TVSquad

While it's still waiting to find out if it might get renewed for next season, Gary Unmarried creator Ed Yeager and fellow exec producer Ric Swartzlander have already bolted for greener pastures. Apparently it was the old "creative differences" standby that caused the problem. Now normally I'd say that a creator leaving a show would be cause for serious concern, but Gary Unmarried is a fairly traditional family-oriented sitcom, so I should think someone else could steer that ship.

The show was entertaining enough when I watched it, but I never felt particularly compelled to come back the next week and watch it again. I can't help but think that this may be enough to doom the show. CBS has a lot of new shows to look at, and with Gary just so-so in the ratings they might want to throw something else against the wall and see if they can't improve on just so-so. If it does get yanked, they can have Jay Mohr return to the just renewed Ghost Whisperer. He's a better foil for Melinda than the still awkward Jamie Kennedy anyway.

Anyone who thinks that the lame, traditional, laugh-track-laden sitcom is dead hasn't seen Gary Unmarried yet. Unfortunately, I have. And I've got to tell you, it's probably the worst sitcom since the undead According to Jim first infected our airwaves in 2001. It's too bad, given the talent involved.

And when I mention "talent," I don't mean series creator Ed Yeager, who helped foist Still Standing on the American public for four years. I'm talking about stars Jay Mohr, Paula Marshall, Ed Begley Jr., and Jaime King, as well as esteemed sitcom director James Burrows. They're talented people stuck in a show that contains the same wacky plots and "setup-joke" rhythm that has led many to think the multi-camera sitcom is as dead as disco.

I suppose most people would lead with the fact that Jay Mohr has signed on to Ed Yeager's untitled comedy pilot for CBS. After all, Jay does have that regular gig on Ghost Whisperer. In a nutshell, Mohr and Paula Marshall play a couple that has recently divorced, after fifteen years of marriage. The funny is scheduled to arrive as we watch Mohr's character try to juggle his ex-wife, their two kids, and his new girlfriend, played by Jaime King.

That's all well and good. For me though, the far more interesting bit is Paula Marshall's involvement. I find her career fascinating. She's been on a bunch of great shows. The Wonder Years, Seinfeld, Nash Bridges (don't laugh, Nash was very successful), Spin City, Sports Night, Just Shoot Me, Nip/Tuck, and Veronica Mars, to name a few. Yet, for whatever reason, whenever she gets a starring gig, it all seems to go to hell. See Cupid, Snoops, Hidden Hills, and Out Of Practice. I don't get it. I like everything she's ever done, but it just doesn't work. So, I don't have high hopes for this production. However, it does offer a thought. It's quite possible that Paula was all set to star in a great new show for Tim Minear. Unfortunately, the sheer power of their combined abilities to kill shows sent the series itself back in time, canceling itself before the idea even came to be.