"Arrested Development" is a lot like an onion.

The more the show peels away the layers of peripheral pretense that embellish its characters, the more you want to cry, if not from mirth, than from the shards of irrationally clinging dignity that sting your eyes.

The show's debut of its second season was no exception; Michael Bluth (played by Jason Bateman), the show's everyman protagonist, was again setting out for Arizona to escape the tyrannous ties of his monetarily-well-lubricated family when he is sucked back into the family by the actions of his father, who may or may not have built houses in Iraq for Saddam Hussein.

From there, things spiral out of control as Ron Howard calmly narrates a path that seems it must inevitably lead to some terrible, terrible crisis that seems to be perpetually materializing. In particular, it's Howard's matter-of-fact statements of the show's plot twists that drive much of the mirth. The average viewer will find at least nine "Oh-no-he-didn't-go-there" moments in every plot.

The narration is only half the fun. The show is driven by subtly comic performances by a powerhouse ensemble staff, particularly mad comic genius David Cross, who brings neurotic Tobias to life with enough quirks to provide 1,000 television reviewers with clichés about neurosis. "The Daily Show" veteran Ed Helms makes a wonderfully understated guest appearance as a tragically mistaken realtor, and Howard's former "Happy Days" arch-nemesis Henry Winkler plays the similarly cracked family lawyer. Credit is also due to "The Larry Sanders Show" veteran Jeffrey Tambor, who does double duty in the Season Two premiere as both Michael's father, George Sr., and Oscar, Michael's uncle.

At the same time, the writing borders on divinely-inspired, and seems to be painfully aware of the America it inhabits. Michael Moore and Saddam are subtly referenced in the season opener, but the politically motivated sight gags come off as neither hackneyed nor highbrow, but genuinely funny.

The one problem the show may have is its viewership retention, which has been remarkably low.

Despite the ominous portents on the horizon, the current season is worth watching, if only to prevent the creation of another vacuum to be filled by a terrible reality TV show that will only serve to discredit television as an art form and give extra credence to a mother's favorite saying.

Besides, you know that stuff will only rot your brain.

Grade: A,”Brian O'Connor”

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