'Strip Law' Netflix Review: Outstanding or Underwhelming?
Adam Scott and Janelle James lead Netflix's animated legal comedy series, bringing the chaos of Las Vegas along with them
There is something intriguing and promising about an adult animated legal comedy set directly on the Las Vegas strip. The reputation of the city alone makes the premise interesting—neon lights, excessive gambling, endless spectacle, and delusions. And with a hedonistic magician teaming up with an underdog lawyer to turn legal cases on its head, Strip Law should work.
But 10-episodes later, I’m left with just one question:
Who is this show actually for?
Promise and Potential
Strip Law is a 10-episode half-hour adult animated comedy that was created by Cullen Crawford and stars the following performers as voice cast:
Adam Scott (Severance)
Janelle James (Abbott Elementary)
Stephen Root (Barry, Office Space, King of the Hill)
Shannon Gisela (M.I.A, Chasers)
Keith David (Platoon, They Live, Greenleaf)
The series centers on uptight lawyer Lincoln Gumb (Adam Scott), who is too boring to win cases in Vegas—often times the judge adjourning the cases mid-speech for an undeserved victory for his courtroom opponents. That is until he meets local magician and spectacle extraordinaire, Sheila Flambé (Janelle James), to bring flash and theatrics to his tactics as they take on the stupidest cases the city brings to their doorstep.
Again, on paper this sounds like a perfect mix of Space Ghost Coast to Coast meets Ren & Stimpy—chaotic and slightly dark nonsense—lightly structured under the guise of “the law.”
In execution? Not so much.
A Punchline That Just Doesn’t Land
From the moment you hit play on the first episode, Strip Law immediately looks and feels like the R-Rated animated version of USA Network’s The Rainmaker—an underdog lawyer who works hard with his ragtag team to earn the respect of his peers inside the courtroom—mixed with the absolute absurdity of animated series’ like Archer and Big Mouth.
The cases are over the top, ridiculous, and the methods of winning are beyond unorthodox; culminating in an amalgamation of zany and unrealistic storylines wrapped thinly in themes of finding self-confidence and professional prestige. Through multiple cases, chronicling a year from when we first meet Lincoln in Episode 1, Sheila helps transform him from a courtroom disaster to a lethal legal machine.
Given the premise, Strip Law should feel like a slow-burn, yet wacky, character evolution with the audience feeling a sense of pride by the finale.
So why doesn’t it?
Performances Outweigh the Plot
Janelle James as Sheila delivers a performance laced with sharp wit and comedically ruthless precision that we’ve come to cherish her for, while Adam Scott balances Sheila’s personality as Lincoln—socially and professionally insecure with dreams of being great but lacking the confidence and internal mayhem to do so. As a duo, they create the perfect combination that makes their banter feel real, despite the setting.
And perhaps the best part of the plot is the rivalry between Steve Nichols (Keith David) and Lincoln. He makes it his mission (and his personality) to publicly ridicule and humiliate Lincoln at every turn to keep him at the bottom of the Las Vegas lawyer food chain.
The friendship works. The rivalry works. The performances work. The structure?
Well, this is where it gets shaky.
Chaos Overshadows Cohesion
One of the episodes is a Halloween episode but the courtroom case and layout centers on Christmas…with a show release date in February. And while this is meant to represent how time, dates, and holidays don’t really exist in Vegas—what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas—the tonal and seasonal mismatch makes the series feel untethered right away, taking away the audiences willingness to align themselves with the overarching story.
It’s not the raunchiness that is an issue. That’s expected in a setting like this. It’s that the ridiculousness is oversold, overpowering the message and, ultimately, the watchability of the show.
Final Review
Overall, Strip Law falls a bit flat as the attempt to match the chaos of Las Vegas overshadows the central themes and storylines. The mayhem we’re meant to enjoy becomes distracting rather than immersive.
Vegas doesn’t need to be louder than the characters. The characters simply need to be strong enough to survive the madness. And Strip Law sometimes forgot that.
All 10 episodes of Strip Law are available to stream now on Netflix. Check out the trailer below.
© Kivonshe | So There’s That
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