Just watched “Hank” and “In the Middle”.
So far…I think “Hank” will make it about 3 episodes. “In the Middle” could be pretty good though…I quite enjoyed it.
First of all, I should say that “Frasier” was probably my all-around favorite TV comedy ever, and Kelsey Grammer was excellent in it…
That said, if Grammer is really as arrogant and rude as is often stated, (here on SDMB and elsewhere) I suppose there are a lot of Hollywood insiders who are thrilled that he is now reduced to appearing in dreck like “Hank”.
This show was on par with the worst sit-coms in recent history, and actually made a trainwreck like “According To Jim” look good in comparison.
I dont know what would possess someone to think that there was anything remotely funny about this show, but I wonder if after tonight Kelsey Grammer will be looking for the the reset button (or the Stoli jug)
Not a big fan of Patricia Heaton, but she gets the job done. Maybe they’ll cut down on the voiceovers after the pilot. Neil Flynn was great, as usual. And that kid, Brick (Atticus Shaffer), is awesome, like he’s starting out as Dewey in season 5 of “Malcolm.” Nice to see Patricia Belcher has ANOTHER series (that makes 3 just this season: “Bones,” “Community,” and "The Middle) and I always liked Chris Kattan, though he usually creeps me out.
And those Murray boys sure don’t age well, except Joel, who is also 18 years younger than Brian. Eighteen years? God, I love Irish-Catholic families from back then!
Grammer’s show has the one quality I can’t forgive in a sitcom – it’s completely forgettable. My wife watched for five minutes, said “this won’t make it,” went into the other room and turned on the Ken Burns documentary.
In the Middle has possibilities. The worst thing about the show right now is Heaton – she’s trying waaaay to hard. Maybe now that the show’s actually on the air, she can relax. And I agree about the narration, I hope I never hear another voiceover on that show.
After the dreadful “Hank” I was worried that last weeks’ pilot episode of “Perfect Family” was a fluke (as I thought it was actually pretty funny) but last nights episode was again a pretty amusing half hour of television…
The gay couple were good, and I thought the storyline with Al Bundy’s (cant remember actors name right now) stepson was very well done.
Not a great show, but light years better than any of the other ABC wed. night “comedies”. (I realize that is the very definition of “damning with faint praise”)
It’s called “Modern Family” MPB. And I’ve decided to watch it as “Married with Children” 20 years later. It’s a fairly reasonable conceit - Peg died, so Al was actually able to be successful. Bud finally realized he’s gay, and Kelly hit her head a second time and regained her intelligence, but still has her past to deal with.
Ed O’Neill was definitely in Al Bundy mode last night -
“Bring whatever you wear in a hot tub.”
“Oh, I usually don’t wear anything in a hot tub. Why are you laughing?”
“Because my college roommate’s wife just had her hip replaced.”
And the story line with his stepson was Bundy-ish as well - he doesn’t really act as if he likes the kid, but he’s going to come through when the kid needs it.
I can’t stand the black haired dad though - he’s way too much of a Michael Scott clone.
Re:Hank
No wonder Maddy is moody, she’s named after Jean Grey’s clone. Kelsey Grammer is good in this (no surprise, he’s been good in pretty much everything I’ve ever seen him in) but the “we used to be rich now we’re poor and have to spent time together” theme could wear thin quickly.
Re:The Middle
Best of the night, I hope it sticks around a while. That creepy little kid was hilarious. The rest of them were pretty funny too. Nice callback at the end withanother plane flying over in the distance.
Re:Modern Family
Might be okay if they did away with the interview segments. It may work for the Office and (for me anyway) Parks and Rec, but not here. I like the Al Bundy/girl from Knights of Prosperity segments best. You can tell that even though he might not want to, he likes the step kid, or at least cares about him – even before that whole sappy “your daddy gave up his seat so blah blah blah” ending in ep 2.
Re:Cougar Town
It’s not nearly as horrible as I thought it’d be. Courtney Cox’s character seems to be pretty interesting, anyway, and not as big of a cliche as I’d expected. I’m not sure if I really like it or not, but I don’t hate it, and I really went in thinking I would hate it.