Arrested Development (TV series)

Arrested Development is a character-driven comedy television series about a wealthy and dysfunctional family. The show is presented like a documentary, complete with narration, archival photos, and historical footage. Although set in Newport Beach, California and Balboa Island, it is primarily filmed on location around Culver City and Marina Del Rey.

Brief outline

The plot of Arrested Development revolves around the Bluth family. The patriarch of the clan, George Bluth Sr. is founder and former C.E.O. of the Bluth Company, which builds homes, among other things. George Sr. was arrested by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for defrauding customers and spending too much of the company's money on "personal expenses". He was convicted and sent to Orange County Prison that, ironically, his company had built in 1983.

Related Topics:
C.E.O. - Bluth Company - U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission - 1983

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Meanwhile, his wife, Lucille became C.E.O. and immediately named her youngest son Buster as the new president, but he was not prepared for the rigors of the job. Michael, the middle son and twin to the Bluths' only girl, Lindsay, then was awarded control. He maintained control until he himself became the target of the ongoing investigation into the company's financial records and various dealings. At that point, eldest son George Oscar Bluth (G.O.B.) was named president.

Related Topics:
C.E.O. - Buster - President - Michael - Lindsay - George Oscar Bluth (G.O.B.)

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

The show focuses on the tension that developed between the members of the Bluth family due primarily to their diminished spending power. Sibling rivalries, unresolved oedipal conflicts, sexual incompatibilities, personal identity crises, adolescent trauma, aging, pride, miscommunication, lying, guilt, subterfuge, determination, manipulation, mutilation, social status anxiety, and countless other themes weave serpentine throughout Arrested Development.

Related Topics:
Oedipal - Identity - Adolescent - Guilt

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Much like other dysfunctional family comedies such as Malcolm in the Middle, The Simpsons, Roseanne, and Married... with Children, the family unit is depicted as necessary for the survival of the individual. Much of the comedy comes from the quirks of the characters and the patterns that developed within the family structure. The show is considered by some as a faster-paced variant of the series Soap.

Related Topics:
Malcolm in the Middle - The Simpsons - Roseanne - Married... with Children - Individual - Soap

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~