Welcome to a new Sitcom Tuesday, on a Wednesday! This week, we’re starting coverage of My Name Is Earl (2005-2009, NBC), which is currently available on DVD and Hulu!

My Name Is Earl stars JASON LEE as Earl, ETHAN SUPLEE as Randy, JAIME PRESSLY as Joy, NADINE VELAZQUEZ as Catalina, and EDDIE STEEPLES as Darnell.

My Name Is Earl is a quintessential 2000s sitcom that represents its era well and favorably, even though it got quickly outshined then, and has remained outshined since, by longer running shows both flashier and funnier. Coming from Greg Garcia of Yes, Dear — an early ‘00s husband-wife multi-cam that was certainly not awful but also far from sublime — Earl, like all Garcia’s work, can’t ever be called the greatest or even one of the greats. But it’s very good for two of its four seasons, during which it’s a strong, notable effort and a “right time, right place” ambassador for the transitional mid-2000s, boasting a forward-thinking single-cam ethos more indicative of where most of the sitcom genre was ultimately heading over the next decade, avoiding the winking meta of Curb Your Enthusiasm or the mockumentary abandon of Arrested Development to offer instead something more straightforward, and authoritative in a traditional way. With linear stories aided by voice-over narration from the main character and occasional cutaways to flashbacks or narratively relevant asides, the show moves briskly and with the self-determined freedom of most single-cams, but in a manner less aesthetically and narratively associated with the handheld documentary form of reality TV — thereby evidencing the familiar control of a well-produced hour-long drama, or more grandly, a movie. Indeed, while the 2000s’ transition from multi-cams to single-cams was part of a wholesale evolution away from the medium’s theatricality to a standard more plainly cinematic, we must remember that the reality TV branch of this movement (which continued to produce gems like The Office and Parks And Rec) was contextualized inside a broader more “legitimate” push directly linked to the rise of cable and its new creative benchmarks. Similarly traditional single-cams were not unusual by this time (see: Malcom In The Middle and Scrubs), but the type of mini-movie sensibility reflected in Earl suggests a more obvious broadcast network take on cable’s elevation of style — and this is not only closer to the mainstream single-cam of the following decade, it’s since become the norm for comedies in the streaming era. In that regard, My Name Is Earl really feels more like a 21st century sitcom than any broadcast show we’ve spotlighted yet.

However, watching Earl today reveals that it’s still decidedly 2000s. For instance, the major difference between Earl and so many sitcoms of the past say, 15 years, is that it’s lighter. As the medium has gotten even more cinematic in accordance with notions of “prestige” (read: more “film-like” than “TV-like”), established differences between genres have been erased and so-called “comedies” have, as a whole, continued to become darker and more serious, like dramas — a shift accelerated by an increasingly on-demand model that encourages ongoing story and thus higher emotional stakes, often turning “comedies” away from comedy. Earl, thank goodness, is willingly funny and irreverent, even with some palpable sentimentalism and a premise that could be applied with an eye towards drama: the jerk who’s done terrible things making amends to those he’s wronged. In fact, having a complicated lead who’s not just quirky or flawed but capable of sheer awfulness (even in the past tense) is a premise that has only gotten more popular in the last few decades, reflecting the kind of shades of gray that drama relishes — and Earl, while intentionally feel-good, also has its eye towards the future in terms of structure too, eschewing the typical multi-cam trappings of a precise workplace or family or hangout spot (or some combination) to instead follow its lead wherever, in a manner therefore more cinematic, catering to the demands of weekly story as opposed to the physical givens that are part of a fixed situation. Oh, sure, there are regular settings on Earl of course — and the town itself is the primary locale — but multi-cams require limited sets by design, which makes those places premised fixtures, or aspects of the situation itself. Earl is not built in that way; this show can theoretically take Earl anywhere, with the scope of a movie. Now, sometimes the scope of a movie is bad for sitcommery — de-emphasizing the presence of a “situation” by reducing the elements that uphold it, favoring story instead, and almost inevitably, drama… But let me stop speaking in generalities about the last few decades, for Earl, again, is more a reflection of the 2000s, cultivating a sense of familiarity via some reliable settings: hotel, bar, trailer park, etc. And it does offer solid sitcommery, for the specificity of its higher concept premise gives its stories something tangible to play every week as a reflection of its situation.

