Joel McHale's 'Animal Control' Is Still One of TV's Best-Kept Secrets | Review

Published Sep 27, 2026, 10:00 AM EDT Tania Hussain is an Executive Editor at Collider responsible for creative, editorial, and managerial duties. In addition to leading content ideation and development, she works to generate innovative and compelling ideas for feature articles and reviews with her editorial team across Features, Lists, Reviews, and Interviews. She also serves as the primary editor overseeing Collider’s Signature Series profiles, spotlighting some of the most influential voices in film and television. Tania has helped cover and ideate content for major events for Collider, including the Toronto International Film Festival. She has also conducted more than 100 interviews since her start in the business more than 15 years ago. Some favorites include Joel McHale, Charlie Cox, Jennifer Garner, Tina Fey, Kate Winslet, Bob Odenkirk, Andy Richter, Jordan Schlansky, Jamie Dornan, Yeardley Smith, Rafe Spall, Esther Smith, and a reasonable toss-up between Cookie Monster and Kermit the Frog. She has covered set visits, in-person junkets, and red carpets for several films and TV shows, including most recently, The Sheep Detectives, Masterchef, and Star Trek: Starfleet Academy. Five seasons is no small miracle for a sitcom that feels like one of TV’s best-kept secrets. Fox’s Animal Control continues to blend the deliciously funny workplace chaos of Brooklyn Nine-Nine with the easy ensemble chemistry of Parks and Recreation. But amid the wild animal calls and shenanigans that give the series its own brand of nonsense from showrunners Bob Fisher, Rob Greenberg, and Dan Sterling, it’s also delivering one of its best seasons to date. After all, where else can you find a show that makes a puppy mill raid look like a Michael Bay movie, but ends with a $63 citation fee? And maybe that’s the single-camera sitcom’s best part. The ensemble series led by Joel McHale is still very good at creating that sharp turn of humor, proving it’s one of TV’s greatest underrated comedies. With the first two episodes of its newest season made available for review, Animal Control wastes no time reminding us how it continues to be one of the funniest, most genuine comedies on network television. While all the adorable creatures, great or small, still cause trouble for Seattle’s Northwest Seattle Division, it’s the wonderfully dysfunctional crew that will keep you watching. What Is ‘Animal Control’ Season 5 About? Image via Bettina Strauss/FOX With Animal Control Director Emily (Vella Lovell) suspended after her relationship with Officer Shred (Michael Rowland) came to HR’s attention last season, the Northwest Seattle Division begins Season 5 short on patience and stuck with a boss nobody wants. Emily is still in the trenches, and by trenches, we mean hitting the highs of baking like it was the pandemic all over again. Her hearing is weeks away, but in the meantime, Templeton (Gerry Dee) is making himself comfortable in her office. It’s obviously bugging TF out of Frank (McHale), who leads the team in a work stoppage, though his determination to oust the new lead is tested when the Seattle Seahawks’ mascot goes missing. Despite being told he is barred from the rescue operation and Templeton enlists Daisy (Kyla Pratt), the job brings out Frank’s best instincts and his worst impulses. But as the office curmudgeon tries to work with Templeton’s lackey, he realizes the team has a bigger problem ahead of them in the form of short king, Roman Park (Ken Jeong), whose private animal control agency is moving into city territory. Suddenly, things like low service scores carry more weight than they usually would, sending the team into a panic in Episode 2’s “Crows and Lizard Legs.” But as the season progresses, the others have their own distractions, like Patel (Ravi Patel) dealing with his daughter’s new boyfriend or Victoria (Grace Palmer) trying to pass along a piglet she found. Across its first two episodes back, Season 5 lets those personal stories stay delightfully messy while giving the whole precinct a shared concern: Argue over who’s in charge later, but first, make sure there’s still a precinct to run. It’s also a sharp way to spotlight McHale’s Frank as the team’s lead as the milestone season nudges him into a more selfless, altruistic mission to put not just the animals first, but the team he will never admit he loves. ‘Animal Control’s Ensemble Is Still One of TV’s Best McHale knows exactly how much dignity Frank needs to lose before a scene gets funny. In the premiere, he guides the team through, basically, a work strike that feels like a