Jury Duty and Pushing TV's Boundaries

Imagine you're summoned for jury duty. You serve on a jury for three weeks, you're sequestered in a hotel and you form bonds with your fellow jurors. Then it's revealed everything was fake. Everything was one big social experiment, and you were the subject. This happened to Ronald Gladden. The result is cringe comedy, where Ronald acts as a lightning rod that siphons the cringe, so the audience can enjoy the humor in its purest form.

Jury Duty is a show about Ronald Gladden. Remember, everyone in this show is an actor, but Ronald is not. The show hinges on his reactions, and whether he plays ball. And thank God, Ronald is the most genuine guy and he never fails to deliver. The thrill of the show comes from the dramatic irony. We watch Ronald wriggle and squirm, rooting for him to play along, but also cackling because we are apart of the "inside joke".

The comedy stems from the 11 other jury members. They're all so weird, caricatures would be an understatement. Todd's an awkward inventor who's constantly testing Ronalds patience. Noah and Jeannie develop an off-putting relationship, that Ronald facilitates by wing-manning Noah. And the best of the bunch is famous actor James Marsden, who simply plays himself. James is an asshole, but his relationship with Ronald is one of the best storylines.

And over eight episodes, we watch Ronald get sucked into this mad house. He helps Noah break up with his girlfriend. He consoles Todd after his inventions fail. And he even covers for James Marsden when James clogs Ronalds toilet. Ronald always does the right thing, and it's impossible to not love him. Truly, it's impossible to watch Jury Duty without falling in love with Ronald Gladden. I love how Ronald somehow befriends everyone, even though the other jurors are supposed to be acting.

Jury Duty came out of nowhere. It didn't even gain traction until social media blew it up. And it's a great demonstration of how exploratory TV can be. I've never seen anything like Jury Duty, and I love that. I'm sure we will see copycats now, but I'm in favor of more experimentation. Give me Jury Duty - Medical School or Jury Duty - Summer Camp or really any theme honestly. This show is a breath of fresh air