Hank and Peggy Hill’s return to Arlen, Texas isn’t going well. After a decade working in Saudi Arabia (for AramCo, a propane supplier — what else?), the now-retired “King of the Hill” couple doesn’t recognize America anymore. The stores in the airport are unfamiliar. (“What, are we still in Amsterdam?,” Hank says.) The bathrooms are “all-gender.” (“Are we all gender?,” Hank says. “I believe I’m female-presenting,” Peggy says. “Well, I don’t want to be presenting my maleness to any kind of woman that walks in on me.”) Worst of all, there are billboards advertising Kansas City-style barbecue — in Texas! (The mere sight of which forces Hank to pull over.)
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Such startling changes are more than enough to get these once-proud Americans dreaming of the mock-America built for them overseas. AramCo’s residential housing zone was a folksy green oasis in the vast brown desert — a manufactured suburb so picturesque it may as well have been shipped over from Pleasantville. And maybe it was! AramCo could certainly afford it, just as they can afford to offer Hank a 30 percent raise to come back and work on a new propane project.
It’s a tempting offer given the Hills’ culture shock, and one they nearly take. But then, outside Arlen’s Mega-Lo-Mart, they stumble across a Girl Scout troop. At first, Hank and Peggy’s growing distrust in everything they once trusted gets the better of them. Does each box of cookies cost $50 now? Have all the tasty sugars been replaced with healthy alternatives? Is the Metaverse involved in some way? No, no, and no, the young scouts report, cheerily reassuring their potential customers. There’s a gluten-free option, sure, and those boxes cost an extra dollar, but otherwise all your favorites are still here — even Hank’s Samoas, which are now called Caramel Delites. “It’s more respectful to people from Samoa,” one scout explains.
“That’s a good change,” Hank says, smiling. “Yeah,” the little girl says. “It’s nice to be nice.” “It sure is,” Peggy says, holding her husband’s hand, savoring the moment the Hills rediscovered their hope for their homeland in the parking lot of a big box store.
From there, it’s clear the Hills aren’t going anywhere. Sure, there was little chance they would before, since the aforementioned events take place in the first episode of Hulu‘s 10-part revival season. But the message — that community and kindness can overcome superficial alterations to daily life — matters more than those practical concerns, and co-creators Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, along with new showrunner Saladin K. Patterson, make sure they stick to it throughout “King of the Hill‘s” rewarding return.
Season 14 isn’t just a revival for the sake of a revival; it’s a reminder that times change, but values don’t; that compassion, decency, and common sense still have a place in America, so long as we make room for them, and that adhering to those principles yields a much better life than clinging to outdated ideas of what America and Americans are supposed to be. Why not stay and stand up for what’s real, for what really matters, than flee to a fake memory of a rose-colored yesteryear?
And in case you couldn’t already tell from my chosen excerpts, Season 14 is also very, very funny.
“King of the Hill’s” mix of sly, dry humor, sociopolitical commentary, and silly slapstick remains intact, and Season 14 finds a nice rhythm from episode to episode. Given the various changes — the characters are all aged up 10 years, the season is only 10 episodes rather than the broadcast-standard 24, and there’s plenty of cast turnover, most noticeably in Luanne’s glaring absence (voiced by the late Brittany Murphy) — a sustainable balance was far from guaranteed. But Judge, Daniels, and Patterson craft strong episodic arcs that build to a subtly stronger whole, which you may not even notice amid all the chuckling.
After the opening episode (recounted above), Hank (voiced by Judge) and Peggy (Kathy Najimy) struggle to adjust to the idle pace of retired life. Their empty nest doesn’t help, especially with Bobby (Emmywinner Pamela Adlon) working in Dallas at his own restaurant — a “Japanese BBQ … with techniques from the German tradition of the Texas Hill country” (that’s paid for by Ted Wassonasong, a not-so-silent partner).
Luckily, parents and child find regular reasons to visit or check-in. Bobby and Hank battle and bond over various generational divisions, like whether beer should taste like fruit and if, maybe, charcoal can be a useful cooking tool sometimes. Even when the core family is kept apart, their respective plot lines are thoughtful and fun.
A late-season highlight focuses on Bobby and his childhood crush, Connie (Lauren Tom), as they try to define their revived adult relationship beyond how they felt (and who they were) as kids. It’s a mature, layered approach to the characters and their evolving dynamic, which takes more than one surprising turn, but there’s still room for silly gags and a satisfying side story about Boomhauer (also voiced by Judge) starting a new pig-hunting business called Boar No More.
Animation allows the sitcom more leeway that live-action revivals to pick up when and how it wants to, but in an era of far too many reboots, restarts, and redos, it’s the effort and purpose that makes “King of the Hill” fourteenth season so darn enjoyable. Most of your favorite Texans are back (as well as a few valuable guest stars), and they’re doing what they do best, which includes reminding us how to bridge divides — generational, regional, political, and personal — without preaching or talking down to anyone.
“King of the Hill’s” tender core was rooted in its investment in neighbors, new and old. When Hank takes on the manosphere or Bobby tries to understand ethical non-monogamy, they still approach each new oddity with curiosity, not contempt. They talk to the person presenting each new thing rather than talk at the new thing itself. They want to live in a community of people, not some manufactured replica of a time gone by.
As naive as that may sound in a world where so many self-evident rights and wrongs are being routinely, dishonestly evaluated and reevaluated, the series elevates simple truths in ways that are downright inspirational. Would a little girl saying, “It’s nice to be nice” sound so disruptive 15 years ago? Maybe, maybe not, but “King of the Hill” knows how to keep up with the times.
Grade: B+
“King of the Hill” premieres Monday, August 4 on Hulu. All 10 episodes will be released at once.
