Apple TV+’s Central Park is a well-done cartoon, musical and mood-booster all in one

Apple TV+’s Central Park brings lots of charm to the table along with fun musical numbers and a hilariously great star-studded cast.

Central Park review — B+

Some people have the belief that everything happens for a reason and that there’s no such thing as coincidences. Regardless of if that’s true or not, it seems like Apple TV+’s Central Park is on the good end of this spectrum, providing just the right amount of wholesome relief when we need it most.

The cartoon series comes from Bob’s Burgers creator Loren Bouchard along with co-creators Nora Smith and Josh Gad. And for anyone who watches Bob’s Burgers, there’s a familiar comfort when moving from that series to this one — that unique brand of humor that separates it from all the other cartoons for adults out there. (Yes, Central Park is definitely a show not meant for the younger kids, but teens and above would certainly love this series.)

For this, the stage is set in Central Park, where we follow the lives of the Tillerman family who actually live in the middle of the park. Kathryn Hahn voices wife Paige Tillerman, a journalist, and Leslie Odom Jr. voices husband Owen Tillerman, the manager of Central Park.

Just like Bob’s Burgers, this is the type of family that actually shares a love for one another despite the ups and downs they might experience along the way. And, it’s refreshing to see a relationship where it’s not just the “dumb husband” and “nagging wife” dynamic. Believe it or not, cartoon couples can actually show their love for one another — and along with children Molly (Kristen Bell) and Cole (Tituss Burgess), it’s really refreshing to see this type of family unit in an animated series. And on top of that, I haven’t even touched on the fact Owen is black and Paige is white — making their children biracial. This is certainly a rare first, at least for me, to see something like that in an animated series.

But enough about family, because the real deal about Central Park is the musical aspect. Sure, pretty much every animated show on television (including the ones for adults) have had some sort of original song in their series. But Central Park? It is a musical. And you get a good handful of songs in every episode (which lasts about 30 minutes each). As someone who’s studied comedy and musicals, the show always hits the mark for the best time to break out in song, usually during emotional heights or conflict.

And that conflict occurs early on when rich, old heiress Bitsy Brandenham (voiced hilariously by Stanley Tucci), comes up with a plot to buy Central Park and turn it into a hotspot for luxury living. At her side is Helen (voiced by Daveed Diggs), and in just the four episodes reviewed, the two stirred up enough chaos to really give the Tillerman family a run for their money.

In between scenes, you’ll also see Josh Gad’s character Birdie, a “Central Park regular” who acts as the show’s narrator and sometimes sings along. This may be my one fault with the show, as Birdie doesn’t add much to the episodes and almost seems like a last-minute effort to give Gad a role. But it’s not the absolute worst thing, and hopefully they’ll find more to do with his character later on.

It must be said, along with this, that the series is not comprised of one-off episodes. Yes, each episode has its own story. But unlike Bob’s Burgers or other animated shows, this series does have an overarching story plot, cliffhangers, etc. That, to its credit, just ups the binge-ability factor.

Really, Central Park deserves a lot of credit. From the musicians, to the writers, voice actors and everyone in between. This is certainly one Apple TV+ show worth singing its praises.

Central Park begins streaming on Apple TV+ May 29.