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For those fans of Family Guy who love the character of Brian but wish he was in a live-action program, there is Wilfred, the Elijah Wood vehicle on FX. Season Two kicked off Thursday night. Read on to see how things resumed for Ryan and his very special best friend.
Oh, The Pain
As the episode opens, Ryan shows up at Jenna's (Fiona Gubelmann) house, to say hi to her and Wilfred (Jason Gann). He's a bit stunned when he sees that Jenna is wearing a ring -- she has gotten engaged to Drew (Chris Klein), and he's moving in with her. Ouch. Wood is pretty good at quiet, introverted desperation, and he really knocks Ryan's displeasure about the whole thing out of the park, acting-wise.
Dogs Have Bad Memories
As if Jenna's engagement to Drew isn't bad enough, Ryan becomes even more despondent when he realizes that Wilfred doesn't remember him -- or at least, that's what it looks like at first. As Ryan steps outside to talk with Wilfred, we realize that Wilfred does remember Ryan, it's just that Wilfred is happier hanging out with Drew and Jenna. However, Ryan seems determined to win Wilfred back. We can sense that getting Wilfred back means everything to Ryan -- if he doesn't have Wilfred, who does he have, really?
Core-Ripping
Next time Ryan catches up with Wilfred, they're on the beach and Wilfred is working out. Turns out he wants to become muscular and get a "ripped core," like Drew is always talking about. In fact, Drew often takes muscle-building supplements -- maybe steroids -- and we learn that this is a point of contention between Drew and Jenna. When Ryan is done pumping Wilfred for information about Drew and Jenna, he suggests that he enter Wilfred in a dog competition, so that Wilfred can go head-to-head with his arch-rival, the golden retriever Jellybean, whom he sees on the beach. The face-off between Wilfred and Jellybean is one of the funnier moments in the episode.
One Doggone Competition
When the day of the competition arrives, Wilfred is ready to prove his athletic prowess to Drew, and to take down Jellybean. Ryan has won Wilfred's friendship back by procuring steroids for him -- but at the last moment, he balks, telling Wilfred he doesn't want him to harm his health by taking the steroids. Angry, Wilfred trashes the competition's obstacle course as opposed to going through with it in the episode's startlingly effective comedic set piece. As the scene closes, Wilfred comes up with an idea -- Ryan could break Drew and Jenna up by planting the steroids in Drew's luggage, where Jenna would find them and become upset. Ryan shoots down the idea -- for now.
So, we're off to the races for Season 2 of Wilfred. What to expect, where will it go? Let us know where you think things with this truly eccentric show are headed.
Best Lines
"Memory is like the Packers when they're down two touchdowns in the fourth quarter -- it comes back."
--Wilfred, to Ryan
"You know, I'm just gonna go have sex with whoever's in the men's room."
--Amanda (Allison Mack), after Wilfred shoots her down for a date
"I'm not Dr. Phil, okay? I'm Dr. Wilfred. And I only call myself that when I'm DJ-ing."
--Wilfred, to Ryan
"Weak grip, mate. Flex-bar hand exerciser, ever heard of it?"
--Wilfred to Ryan, after they shake hands
"There's only one way I can win this competition -- we need to put a jar of flesh-eating bacteria on Jellybeans' legs and genitals."
--Wilfred, to Ryan
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