Tacoma FD is the workplace comedy developed by two members of the Broken Lizard Troupe: Kevin Heffernan and Steve Lemme. We follow the exploits of a firehouse in one of America’s rainiest cities. Since they have plenty of downtime from fighting fires, they fill much of it goofing off and playing pranks on each other. The series recently wrapped up another season.
Season four of Tacoma FD is a season of transition. Most of the crew follows Chief McConky over to the pirate themed amusement park after the station burns down. There is also the departure of Andy Myawani due to Eugene Cordero’s conflict in schedule while he filmed Loki season two. Much of the early part is used to bring the gang back to Station 24 and break in the new guy. There’s some hand-waving to get the guys and Lucy back to their old job returning to the status quo. The opening credits of the season premiere are a nice playful misdirect kind of making you wish that the show switched locations permanently.
With regards to Andy’s replacement, Christopher Avila easily slots right in as the probie, Andres Mickleberry. It’s not a like for like replacement. As Mickleberry, Avila makes his character sorrier than the original Andy and provides more youthful innocence. Andres is also usually the voice of reason and goodness, which provides an added dimension compared to his peers.
But Tacoma FD is about the sticky situations and foolishness they all get into. There are many entertaining episodes throughout the season. “Who Gives A-Shift” features the crew’s bizarro doppelgangers. We see a pretty shameless side of everyone during the firefighter wake in “Gone Dutch.” There’s no respect for the dead, especially Granny who goes to great lengths to receive his fantasy football payout. The situational comedy is great all around and the series rarely disappoints.
One of the biggest draws is the exploits of Eddie Penisi. The show strikes a nice balance of making sure the captain gives as much as he receives. He might be the master prankster at the station, but there is some satisfaction when he receives his comeuppance. For example, the cringey lengths he goes to avoid a dramatic breakup on Valentine’s day.
Tacoma FD also puts their own comical spin on current fads from online dating apps to the popularity of seltzer water to viral trends. We’re not talking any deep meaningful topics and themes, but sometimes you want to check out and have some laughs. The season finishes strong featuring the heated rivalry with the Tacoma Police Department. It does a good job building the peace up in “Kangaroo Court,” and tearing it all down in the finale. You can’t get enough of the amount of hate and insults that are hurled. Then the shocking reveal is enough to see where the series goes if it is renewed.
In a landscape where streaming receives all the hype, Tacoma FD proves there is still comfort watching on cable with its fun comedy and silly, playful workplace vibes.
Watch Tacoma FD on truTV.
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