righteous cause, but then lets his character’s excitement over the Seahawks’ missing mascot cut straight through it. As we see with his comedic timing, that balance in humor is best seen in the “Seahawks and Piglets” premiere’s cold open or the laugh-out-loud moment of him in Episode 2 screaming at the top of his lungs while cornered in a crawlspace with a furry creature. It’s also McHale’s signature dry humor that holds those extremes together while opening up another side of Frank audiences love. Stepping up to what feels like a bigger role this season is Dee, who’s a strong match for McHale as he plays Templeton’s authority with absolute conviction — even when his latest precinct addition is a utility belt Daisy can barely carry. One of the premiere’s highlights is the hilariously bare-chested, grease-covered fight that is downright ridiculous, with squelching sounds that you can’t unhear. Meanwhile, Pratt levels up Daisy from spectator this season with an eager, sharp pace that gives her partnership with Frank and the others its own prickly rhythm. Lovell is especially funny in the quieter scenes, giving Emily’s scone delivery such an earnest warmth that everyone’s strained politeness becomes the joke — even if there’s more to it than meets the eye. As the others find themselves juggling more than usual this season, Rowland lets Shred’s anxiety build in small steps as he finds an absorbing balance of being the supportive boyfriend still doing his job. Similarly, Palmer continues to sharpen that easy wit and carefree vibe, landing every joke through dry responses that never interrupt a scene’s rhythm. Patel continues to give his namesake character an endearingly stressed edge that brings a comically commanding intensity to scenes with his daughter Addy’s (Dayah Brar) boyfriend. Last but not least is Jeong’s Roman, who he plays with such a cheerful self-belief that his nonchalance feels like an asset to the character and one that adds another dimension of comic relief to every situation, especially as the precinct locks him as their target. With Roman being back, it’s clear everyone has a different way of getting a laugh, and they’re each as good at giving one another room to land it. ‘Animal Control’ Season 5’s Writing Is Funnier Image via Bettina Strauss/FOX One of the more interesting aspects of Animal Control this far into its network TV plunge is how there are real stakes that give room for its characters to really develop. Season 5 gives the precinct something more pressing than its usual arguments and shenanigans: The possibility that the team could lose its place to Roman’s private agency. What’s more grounded is how that threat has a foothold in reality, as cities can hand animal control services to outside organizations. This gives the precinct’s fight a little more bite than the usual workplace rivalry. Not only does that threat change how the characters see their jobs and one another, but it’s clear they can’t afford to ignore what’s happening around them. Even with Emily trying her best to help where she can, the writing this season lets these loyalties show through all the bickering without prompting a big speech about friendships. Instead, the jokes do double duty, showing how much these people depend on one another even if they drive each other up the wall. But better yet, the comedy has gotten funnier. The jokes come faster this season and still align with that signature slapstick style sprinkled in with a few sight gags. But the show still knows when to leave space for a deadpan reaction or an uncomfortable pause. The nearly 22-minute episodes move easily between an animal call, a workplace dispute, and someone’s personal crisis, with each plot reaching a charming end before the next begins. Best of all, there’s more energy here than in a sitcom simply enjoying the company of familiar characters, thanks to some bonkers pairing that elevates the humor. Animal Control knows this crew well enough to put them under pressure and find fresh reasons for them to drive each other mad, and that’s a lovely place for a fifth season to be. Animal Control airs Sundays on Fox at 8:30 p.m. EST and streams the next day on Hulu. Release Date February 16, 2023 Network FOX Directors Jay Chandrasekhar Writers Dan Sterling, Tad Quill Creator(s) Dan Sterling, Rob Greenberg, Bob Fisher Pros & Cons McHale's dry timing makes Frank both ridiculous and easy to root for. The comedy is faster and funnier, with room for deadpan beats. Roman's agency gives the precinct a shared threat with real stakes. Emily's suspension keeps her away from the precinct, limiting the time Lovell gets to play off the full ensemble.