Apparently if you find yourself in The Office of Michael Schur, that’s The Good Place to be—you become A Man on the Inside, and your life will be full of… Parks and Recreation… at Rutherford Falls… All right, I’m done with this bit.
But seriously, being friends with Michael Schur appears to be a good way to at least get consistent cameo work, if not full-on roles, since he seems to enjoy reworking with actors wherever possible.
Overview of A Man on the Inside
What is It?
Charles, a retired man, gets a new lease on life when he answers an ad from a private investigator and becomes a mole in various secret investigations.
A Man on the Inside is a comedy mystery series that follows a retired widower, Charles Nieuwendyk, who was hired by a PI, Julia, to assist her in various investigations. The second season focuses on Charles acting as a visiting professor at Wheeler College to investigate a stolen laptop—a loss that, if not corrected, may result in the college losing a massive, potentially lifesaving donation.
While the mystery/PI element of A Man on the Inside is what generally ties everything together, the series focuses much more on character interactions and comedy than on the mystery itself.
Who Wrote It?
Michael Schur is the creative mind behind A Man on the Inside. He’s also known for other high-profile television series, such as The Office and The Good Place.1
Content Warnings
A Man on the Inside features infrequent middle-weight swearing. It also features infrequent innuendo.
One episode of the second season features several instances of “artistic” nudity in a short period of time. Specifically, said nudity comes in the form of paintings of a nude model in which the breasts and nipples are visible, as well as a tiny statue that might be modeled after Greek statues (also famous for depicting the human form).
Prior Reviewed Season
A Man on the Inside S1: The beginning of Charles journey as a PI, Charles accepts an offer to become a mole in an investigation into a nursing home.
The General Review (No Spoilers)
I think a good, quick summary of A Man on the Inside is that it is genuinely enjoyable, lightweight entertainment. I doubt I’ll be thinking of this show much longer after finishing this review, but I had a good time watching it, I enjoyed debating with my wife who was the culprit—and which characters we liked and couldn’t stand—and I’m looking forward to a third season. Honestly, I wish more shows were like that—not trying to be runaway successes, aware of their strengths and leaning into them, and delivering on what was promised.
This show’s biggest strengths are its characters, by far. Season two focuses even more on character relationships than season one, and it works really well. I found the relationship between Julia and her mother, in particular, really touching—the Thanksgiving episode had me and my wife hugging each other tightly.
I also appreciated that, while season two was mostly focused on a new cast (it being a new setting and a new crime to solve), favorite characters from season one made meaningful appearances. It made my investment into those characters feel more justified, and encouraged me to really invest in the new characters of this season that I thought were going to stick around, as I had evidence that I would see them again (in proper amounts, assuming there’s a third season).
Wheeler college was an all right setting. The show works hard to show you just how much the new characters love Wheeler with all their hearts—sometimes it came off a little too strong, but for the most part I found myself feeling a connection to Wheeler and hoping the best for the setting as a character.
The mystery was acceptable. Don’t come into this show expecting an Agatha Christie–style whodunnit. That’s not what’s being promised. Several episodes don’t do anything to advance the mystery plot at all, and one of those episodes ended up being my favorite of the batch—the Thanksgiving episode. But the mystery was a good enough reason to serve as the foundation for why this story was happening in the first place, and I thought its resolution was satisfying. (Including the fake resolution that left my wife spending half the episode saying, “That can’t be it. That can’t be it!”)
Perhaps most important for a comedy, A Man on the Inside was funny. I mostly found it chuckle-worthy, but I did get a few out-loud laughs.
Some, but not all, of the humor was derived from quippiness. Fortunately A Man on the Inside never ventured into Marvel levels of obnoxiousness, but the occasional deeper moment was cut short by a funny comment, which was a bit of a bummer.
I also struggled with this season’s villain of sorts, a tech billionaire who was more a collection of tropes and stereotypes duct taped together than a real character. At multiple points it felt like Vinick was a thinly veiled anti-corporate, anti-wealth, anti-business message wielded with a sledgehammer, and if so this show revealed that it has nothing of depth or meaning to say on any of those topics.
Similarly, A Man on the Inside sometimes got a bit preachy about Wheeler college, and at times it felt like Wheeler was a stand-in for the university system in general. It is sweet that so many people are deeply attached to their college, but the purpose of college isn’t to be a feel-good daycare for young adults to spin their wheels until forced out into the real world—the purpose of college is to educate, and if we’re going to shine a magnifying glass on what makes Wheeler a good college, I wish we had seen what long-term effects Wheeler had on graduating students, particularly after graduation.
Finally, Julia and Didi are most likely going to start dating next season. A confrontation between the two made this pretty obvious early in the season, but then that thread remained untouched until the final episode, which I appreciated. This isn’t a kids show, so I don’t think there’s a moral issue going on here, but the introduction of anything alphabet soup tends to take over TV shows and movies like a parasite; hopefully the next season remains focused primarily on Charles and a new cast of characters related to the new crime, with supporting characters like Julia and Charles’ family getting meaningful moments.
Wrapping Up
My wife and I watched A Man on the Inside together and we had a wonderful time. If you’re looking for some fun, quick television that will brighten your day and not demand too much of you—but that still carries some depth and meaning, some interesting exploration of relationships and forgiveness—I highly recommend the show.
Enjoyed this review? Consider subscribing below so you never miss an update! You can also follow me on X.
I am also an indie author. If you’re interested in science fiction, consider trying The Failed Technomancer; if fantasy, try Inner Demon.
- Of which my favorite by far is The Good Place for its end-of-season reveal, and that by far. ↩︎
Boo Ludlow 
Leave a comment