Wilfred – “Respect” – review

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“Seek respect mainly from thyself, for it comes first from within.” – Steven H. Coogler

Last week’s episode of Wilfred took things down a darker path with its premise surrounding dog molestation. Turns out that was just a taste of how dark Wilfred could get, which is pretty freaking dark.

Ryan is lacking in the self respect department and volunteers at a hospice to appear more heroic in Jenna’s eyes. He brings Wilfred along, and soon everyone there, sans Ryan, believes Wilfred can sense when someone is going to die. Craving the attention, Ryan allows Wilfred to continue the charade. When he can’t repeat the performance, Wilfred opts to smother an old lady with a pillow. Now we’ve entered dark comedy territory.

This is Wilfred at his most intense. He’s shooting up heroin, snorting ground up pills, and murdering people. In any other show this would be dramatic, but this is a show seen through Ryan’s eyes, so it’s skewed and played for laughs, albeit awkward “should I find this funny?” laughs. Don’t forget, Wilfred’s a guy in a dog suit. Ryan’s interpretations of events made for some great scenes, my favorites being Wilfred gliding across the room with old folks begging him to kill them, and the confrontation Ryan has with Wilfred on the roof during a downpour. That rooftop scene is perfectly over the top, adding to how messed up the situation is. The show never forgets that Ryan is basically imagining everything and leaves it ambiguous whether or not Wilfred did any actual killing.

Guest starring this week is the always adorable Rashida Jones, who plays a nurse at the hospice. Her character is a little odd, but she fit perfectly into this bizarre world. We got to see Jenna a bit more than usual and learned she has a bit of cruelness to her, as she excitedly gets ready to do an exclusive news story about a suicide.

Earlier episodes were a lot more traditional comedy, with a little bit of dark humor here and there. These last two episodes have cranked things up a notch, really showing how far the show is wiling to go, and I personally love the direction it’s heading. The darkness is exactly what Wilfred needs to keep things unexpected.

Quotes

“It’s like those baby killers say, my body, my choice.”

“These people are ready to die. Hope is the last thing they need.”

“How many people can watch a whole season of The Wire in one sitting? Not many, I’ll wager. That shit is dense.”

“Don’t mind Ruby. She’s been a total bitch since the earthquake took her family.”