Critic Reviews

What’s promising about “DMV” is its confidence after only four episodes. Comedies often take time, maybe even a full season, to find their voice, and “DMV” is already at that phase where it just needs to refine what it does well to become a weekly watch for the millions of people who still watch CBS.

Intermittently charming, only occasionally cringe-worthy, the series serves up characters who can be swiftly defined by traits and quirks. .... But “DMV” has a snappy pace, and Meadows, Dyer and Kearney all pass with flying colors.

While there is nothing particularly negative to say about "DMV," there also isn't a stand-out spark to it, either. The jokes are funny but not hilarious, and the characters are likable but not memorable.

DMV is only okay most of the time. But should it settle into a more comfortable groove over its journey, it has the potential to turn, eventually, into a fun ride.

Its perfect averageness makes it easy to dismiss, but it’s a painless, pleasant half-hour, with a smattering of genuine laughs. And like every such show, it can be expected to ripen with age, if age comes.

Despite being generic and middling at first, as the series settles into itself, the potential of what it could be begins to shine through.

While there doesn’t seem to be anything new about DMV, the cast has potential and the first episode had enough funny moments to give the show a chance.

“DMV” also recycles too many jokes within the same 20-minute arc. (I’m hesitant to identify them as “callbacks” — a new comedy should be eager to show off new jokes, and the adhesive maxi-pad bit just isn’t funny enough for a running gag.) At least we know Dyer is playing in a familiar sandbox, so it’s safe to assume she’ll start building better castles in time.

As with most work-related premises, there’s undoubtedly a good sitcom lurking at the DMV. .... But the glimmers of invention (the driving testers keep track of the number of days since they were almost killed on a whiteboard) are so meager here that this DMV feels as perfunctory and forgettable as re-registering your car.

All the gags are telegraphed and obvious. A second episode shows some improvement, but not enough.