As an at-home dad, I’ve never been impressed with fathers in popular media. There is, of course, Mr. Mom. Funny, but not what I would consider representative of me or the guys that I know. Then there are other fathers whose main schtick is how incompetent they are. It gets laughs and, at least to me, points at dads as being the side characters in our children’s lives.
I would love to see a more positive approach to fatherhood in the next generation of media.
And Along Comes Turf Valley
Turf Valley is a new comedy featuring three at-home dads. That’s the way it is billed at least. But after binging the entire season on a single afternoon, I found this not to be true. The show is about three fathers who happen to be at-home dads. It is not their defining characteristic. When the viewer is introduced to the three main characters, they’ve been the primary caregivers for years. For me, this is a huge distinction. The show isn’t about how incompetent fathers are, or how weird it is for a dad to be the primary caregiver. It’s just about three dudes making life work for their family. Now that is refreshing.
Created by Tom Ventimiglia and Adam Rodgers, I had to wonder if these guys knew how different this portrayal of at-home dads were compared to its predecessors? Shows typically tend to paint us at-home dads as struggling nincompoops. Or if not that, overly effeminate where we have left every manly bone in our body at the front door as we prance around in an apron. So, I tracked them down and asked them. I’m a writer, I get to do this kind of thing.
“It was interesting to not go in the direction of the Humor Simpson Dad,” Adam said. “Competence matters.”
Dude. Finally.
“I realized that all the characters were me at any given time,” Tom said. “I’m the Type A, Howard Driven Character.” And other times he’s the loose musician like the character named Tyler.
There’s a deeper perspective to Turf Valley once you take that quote in mind. Tom never considered himself incompetent as a parent. I’m sure he’s had failures, we all have, but never as a part of who he is. It is not his defining characteristic as a parent and it comes through beautifully in the show. Not only that, but the show finally shows a dad’s group, something that I preach constantly. Men don’t have to navigate the world alone as we stoically stare into our stoicism. I can’t think of another show that portrays friendship of fathers better.
The Bigger Laughs Come from The Story
Because the show is designed where being a father is just part of who these men are, this allowed the creators to truly embrace the world of absurdity that all parents live in, not just at-home dads. And for me, this is where the show really takes off. As a humorist, I can see the techniques used to generate a joke. I often know the next bit of dialog to create the comedic tension. But with Turf Valley, I’m very happy to say that I was surprised.
And not to get into the nuts and bolts of writing humor, but Adam and Tom pulled it off. They are able to twist clichés about fatherhood (or the HOA storyline that crops up) and give a fresh take on the subject matter.
Tom said “…the amplification process is easy to follow. Where they live, there are some pretty extreme types.” He was able to take those normal types and exaggerate them and get to the humor that holds long after the joke is done.
For Adam, “a lot of the absurdity came from the dialog end of things. We were always shaving things down. The whole thing is edited to the economy of life.”
I like that term, the economy of life. That’s because the show is formatted in 7- and 10-minute episodes. I find that the free time I have is extremely limited. There is always something to fix, an adventure to be had, or a band-aid to be applied. The show’s novel short format works perfectly for a parent’s life.
But these short episodes allow for the jokes and writing to remain crisp and on-point through every episode so that the viewer is pulled forward. There are no lulls.
In the end, this is not a show for stay-at-home dads. Turf Valley is a show for all parents and it’s about time someone got it right.
You can catch the first episode on YouTube. When you need to relax and laugh, that’s your perfect starting point.
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