The narrator (Ron Howard!) does stay for the entire series. I didn't mind him so maybe try tuning him out?

@Smax said:

I'm about halfway in to season 2 and just about to give up on the series due to that ridiculous narrator.

Does he really have to explain everything all the time so even the slowest students in the class can keep up? If he's not narrating the obvious he's recapping half of the previous episode or filling in whatever blanks the writers couldn't fit in.

Does he continue this way throughout the series or is there still hope?

You're not listening to what he is saying. I mean, really listen. It's hilarious.

The narration is permanent, but Ron Howard is fantastic. Honestly, if you don't like him/ find him funny, then I wouldn't bother with the show, because he's intrinsic to the comedy. Arrested Development is one of the funniest and most consistently entertaining TV shows I've ever watched, and the narration is a big part of that.