Arrested Development: Meet Michael Bluth
A quick guide to the man keeping it all together, played by Jason Bateman
Keeping the Bluth family together is a thankless task, but somebody has to do it. That somebody is Michael Bluth: the man putting the “functional” into dysfunctional.
Played by Jason Bateman, he is promoted to the head of both the Bluth family and company after his father, George Sr, is imprisoned for building illegal homes in Iraq. This is an authority that, surprisingly, doesn’t go down well – especially with older brother, Gob.
Although presented as relatively normal and the only source of stability for the Bluth family, Michael is not without issue. In the wake of his wife’s death two years prior to season one, he’s overbearingly protective of his son, George Michael, and exhibits intense jealousy and dislike of his girlfriend, Ann. Or, as Michael calls her: "Egg", "Bland", "Plant", "Yam", and (with a sense of disappointment) "Her?"
Over the show’s three seasons, we gradually see Michael’s straight resolve starting to crack and flashes of arrogance and deception (especially on dates) break through. Creator Mitch Hurwitz has even said that that, in some respects, Michael is "the craziest one" as he is so blind to everything that happens around him.
Sample quote
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George Michael Bluth: "Way to plant, Ann."
Michael: "George-Michael, why don't you take Plant and wait in the car?"
Sample moment
