‘The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins’ scores in NBC debut

For those fed up with the oversaturation of self-serving, empty sports documentaries, here’s something to laugh about.

NBC’s The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins debuted this week and is off to a promising start, skewering athlete-controlled documentaries.

The comedy is a sports mockumentary starring Tracy Morgan and Daniel Radcliffe. Based on the pilot episode, the odd couple of Morgan and Radcliffe is a winning pair.

Ever since the pandemic-aided success of The Last Dance, an increasing number of sports figures are getting into the content business. There are far too many documentaries in which the subject has final approval or considerable influence over the finished product. This type of control results in watered-down docs that are usually less interesting than those created by a neutral party.

Morgan stars as Reggie Dinkins, a disgraced former NFL star trying to rewrite his narrative. He hires Arthur Tobin (Radcliffe), a disgraced director seeking to resurrect his career. Dinkins believes that by crafting the right story, people will see him differently, leading to an induction into the Hall of Fame and a TV career.

The premise is believable and ripe for satire. How many times have you watched documentaries and questioned their motivations?

Netflix catches plenty of grief for questionable sports documentaries like Untold: Johnny Football and Untold: Sign Stealer, but it’s not alone. Apple’s The Dynasty: New England Patriots and Underrated, about Steph Curry, also came under scrutiny. The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins works because it shows the absurdity and arrogance of trying to grab the steering wheel of your life story when everyone knows what led you to the final destination.

As a comedy duo, Morgan and Radcliffe are unexpectedly good together. You wouldn’t have guessed that the 57-year-old from New York City and the 36-year-old Brit would connect so seamlessly. There’s real chemistry here, and it helps that the creative minds behind 30 Rock are also behind The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins.

Morgan knows how to play a self-absorbed character who remains likable. He’s easy to root for, no matter how narcissistic he seems. And Radcliffe has never been afraid to take chances in his post-Harry Potter career. He’s played Al Yankovic and a corpse. So seeing him as a filmmaker who went viral after a nervous breakdown is plausible.

The goal of a pilot is to set the stakes and introduce you to the characters. The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins accomplishes that while mixing in some terrific jokes, including one about a particular Muppet. (We won’t spoil it!) Pilots can be tricky because characters evolve, and not every episode has the same directors or writers. But so far, it has the potential to be a solid comedy.

The Fall and Rise of Reggie Dinkins is available to stream on Peacock. The pilot will re-air on NBC on Feb. 23 at 8 p.m. ET/PT, with the second episode immediately following at 8:30 p.m.