Happy! premieres December 6th, 10pm on Syfy.
By Kevin Levine
Happy! is an absolute blast! The show stars Christopher Meloni (Law & Order: SVU) as ex-cop-turned-hitman Nick Sax, and Patton Oswalt as the voice of Happy, a winged unicorn whom is the imaginary friend of young girl named Hailey. Hailey was kidnapped by a deranged and perverted man dressed as Santa Claus and now it’s up to Happy and Nick to team up and rescue Hailey!
Happy! is a unique and highly-stylized show directed by Brian Taylor (Gamer) and David Petrarca (Save the Last Dance 2). It is bloody, bonkers, dark, and graphically violent all while being surprisingly vibrant and joyous due to its Christmas-themed environment. It’s hard to get a sense of what I’m attempting to describe without watching it yourself. Based on the two episodes provided to critics, this is my favorite piece of voice work from Patton Oswalt since his performance as Remy in the Disney/Pixar film, Ratatouille. The optimistic tone he brings to the show makes his character, in my opinion, a really good foil to Christopher Meloni’s slightly psychotic – and always drunk or high – character of Nick Sax.
I don’t want to give away too much of the plot yet for two reasons: 1) It’s hard to explain and 2) I’m only two episodes into the show, so I’m still not 100% sure what’s happening. But what I do know is that this show is quite an adrenaline rush and never has a dull moment. There have already been several WTF moments in this show, but I’m worried it may rely on those moments too much and lose its narrative. We’ll just have to see what the story is like going forward. The show is extremely graphic, so be prepared for some absolutely gut-wrenching kills and imagery that are supported and amplified by brilliant cinematography and camerawork that I can best describe as eccentric. Happy! is truly a visual feast for the eyes that, hopefully, will have a stronger narrative focus as the season progresses.
I give Happy! a B+.
TV and City 