Government Cheese

This show may not have set out to remind people of Raising Arizona or Fargo, but it earns the comparison by telling its own comedically surreal tale of an unexpected Job figure, a story of another ordinary guy fighting against extraordinary currents. We may not all be Hampton Chambers, but we get him.

If "Government Cheese" isn’t quite to the level, or the depth, of the best of these ["Lodge 49," "I'm A Virgo," "Mrs. Davis," and "Fargo"], it’s a kind of show I like very much, and plenty of good things are therein.

If you can stay the course, a few episodes in it settles into a worthwhile family drama cleaved to a likeable crime caper. .... The money is not just on the screen – it’s been spent on the writing, too.

Government Cheese's standout moments, while quite sharp, could have benefited from tighter pacing to match, but it's still a joy to watch a project with its feet on the ground and its head in the clouds, and its leap of faith sticks the landing.

What “Government Cheese” really offers is something softer and more common: a mildly sardonic, artfully presented magical realism. .... The palpable intelligence that Oyelowo brings to his roles is a good fit for Hampton.

There are certainly funny moments in the first episode of Government Cheese, and we like the potential of the story, plus the performances of Oyelowo and Missick. But the first episode didn’t grab us as much as we thought it would. There’s enough good stuff there, though, to encourage us to stay with this show.

The first half could have likely been significantly trimmed without losing much, and while its sharp look is eventually matched by some much-needed character growth that gives us something to hold onto, it takes far too long to get there. All things considered, I wish it were a bit more filling, but Government Cheese eventually provides just enough to satisfy a hunger for the unusual.

There’s an intriguing, wilful surrealism here: it’s like looking at the American dream in the back of a spoon. Halfway through the 10 (largely half-hourish) episodes, however, and the studied whimsy starts to weigh a little heavy.

The cast is game, although their characters’ relationship to reality is frequently estranged. Mr. Oyelowo plays Hampton as a kind of Candide, an optimist in spite of everything and forgiving of almost anything. If this seems an absurdist way to conduct oneself, Hampton finds himself in the proper story.

There’s a lot about it I loved and enjoyed, but it suffers from the same problem as so many other prestige TV shows: were this a two-hour film, it could be brilliant. Dragging out a high-concept surrealist comedy to 10 episodes cannot help but dull its impact.

What “Government Cheese” really needs is a heavy dose of the ambition present in the streamer’s first and best attempt at the sub-genre, “For All Mankind.” Without that, it hardly registers at all.

Government Cheese lacks the storytelling substance to go with the attractive surfaces. It’s not even trying to go anywhere with purpose: it would rather just mosey eccentrically.

All but devoid of inspired storytelling or stylistic daring, the mild eccentricities of this series only ever feel, at best, like an affectation.

Instead of making something miraculous out of rudimentary materials, Government Cheese has a pantry of fine ingredients but never puts together anything palatable.