The dog is indeed “man’s best friend,” however no one thought for a moment that man’s best friend may in fact be psychopathic. Wilfred, a popular TV show originally broadcast in Australia, has now infiltrated America with its own remake. The show stars none other than actors Elijah Wood and Jason Gann. Jason Gann, the original creator of the series and original star, has strapped on his mangy dog suit once again for the U.S. series and taken on the role as Wilfred the dog who, while domesticated, is anything but cute and cuddly.
Ryan Newman (Elijah Wood) is committing suicide. After printing the third revision of his suicide note and drinking a nutrition shake tainted with pills, Ryan, dressed in suit and tie, lies in his perfectly made bed and waits to die. However, death does not come to Ryan, and so he repeats the process. Whilst meditating upon death, the doorbell rings and Ryan answers it to find his secret crush, Jenna, the girl next door. In the middle of Jenna explaining to Ryan some problem she’s having, a dazed, strung out Ryan spies Jenna’s dog Wilfred, who, rather than being a small furry four-legged creature, is Jason Gann in a dog costume. Jenna asks Ryan to ‘dog sit’ while she runs on a couple errands, and so begins the unbelievable, sadistic, crazed friendship between a man and a dog.
Elijah Wood is perfect as Ryan Newman; a meek, timid, anal retentive young man. Ryan, as we come to know, has recently quit the profession of being a lawyer, into which he was pressured into by his entire family. Ryan isn’t good with pressure and receives a lot of it, mainly from his new friend Wilfred. Wilfred is smooth, cunning, and witty, and absolutely sadistic. Only Ryan can hear or see Wilfred for what he is: others see him as a normal dog. This serves as an advantage to the crafty canine. Wilfred has a way of really getting inside Ryan’s head, quite literally. So who does the insecure Ryan turn to for aid? Wilfred. Who is the worst possible influence for the insecure Ryan? Wilfred.
From smoking pot and engaging in intercourse with stuffed animals to generally making one hell of a mess, Wilfred brings Ryan into his idea of having fun, which most of the time is at poor Ryan’s expense. The two have an uncanny relationship: Ryan is secretly in love with Wilfred’s owner Jenna, Wilfred knows this and uses it to his advantage. Although sadistic, Wilfred is likeable; he’s charming, smart and funny. However, Ryan is our tragic hero, we want to see him win, overcome his endless confrontations with misfortunes, even though the only way he can do this is to break away from his possible schizophrenic partnership with Wilfred.
The show is fun to watch. The script is fabulous and blends off-color, black humor with a substantial plot involving many psychological twists and turns. It may be even more of an enjoyable show for its edge of the seat psychological elements than it is for its humor, luckily it has both. Wilfred has run through its first season, and it is speculative if there will be another, or if season one’s shocking ending may be all there is for the show. Either way Wilfred is a unique, fresh show, and while it may not be suitable for younger audiences, its great for everyone else.