Young Rock

Thanks to Johnson’s typically screen-filling, infectious and winning performance, the terrific supporting cast and some clever and original storytelling by showrunners Nahnatchka Khan and Jeff Chiang, “Young Rock” packs a formidable one-two comedic/dramatic punch in each of the three episodes I screened.

While fans of Fresh Off the Boat and Don’t Trust the B— may be disappointed by a dulling of Khan’s signature surrealist humor, there are still some sharply funny moments throughout Young Rock, and the show is certainly brimming with warmth.

Even though the series surely fictionalizes events that inspired him, these glimpses into the seeds of the Rock’s act are intriguing and often fun.

The show made me laugh, and a few times it even dropkicked me right in the feels. Future me may regret this, but I'm giving Young Rock my endorsement. [Kristen's Grade: B+] Khan is definitely working hard to squeeze her co-creator/subject's wandering biography into a fast-paced sitcom format. As much as I enjoy Constant, a lot of the high school and college material has a bland origin-of-the-hero self-help quality: How I Got Great, by Me. [Darren's Grade: B-]

Young Rock's amiable goofiness draws heavily, and successfully, on the personality of its pleasantly flaky star and subject.

Young Rock starts off well and it feels like it’ll settle in to a nice family vibe once it gets into a groove with its format. And as much as we like Johnson, it will get even better when we see less of The Rock.

As charming as Johnson is, the portions of the show that focus on him as a grown-up are the weakest part of what is an otherwise sweet and appealing family comedy.

There’s a too-crazy-to-be-true quality to Johnson’s real-life story that plays well in a TV comedy but it’s wisely leavened with more grounded, vulnerable moments, particularly the warts-and-all portrayal of Johnson’s father (Joseph Lee Anderson), and the complicated relationship Johnson had with his dad.

Three episodes aren't enough to tell whether Young Rock is just another version of Johnson working the gimmick, or if he really does plan on showing parts of himself beyond what we already know. Still, fans shouldn't expect any revelations, or to leave with a brand new understanding of their favorite celebrity, but it has a lot of heart and might even make you want to go lift a dumbbell.

After three episodes (the first two and the sixth), it’s impossible to tell just how well “Young Rock” will come together overall, but there’s enough promise to keep checking in — no matter what happens in 2032.

People struggling to wrap their arms around initial episodes of "Young Rock" may find a reason to stick around in the show's outstanding crew of actors impersonating such '80s-era wrestling legends as Ric Flair and Iron Sheik. That much the show nails straightaway.

Promising but uneven, energetic but frustratingly familiar.

Like Fresh Off the Boat, Young Rock isn’t wildly funny in the early going, but feels as if the laughs will grow bigger the better we get to know the characters. That there are so many actors playing our hero, not to mention different supporting casts in each era, complicates matters.

To call this a vanity project would be an understatement, but Johnson's inherent likability goes a long way, and he spells out that this isn't going to be all happy nostalgia, citing missteps that he learned from along the way.

The ambitious Young Rock jumps around in these timelines, the storytelling hampered by the smug framing device of the adult Johnson running for president. [1-14 Mar 2021, p.9]

In the main, these featherweight stories have a simple, charming appeal, with period detail, subtly shifting between time jumps, tending to distract from just how little is going on. Meanwhile, the grown-ups — Anderson, Stacey Leilua as Johnson’s mother, and Ana Tuisila as his wrestling-promoter grandma — add just enough heft to make the show work.