Assembly Required

Maybe we had high expectations because of the cast and the concept. However, the humor felt forced and jokes fell flat. Possibly everything was a bit too scripted. Possibly it didn't work because of the Zoom format (necessary I know). It all seemed more suited to a 15 minute YouTube video. Makes me sad, hopefully they'll fix what didn't work. I'd love to see this succeed.

Hosts Tim Allen, Richard Karn, and their own internal disturber April Wilkerson , welcome their audience each week to watch how they pit three (3) inventors, mechanics, welders, hobbyists, and down right wack-a-doodles compete in building some very unique contraptions that no one but Tim Allen and Richard Karn could ever think of, let alone be responsible for testing these contraptions to see who wins their weekly grand prize of $5,000 each week.

In their very first episode the hosts find three unlikely guinea pigs to test their skills in first building a projectile fire extinguisher that must be able to put out a candle's flame from ten (10) feet away. the contestants have a defined timeline of five (5) days to build their contraption and then we get to see whose device/contraption worked the best. The one contestant does the worst is eliminated and then the two surviving creators are pitted against each other to commence their next assembly.

In this first episode Tim and Richard have assigned the two remaining contestants to build a leaf blower turned into a flame thrower that must be able to melt a block of ice attached to a chain in record time. These two contestants are provided a shipment of objects, a motor, and some other apparatus to help build their unique "leaf blower turned into a flame thrower" or they can choose not to use some of the shipped container and use what's available in their own workshops. Again, they are given five (5) days to complete their task, but for this the final event after the five (5) days have elapsed, the contestants are required to ship their creations back to Tim and Richard and this is where the fun REALLY begins. Oh and by the way, when the two contestants receive their packages from Tim and Richard ,April tells us that she has provided another challenge via sabotage for these two contestants that will show us if they can repair their contraptions before they can actually complete the contraptions.

We then get to witness how brave (or stupid) Tim and Richard are just like when we used to watch them test their own contraptions/creations on their previous TV comedy show (1991-1999) Home Improvement,

This show is a blast no pun intended. Mrs. Shullivan also was captured by this shows "what's next?" approach so I am giving it a much deserved 9 out of 10 IMDB rating.

Like the builds featured on the show, some extra polish and finishing touches are needed. The premise is solid and the best part is watching what the contestants can take from their mind's eye and put into action. I think one of the difficulties for the show is that it is done remotely. That can't be easy for social interaction between the contestants the hosts, which, if improved, would be beneficial for the show. The banter with Tim, Richard and April is good. More April would be nice. She has talent and I'm sure has more than her simple hacks they show. Maybe show how she would fix the purposely sent problem to the builders in the second round? Seeing her fix would be cool. One annoyance I have is the obvious product placement with Google and iFixIt. Google has been used for verbal internet searches, setting a timer, and simple math. Wow, so amazing... not. I'm sure the small tools/bits from the iFixIt kits are useful but viewers don't see that shown explicitly.

An excellent show fun to watch Tim Allen is funny in his own right Richard Karn isn't actually playing the straight man it's just when Tim can play off of him it's real good.

I am 42 years old so Home Improvement is one show I always watched and loved as a teenager. Tim and Richard are still pretty good in this. Solid banter. Most of the makers (contestants) are pretty talented and watchable. As far as April Wilkerson, I actually watched a handful of her YouTube videos 2-4 years ago and found her somewhat talented and interesting. On this show she adds nothing. Her scenes are all completely scripted. Almost cringeworthy actually. I just don't buy for a second that she knows many if any of the "hacks" she does.