Welcome to a new Wildcard Wednesday! This week, I’m spotlighting a notable short-lived sitcom that was briefly paired with Modern Family on ABC’s Wednesday night schedule!
MR. SUNSHINE (February 2011 – April 2011, ABC)
Premise: The manager of a second-tier sports arena has a crazy boss and a messy personal life.
Cast: Matthew Perry, Allison Janney, Andrea Anders, James Lesure, Nate Torrence, Portia Doubleday, David Pressman
Writers: Matthew Perry, Mark Firek & Alex Barnow, Sally Bradford, Eric Gilliland, Matthew Carlson, Bryan Adams, Casey Johnson & David Windsor
Thoughts: Matthew Perry is uniquely funny. Allison Janney is one of the most gifted actresses of the 21st century. And workplaces tend to be some of my favorite setups for situation comedies. So, I really want to be able to say that I love Mr. Sunshine. But I don’t. I think it’s a forgettable show that’s more cute than funny, in large part because none of the characters are comedically well-defined. Well, let me be more specific. I think Allison Janney as the erratic boss has the sort of bold comic energy that could blossom into something if narratively focused (never mind that her politically incorrect edge is toned down after the pilot). And a lot of this cast — especially Perry, Andrea Anders, and Nate Torrence — are naturally comedic, value-adding performers. They bring presence. But their characters crave personalization, and their usage within narrative is too hazy around which to form real expectations. The best setup is Janney’s relationship with her weird estranged son, and yet the show has trouble finding more than one note to play with them. And aside from the formulaic, overly predictable love triangle between the lead, his best friend, and his best friend’s new girlfriend (with whom the lead was once friends-with-benefits), I can’t picture what the show wants to be doing in the long-term. More to the point, I just can’t imagine a long-running series’ worth of stories directly motivated by this situation’s main elements: the characters in relation (and the little I can picture, is, again, clichéd). What’s more, the particulars of the premise — this setting and job — don’t provide a lot either. Accordingly, I think the show is just underbaked. At least, outside the casting.
But on that subject, it’s also extra disappointing to see these folks be let down. Perry, in particular, is surprisingly vague as the lead. His inherent persona and the supposed stresses of his career don’t do much to give him a grippable perspective, and the “he’s selfish and needs to grow up by forming connections with others” idea proposed in the pilot is not reinforced thereafter with the kind of boldness it needs to actually be funny. Indeed, it feels like he’s missing an explicit comedic trait that would individualize him within story. As a result, the show lacks hahas — it’s breezy. But it’s not funny. And on a sitcom, we need funny, as that’s a fundamental metric for success. So, I hate to rain on Mr. Sunshine, but gee whiz, what a waste of talent.
Episode Count: 13 produced, nine of which were broadcast. | Episodes Seen: All 13.
Key Episodes: #4: “Hostile Workplace” (03/02/11)
#9: “Ben And Vivian” (04/06/11)
Why: These two episodes try to predicate their A-stories on the lead’s course for self-improvement as suggested by the pilot. They’re not hilarious, but they’re at least more specific to what was established. The latter, in particular, also offers one of the better subplots related to the mother/son arc, so as samples of the series go, they’re among the best.
Come back next week for another Wildcard! And stay tuned for more Modern Family!