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Space Force, review: one giant laugh isn't quite enough in Steve Carell's new sitcom

Steve Carell leads a strong cast in the space race sitcom Space Force - Netflix
Steve Carell leads a strong cast in the space race sitcom Space Force - Netflix

Like the real-life space agency it portrays, astronaut sitcom Space Force (Netflix) is ambitious, glamorous and eye-wateringly expensive. Unfortunately, it fails to achieve full lift-off.

The 10-part series was co-created by Greg Daniels – whose enviable CV includes The Simpsons, King of the Hill, Parks & Recreation and The US Office – and Steve Carell, who starred in the last of those. Despite such credentials, Houston doesn’t have a problem as much as a mild disappointment.

In his first TV comedy role for a decade, Carrell plays General Mark R Naird, a decorated Air Force pilot who, to his surprise, finds himself heading up the newly formed sixth branch of the American military. His oft-stated mission? To get US boots on the Moon (again) by 2024 and achieve total galactic dominance. Rather than old foes Russia, this time he’s in a race against the emerging forces of India and China.

The character is a satirical riff on real-life equivalent John W Raymond, while the premise takes aim at President Trump’s rekindled space race (with typical subtlety, Trump described outer space as “the world’s new war-fighting domain”) and its controversially huge budget.

Indeed, potshots at Trump fly thick and fast. He’s only ever referred to as “POTUS” but there’s no doubt who the petulant, posturing, Twitter-addicted premier running a “chaotic administration” is supposed to spoof. A fashionista “FLOTUS” even tries to revamp Space Force’s uniforms.

Donald Trump's real-life Space Force is lampooned in Greg Daniels's comedy - Netflix
Donald Trump's real-life Space Force is lampooned in Greg Daniels's comedy - Netflix

A bracingly up-to-date script slips in zeitgeisty gags about Harvey Weinstein, Brexit and Elon Musk. The pumping retro soundtrack – The Monkees, The Temptations, The Beach Boys, Harry Nilsson – reflects baby boomer Naird’s CD collection. The music is foregrounded in a cinematic way that you don’t often get in TV comedy.

Naird uproots his reluctant family – loyal wife Maggie (Friends star Lisa Kudrow) and teenage daughter Erin (Booksmart’s Diana Silvers) – from Washington DC to Space Force’s secret base in the small town of Wild Horse, Colorado. The couple soon get separated in a way we won’t spoil here but which makes frustratingly little sense.

Kudrow isn’t the only marquee name stuck in a supporting role that under-utilises her undoubted talents. The all-star cast also boasts Noah Emmerich (The Americans) and Jane Lynch (Glee) as Naird’s bullying military rivals. Both are restricted to cameos. Comedy veteran Fred Willard, who sadly died earlier this month, pops up in his last screen role as Naird’s semi-lucid elderly father.

Best by far is heavyweight luvvie John Malkovich as Naird’s pompous chief scientist Dr Adrian Mallory. He’s been billed as a parody of Doctor Strangelove but is nothing of the sort. He and Naird’s blossoming bromance is the best thing about the series. At first, the pair clash constantly – the gung-ho military grunt versus the pacifist academic. Gradually they come to grudgingly respect each other and form a genuinely endearing odd couple friendship. By the end of the series, in fact, their roles are cleverly reversed.

John Malkovich gets a rare chance to flex his comedy muscles - Netflix
John Malkovich gets a rare chance to flex his comedy muscles - Netflix

This is a rare foray into comedy for Malkovich but he clearly has a ball and it’s infectious. He sings, swears, spits out catty one-liners and routinely steals scenes. As he and Carell play off each other, both palpably raise their game. Their chemistry fairly crackles.

After a scene-setting opener does all the heavy narrative lifting, the second episode – which sees a chimpanzee and a dog sent into space together – spirals into surrealism and it’s breathlessly hilarious. The subsequent eight episodes never hit such heights again.

Daniels knows how to handle an ensemble cast and the Space Force team are deftly drawn. Standouts include shallow social media consultant F Tony Scarapiducci (Parks & Recreation’s Ben Schwartz), Mallory’s bone-dry deputy Dr Chen (Silicon Valley’s Jimmy O Yang) and the immensely likeable aspiring astronaut Angela Ali (Tawny Newsome, a newcomer to British audiences but surely a star-in-waiting).

The latter two become the “Tim and Dawn”/“Jim and Pam” equivalents, developing an unlikely will-they-or-won't-they romance – even if it does reflect the “BWAM” (black woman, Asian man) speciality porn that Dr Chen definitely doesn’t watch online. No, you can’t check his browser history.

Rather than playing his usual loveable loser, Carell’s role is a refreshing departure. Naird is a capable military leader, if tightly wound and inflexible. Carell's cartoonish face elicits laughs, while his everyman appeal has you rooting for him. In flashes, he gets to flex his straight acting chops.

A second series of Space Force would be welcome, if they can find more jokes - Netflix
A second series of Space Force would be welcome, if they can find more jokes - Netflix

Indeed, these dramatic detours are part of the problem with Space Force, especially during its serious mid-series dip. It’s tense at times, tender at others and often feels more like a comedy drama than out-and-out sitcom. The dialogue has zing and bite but doesn’t elicit enough laughs.

The series ends on an agonising cliffhanger but after such an uneven debut run, is there a danger we’ll never get to see the outcome? Daniels’s previous form suggests we shouldn’t write it off just yet. The Office and its sort-of spin-off Parks & Rec both got off to slow starts but were given time by network NBC and grew into long-running favourites.

Space Force’s case for recommissioning might not be helped by its high concept and hi-tech setting. After all, a fully realised mission control requires a way bigger budget than the beige offices of Dunder Mifflin Paper Company or Pawnee Parks Department.

With Netflix’s deep pockets, though, I’d expect it to get a second shot at the stars. It will just need to make a giant leap in joke quality.

Space Force arrives on Netflix on Friday 29 May