eddie Izzard steal the show. In particular, Izzard’s grandpa is given the most to do in terms of humorous set pieces and lines, and someone with his comedic sensibility seizes every opportunity out of a strong Fuller script. Even the line, “And your wife is … interesting,” delivered to one of the Munsters’ banal yet suspicious neighbors, is given life through Izzard’s persona. It’s worth watching for him alone.

Still, there are issues. It may be that “Game of Thrones” spoiled me this summer, but I am having some issues with recent TV CGI. Though Lily Munster’s smoke apparition is well done, Grandpa’s first appearance as a colony of rats looks cartoonish, as does the exterior of the Munster abode. The interior of it is designed beautifully with a gothic tinge, but the outside looks very fake. The whole of the show also feels rushed, but such is the downside of a “special.” It cannot do everything in only an hour.

Despite some missteps, “Mockingbird Lane” is still wickedly entertaining and a nice treat for anyone in the holiday spirit. It holds true to both classic horror roots while injecting doses of humor and family drama, making for a well-spent hour. I’d like to see more of it, but if this is all I get, I’m pleased. It’s a much happier Halloween getting a fun-sized candy bar than a tube of toothpaste.

That’s right Dr. Hall, I remember everything, and I’ll have my revenge yet.

Published on October 29, 2012 at 12:33 am

Contact Jeff: jswucher@syr.edu