Jay Mohr moonlights away from his regular gig on Ghost Whisperer to star as Gary Brooks in this traditional sitcom. CBS has paired Gary Unmarried with The New Adventures of Old Christine, which creates an interesting dynamic. First, you have Julia Louis-Dreyfus as a divorced woman trying to live her own life while dealing with her ex and their kid. Then you get Jay Mohr as a recently divorced man trying to live his own life while dealing with his ex and their kids.
In fact, this seems to be almost the same show, only from the ex-husband's point of view rather than the ex-wife's point of view. Husband is a bit more lax with the kids while mom is overbearing and a bit crazy. I do like that in this variation, the kids have more distinct and important personalities. In fact, Gary (premiering tonight at 8:30 PM ET) has a much wider cast altogether. Both spouses have new relationships and Gary's girlfriend has a kid of her own.
Ultimately, there wasn't anything particularly groundbreaking about the show, it still stands up as a pretty good sitcom. And I think it will make a very comfortable fit with Christine. Her audience should find this equally appealing and charming. I always thought Jay Mohr was a better fit in a comedy than a drama, and while I've enjoyed his presence on Ghost Whisperer, it was more for the role he played in helping Melinda than for his acting prowess. That said, I don't mind losing him to this little show.
Bits and Pieces
- "I can't invite a girl over here. What if she expects me to tap it." I love the son and daughter, and the fact that Gary is encouraging his son to explore relationships with women, whereas Allison thinks he's not ready.
- It was a bit of a stretch that Gary's former marriage counselor Walter, and current fiance to his ex-wife Allison, offered to mediate the discussion between Gary and Vanessa and even moreso that the two took him up on it.
- A lot of it all just came together a bit too conveniently, but then again this was the pilot establishing the relationships and characters, and for that it did a fine job. There were enough chuckles to keep it humming along and now we know who's who and how they're all connected.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
9-24-2008 @ 11:17PM
Mrs O'Leary said...
It's a watchable generic comedy.
It has a certain charm about it and is well cast.
The wife - Paula Marshall - played the student in Seinfeld who eavesdropped on Jerry and George in the restaurant and reported that they were a couple.
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9-24-2008 @ 11:43PM
Christopher said...
Not to mention the hot tub incident on Nip/Tuck.
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9-25-2008 @ 8:59AM
KenMo said...
I like Jay, and he does a fine job here. It's got to be at least as good as Jim Belushi and he's been on for years now.
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9-25-2008 @ 9:44AM
Danielle said...
I liked the show and will continue to watch. Why did I not realize he was on Ghost Whisperer?! I guess I wont be seeing him on there anymore. The kids are okay...the boy is funny about the "tap" that part.
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9-25-2008 @ 11:09AM
The Pepto Pimp said...
I thought this was a terrible show. Nothing in it interested me. Especially not the characters or performances. It's like everyone involved is building their resume and/or whoring for a regular paycheck.
Jay's work on Ghost Whisperer was far more entertaining and interesting.
I give Gary 5 airing before the network pulls the plug.
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9-25-2008 @ 11:50AM
Danielle said...
Hmm...seems like Paula Marshall is in 7 episodes of Californication that premieres this Sunday.
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9-25-2008 @ 12:55PM
Jag said...
I like Jay and watched the show specifically because of him but didn't really care for the show. I do love The New Adventures of Old Christine. I think its one of the better comedies.
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9-25-2008 @ 4:33PM
Jimmy said...
I recorded the pilot and thought it was pretty good -- cute, funny and well-written. The only criticism I have is that the son seemed mis-cast. Maybe he will grow on me.
For the record, I tuned in for the Christine pilot (however long ago that was) and couldn't stand it.
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9-25-2008 @ 5:00PM
ratphink said...
I'll be watching this just to see super hot Paula Marshal! She was in a great series I loved called Hidden Hills, yet another series to get the axe too early.
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9-25-2008 @ 7:08PM
Bob said...
When the 14 year old son took a while before opening his bedroom door, and his 14 female friend was hiding under the bed, why was she hiding?
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9-25-2008 @ 9:12PM
Burroughs said...
I liked the opening sequence. It made me laugh. The show had energy but I did not care for the negativity between the exs. I was pleased to see the little girl that was on Back to You as the daughter although she was not really utilzied that well. The young actor who played the son did well. I agreed with the review and we will probably give it some episodes to see how it plays out. When the rest of the season unfolds and our watching schedule gets full, this may be a show to get cut. We shall see.
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