As the show opens, we introduce to Huang family, who are moving from Washington, DC to Orlando Florida. Eddie Haung (Hudson Yang) is already prepared, with some new bling and an Orlando Magic jacket. Of course, his mother Jessica (Constance Wu) forces him to put it back, claiming it is simply too expensive. Eddie introduces the family and admits he is the black sheep of the family. Louis (Randall Park) and Jessica explain the move to Eddie and their hopes for obtaining the American dream in Orlando, instead of working for Jessica’s brother selling furniture. Louis describes his plans to run a Cowboy restaurant in Orlando.

Jessica and the boys are introduced to Deidre (Rachel Cannon) and her fellow, annoying rollerbladers. Afterwards, the family head to Louis’s restaurant, the Cattleman’s Ranch Steakhouse. Of course, Jessica notices one big problem, there aren’t any customers. The kids, despite some complaining from Eddie, are sent to school. Louis explains he needs to hire a white host, in order to give the impression of a western setting. Eddie is introduced to his schoolmates, before lunch. He finds a friend, who doesn’t like kids, before joining another group of kids, who like his shirt. They run him off. Afterwards, he opens his Chinese food and ends up sitting alone.

Meanwhile, Jessica joins the rollerbladers, while discussing Melrose Place. She is instantly confronted by an angry Eddie, who complains about his stinky lunch. On the other hand, Emery (Forrest Wheeler) had already gotten himself a girlfriend and Evan (Ian Chen) is fitting right in at school. Meanwhile, Louis hires Mitch to host the Cattleman’s Ranch Steakhouse. Again, Eddie is sent to school, with his Chinese food, which he throws in the garbage on the way. Despite the hiring of Mitch, the restaurant is still struggling.

At dinner, Eddie reveals he threw his lunch out, before outlining his goals for the future, which include meeting Shaq. Jessica and Eddie head to the grocery store to get Lunchables. Afterwards, Louis spends quite a bit of money to shoot a commercial for the restaurant. At school, Eddie is insulted racially, before getting into a fight. Louis and Jessica are forced to stand up for Eddie, in front of the principal. After putting the principal in his place, he is given a coupon to the restaurant. Afterwards, Louis insists this was the reason they came to Orlando. At the end of the episode, we get to see Mitch’s performance in the commercial.

Review


Fresh Off the Boat was definitely a pleasant surprise. Although some of the jokes fell a little flat, there were still a few comical moments. The narration is a nice touch, but don’t expect Wonder Years level emotions. Nonetheless, the pilot was a success and was certainly interesting enough to make me want to watch future episode. A 7.5 out of 10 should do it.

Be sure to check out more of out reviews for Fresh Off the Boat.