Downward Dog

If you love dogs (or animals in general) then I'm sure you want to give this show a chance. And if you read reviews first I'm sure there is a chance you'll decide to skip it. I was turned onto to this show by my brother. I wasn't sure I 'got it' at first. Last night I watched Ep 4. I was by myself and literally laughed out loud. I'm now completely hooked.

Our hero is Martin, the companion of Nan. The show is narrated in the first person by our hero. Martin is a millennial dog, so yes he uses the term 'like' a lot. It fits him. He gets very philosophical about his very narrow life. He certainly thinks he knows more than he does. At times he has a very high opinion of himself, at other times he is a furry ball of insecurity.

If you can make it to Ep 4 I promise you too will LOL. There is a scene in they backyard playground of a super dog named Hunter. If you get to line "and then I was shocked" and haven't laughed, then you can be sure the show is not for you and my promise was empty.

I love this show, although I just don't think it's found its home on network TV as being advertised as a "sitcom." It's not your average network sitcom. I don't want to slap my knees at it. I don't want to listen for canned laughter so I know my cue. The show is definitely more of a "dramedy" than a sitcom. Maybe viewing it with that mindset will help people to lighten up on their brutal reviews of it on here. The word "like" is said quite often (as other reviewers have pointed out) but in modern day speech you'd be hard pressed not to hear it on a regular basis. The language actually does mirror that of normal (and yes, sometimes grating) conversations. Despite that, I found it to be a sweet and emotional show dealing with the pains and joys of everyday life.--Just trying to get through things and to be happy and loved. I really do love it but fear it won't be accepted because of its marketing and time slot. I really, really think people should give it a chance. It packs a punch within its 30 minute allotment--to the point where some longer network shows could really take some pointers! I've never been a fan of shows with talking animals but Downward Dog is deeper than just the cheap laugh of an animated animal's mouth. Kudos to those who created it from the beginning and kudos to all those involved in it throughout. It's truly refreshing to have something so new and unique in a sea of standard issue "entertainment."

After I got past the minor annoyance in the first episode of how many times Martin says the word or starts each sentence with the word 'like' and LISTENED to what he was saying, I started smiling and actually laughed out loud! I have done this throughout each episode so far this first season and the writer gives me insight on how I'd like to think dogs really DO think! Does that make sense in people language? :)

I am not a huge dog lover, but I love Martin and the fact that he is NOT all CGI and I could watch every show with just the 4 main characters....no other actors necessary to make me laugh!

I have watched all but the season finale episode of Downward Dog and I have to say, that I think it is BRILLIANT! The writing is so refreshingly innovative and the casting, sheer perfection--especially Allison Tolman & "Ned", the dog! Martin is so endearing and the voice- over work of Samm Hodges so realistic, that I almost honestly believe it really IS Martin talking! ABC has, without a doubt,given us a GENUINE WINNER with this one! I am so disappointed to see Season 1 come to a close, and CAN HARDLY WAIT FOR SEASON 2!!! YAY, ABC!!!

Like Reviewer "aeasmmikey", I also don't understand all the negative reviews. I started reading the reviews expecting to see people, like me, really enjoying this terrific new show, and was surprised at all the negativity. This is my very first IMDb review and I'm doing it solely because I absolutely love this show and want it to have more positive reviews. This little gem actually makes me smile and I even sometimes laugh out loud. I saw Ned the Dog, along with the actress who plays the lead, on Good Morning America recently and loved the fact that "Ned" is a rescue that the people involved with this show found and thought he had wonderful eyes. He does have very expressive eyes and the person who voices for him is absolutely perfect! I can almost imagine that "Martin" is really speaking, I kid you not! I look forward to this show now every week and really hope that it catches on. It really is a sweet little show with a lot of very good lessons everyone can learn from, canine and human.