This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Despite sporting this year's worst title, Fox's new sitcom "The Grinder" (7:30 p.m., Ch. 13) gets off to a nice start.
It's not fantastic, but it's likable. And likable goes a long way on TV.
Rob Lowe ("The West Wing," "Parks and Recreation") stars as Dean Sanderson, a vain, self-absorbed actor whose network legal drama — titled "The Grinder" — has just been canceled. So he returns to his hometown of Boise, Idaho, and decides to join the family law firm.
This does not please his brother, Stewart (Fred Savage,"The Wonder Years"), who is a real lawyer. Dean is not. And it pleases Stewart even less when (a) his father (William Devane) seems overly pleased that Dean is back, and (b) when everybody in town — including the judge and jury — seem starstruck by Dean.
The pilot is funny but pretty much one-note; continued success will depend on the writers coming up with more for Lowe, Savage and the supporting cast to do