For British Eyes Only:

Arrested Development and Neo-Victorian Television Comedy

Abstract

Stumbling upon Victorian adaptations in modern television drama is a routine affair. Locating references and allusions in television comedy, however, is another matter, in great part because the nineteenth century’s best humour is often contained within its dramatic
plots. Thus, turning to a critically acclaimed example of television comedy vérité demonstrates how Victorian themes – both comic and dramatic – can be re-imagined for laughter. Often explicitly Dickensian, Arrested Development (2003-2006, 2013, 2018) presents a particularly useful case to define the elements of neo-Victorian comedy. Centred on the Bluths, whose dysfunctional dynamic echoes several Dickensian families, Arrested Development consistently mines Victorian themes for its humour, demonstrating that contemporary comedy relies on nineteenth-century interests.