Breeders

When writers Addison and Blackwell let “Breeders” wander away from its thesis, and especially when they allow Freeman and Haggard to play messy and complicated, it shows tremendous promise. It’s the kind of show a second-grade teacher might say is “bright, but not living up to its potential.”

The death of a family pet, among other events, leads to an offbeat but earnest meditation on grief (and the bizarre forms it can take), making it clear that the writers are much more adept at exploring darkness with candor and a splash of whimsy than introducing hollow edge to the parenting sitcom. That chapter offers an auspicious dramatic turn to this derivative, rarely laugh-out-loud funny yet wholly promising comedy.

Thanks to its creative team and solid performers, “Breeders” is a reliable comedy that hits all the beats one might expect from its “parenting, but more honest” premise. This adherence to predictable plots is also what keeps “Breeders” from being much more interesting than that.