Review: Craig Robinson's Extremely Florida Sitcom
Killing It mocks capitalism, but at least it's funny.
Killing It is a comedy that gets South Florida, from the swamps to the garish mansions of Instagram stars, and Peacock thankfully released a second season this August.
The series stars Craig Robinson (The Office, Hot Tub Time Machine) as Craig, a down-on-his-luck Miami man trying to strike it rich by growing saw palmetto berries. When season two begins, Craig and his business partner Jillian, a plucky Australian immigrant played by Claudia O'Doherty, have won the state's annual python hunting contest (a real thing) and used the cash prize to start their farm. Before their American dreams come true, they must contend with social media influencers, self-help gurus, and giant snails from Africa (also a real thing).
The show is a critique of the modern economy's nihilistic ethics. When Jillian is introduced, she's working eight gig-economy jobs and sleeping inside a mobile billboard she tows behind her car. At one point, a clan of felonious rednecks extorts Craig—not for cash but to get on his payroll for health benefits. Almost everyone except Jillian, the moral center of the show, is swindling each other to get ahead.
This could be tedious if it weren't funny, but it's often hilarious. And if it condemns mercenary capitalism, it can't help but love the weirdos who survive and thrive in its geographic heart of darkness.
