Jury Duty
2023 · 2 Seasons · Amazon Freevee / Prime Video · Comedy / Reality
Jury Duty pulled off something that shouldn't have worked. A prank show built around deceiving one person for three weeks sounds like a recipe for cruelty, but the entire production bends toward celebrating its subject rather than humiliating him. James Marsden's self-parodying performance and the tight ensemble of improvisers create a world absurd enough to be hilarious and warm enough to be deeply moving. The middle episodes lose momentum when the comedy drifts away from the courtroom's natural tension, and the ethical questions around the premise never fully disappear. But the finale delivers an emotional payoff that catches most viewers completely off guard, and the show's faith in basic human decency gives it a staying power that most comedy series would kill for.