Champions

Champions has a cast and comedic skill many wannabe successful sitcoms would envy, but while these surface elements are all in place, the show seems to have missed a bit at the base.

Kaling and co-creator Grandy use plot as a display case for consistently funny writing, sweet and credible performances by the ensemble cast and most of all, the exceptional skills of J.J. Totah, who plays Priya and Vince’s proudly out son, Michael.

The exceptionally diverse cast brings a lot to the table, and the writing is smart and fresh. But right now it’s a bit too disjointed to be a complete success.

The breezily funny Champions might fare better if it makes things tougher on itself. ... That said, the moving parts that make up Champions will probably win you over.

In other words, Champions is a promising comedy, one that doesn’t arrive quite as fully formed as recent NBC gems like The Good Place or Great News, whose time slot it has inherited, but that offers enough funny moments and bright spots to place it squarely in the good category.

While Champions specializes in of-the-moment allusions, part of why it gels so quickly is that its character mix is borrowed from the sitcom bible: “Cheers.” ... Champions is off to a promising start.

Mr. Totah steals the show with his witty retorts and Mr. Favreau makes Matthew likable despite his naiveté. The rest of the cast, consisting mostly of the gym family, have yet to come into focus through three episodes made available for review.

Totah is clearly talented in a variety of ways and he gets the best punchlines in the early episodes, though his extremely focused myopia doesn't always track believably and the show has yet to figure out how to make Michael's schooling a part of the show in any real way. ... The show's workplace zaniness is definitely where Champions is most a work-in-progress.

The results in the first few episodes are mixed, with LOLs spaced a little too far apart.

Champions wants to be liked, and it is likable, but maybe just a little too eager to earn points.

There are a few amusing exchanges across this cultural divide, but they get old quick.