Based on an Australian show, which never reached these shores, Wilfred is an oddity, to say the least. Ryan is a depressive, out of work lawyer, who after a failed suicide attempt, suddenly sees his attractive next door neighbour's dog as a big Australian bloke in a dog costume.
What makes it even weirder is that Ryan is played by Elijah Wood and his presence elevates the show to a level it perhaps doesn't quite deserve. That might be a tad unkind, because Wilfred pretty funny. The title role is played by co creator Jason Gann and he makes a first rate pooch, letting us in on the inner workings of a dog's mind and particularly his sense of smell. Ryan and Wilfred are a surreal couple and at times looked a little like Donnie Darko and Frank and, like that duo, there is a dark side. Wilfred leads Ryan into some tricky situations, like breaking into a neighbours house to steal his weed and dump in his boots, then Wilfred leaves Ryan's wallet outside the broken window. This wasn't followed up, perhaps that is to come, because you feel Wilfred needs a strong storyline to carry it along. There is a limited shelf life to a man dressed as a dog, if it doesn't take us somewhere.
On the upside, Elijah Wood and Jason Gann have a good on screen chemistry and the first two episodes moved at a swift, amusing pace. And I won't end with any sort of dog pun, so a bit of a let off there.
Over.
