Creator Michael Schur's inspiration for his Netflix series A Man on the Inside was a really unusual one. It's based on a documentary from Chile, called The Mole Agent, which told the story of an octogenarian hired by a private eye firm to solve a case of theft in an elder care facility — by going undercover as a new resident. Schur cast Ted Danson, the pivotal player in his wildly surprising The Good Place sitcom, in the central role, and surrounded him with endearing and talented co-stars and supporting players.
The first season of A Man on the Inside was very funny, and its central mystery was a good one — but most of all, the series was about family, and friendship and explorations of such issues as trust, usefulness and mortality. Like The Good Place, it was a very philosophical comedy.
And now, for Season 2, A Man on the Inside returns with an even stronger story. With the way Schur flipped the entire premise of The Good Place for the second season of that show, you know he's capable of some unexpected plot twists, and he serves up several of them here.
This time the setting is a small college, where a wealthy and abrasive major benefactor has rubbed lots of people the wrong way. The school administrators come to the detective agency run by Julie — played once again by Lilah Richcreek Estrada — to investigate acts of theft and vandalism targeting the controversial donor. And she, in turn, dispatches Charles, played by Danson, to go undercover, by assuming a role he once held in his own past: professor of engineering.
This allows for a whole new cast of supporting characters, and this season of A Man on the Inside delivers magnificently. One faculty member, a music teacher, is played by Danson's real-life wife, actor Mary Steenburgen, who charms Charles — and viewers — instantly.
Another Man on the Inside newcomer is David Strathairn. I've loved his work ever since he played a bookstore owner on The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd in the '80s. You may remember him from such movies as The Firm, Lincoln or Good Night, and Good Luck. In A Man on the Inside, he gives Danson someone really feisty to play against. It's not Sam and Diane from Cheers, but I cheer every scene they share together.
Yet another new cast member, and terrific foil for the other actors, is Gary Cole, who plays the wealthy donor, Brad Vinick. Like Steenburgen and Danson, Cole also broke out as an actor in the 1980s, in the murder-mystery miniseries Fatal Vision. He's bounced ever since between comedy and drama, including memorable stints playing the same character, Kurt, on The Good Wife and The Good Fight. In A Man on the Inside, his character enjoys repelling just about everyone.
Schur, whose other comedy credits include Parks and Recreation, and his writing staff clearly have a blast making this show. Some character names are playfully preposterous. One entire episode, set at a Thanksgiving dinner, seems to be an extended parody of the intense holiday feast episode of The Bear.
And as it progresses, the show finds ways of involving actors and characters from last year — yes, that means Sally Struthers and Stephanie Beatriz are back — without forgetting to focus on Charles and his family, especially Mary Elizabeth Ellis as his daughter, Emily. A Man on the Inside is a light, easily digestible show, but it's also full of moments that linger with you. Some thoughtful, others emotional.
And what lingers with me the most, after previewing all of Season 2, is what a deeply gifted and impressive actor Danson is. And not just here. Think of it: On TV, since the '80s, he's been outstanding as a supporting cast member on Curb Your Enthusiasm and Damages, and as the central character on Cheers, Becker, The Good Place … and now, you can add to that list his late-career work on A Man on the Inside. This may end up as one of his most triumphant credits of them all.
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