What’s more, Earl’s premise is designed around its lead, with every story revealing more about him by fleshing out his sordid past, which means that every story can be an exploration of him. In that regard, it’s great – the situation can be satisfied through the premise, which is literally attached to the lead character, who upholds and enables every idea, along with the thematic conceit of karma that Garcia uses as an emotional thesis, undergirding everything. This is helpful, for Earl’s high-concept “checking off a list” precept that helps focus episodic plot otherwise has a procedural quality to it, with every entry potentially zeroing in on a different “case” – a different person or item. And, by definition, that’s not ideal sitcommery, emphasizing one-off elements over sustaining ones. Accordingly, the degrees to which Earl can truly be a study of Earl himself is what most determines how/if the show is being episodically successful as a situation comedy. In other words, the more it’s about Earl, the better… And if it’s not about Earl, then we want it about something important to his show’s regular construction, like, for instance, his relationship with someone else in the regular ensemble – namely his brother Randy (Ethan Suplee) or his ex-wife Joy (Jaime Pressly), who are also the ensemble’s funniest players, best positioned for big laughs. (Pressly, in particular, is a star — one of the main reasons this series is worthwhile.) Unfortunately, the other members of the main cast are less defined and, as such, less utilizable, for, overall, the character work is more collective than individualized, as everyone exists within the same general milieu… And yet, to that point, a nice coterie of townsfolk develops quickly, and with Earl centralized well by the premise, most episodes are well-supported by some aspect of the situation. Additionally, Earl’s deliberately unglamorous, working-class, rural–ish, and sometimes even seedy setting becomes more and more of a series-defining attribute as the run progresses, giving texture to the show and its tonal and thematic identity, primarily as a contrast to so many of this era’s other critically well-received efforts.

Actually though, Earl was a quick success — a breath of fresh air with an exciting high-concept premise — and Season One benefited the most from the novelty of this central idea, as it’s the year most reliably able to present weekly plots that reinforce this guiding narrative construct. After this, the series has a progressively tougher time offering unique stories that satisfy the premise. However, the writing gets funnier in Two, by which time the show also knows its characters better and has the confidence of a proven hit. This is reinforced in bolder comic ideas, some of them gimmicks (like huge casting stunts) that open up the season to a more hit-and-miss quality, depending on just how much help from its rising characters or its dwindling premise can be managed in support. Two therefore represents the series at its boldest, although both of these first two years are excellent, with many fine samples of situation comedy. From there, Earl makes a few bad decisions that strain its sitcom capacities amidst its struggle to maintain its premise, and it’s eventually shown up by more easily satisfying efforts such as The Office and 30 Rock, which are not only better as a matter of sheer sitcommery, but also more poised to be celebrated by this industry, given their sexier designs, with levels of meta and thus implied smarts. A more straightforward, unironic show like Earl — especially with its rural, working-class characters who lack a showbiz bent or the approximal wink — was never going to be as respected. And with its actual quality declining just when its NBC neighbors were ascending, Earl’s window as a potential great ended up being smaller than it deserved, with its denied longevity also muting its potential legacy. It’s intrinsically interesting though, for that window happened to coincide with a time of great flux for the sitcom, when Earl was able to shine as an example of the type of series that would define the genre going forward, eschewing both the theatricality of multi-cams and the reality-TV-inspired flashiness of mockumentaries for something simpler yet cinematic in both look and concept, previewing all the other aesthetic changes this shift would later invite over the next several decades. And, frankly, more importantly, it’s just an underrated situation comedy — with lots that I can recommend.

 

01) Episode 4: “Faked My Own Death” (Aired: 10/11/05)

Earl tries to make amends to an ex who thinks he’s dead.

Written by Hilary Winston | Directed by Tamra Davis

After several solid Honorable Mentions that establish the premise and its key characters, this episode is an example of the procedural style of storytelling that My Name Is Earl often employs — a “case of the week,” if you will. Fortunately, these are all inspired somehow by Earl’s past, which means there should always be an inherent emotional pull and relevance for him. Picking the best is mostly about determining which ones are the most well-connected to elements of the situation (like him and/or the other regulars), and/or which ones are the most comedically memorable. This entry, about Earl apologizing to an annoying woman for whom he faked his own death to avoid a breakup, is funny and makes this list because of its laughs — thanks to this winning logline and a strong teleplay that proves Earl to be dependably comedic.

02) Episode 7: “Stole Beer From A Golfer” (Aired: 11/08/05)

Earl’s efforts to make amends to a golfer prove more difficult than expected.

Written by Michael Pennie | Directed by Chris Koch

Johnny Galecki is the guest here, playing a golfer whom Earl and Randy tricked into an obsession with the game by falsely giving him hole-in-ones so that they could celebrate with free beer — a unique idea and another funny logline. But what really sells this excursion is the personal stakes for the main character, and specifically his central relationship with his brother, as Earl’s efforts to make things right with the golfer prove never-ending, for that golf obsession had a lot of collateral damage in other areas of his life, and this becomes so much of a time commitment for Earl that Randy feels neglected and unimportant. It’s a core relational conflict connected to the situation — Earl’s do-gooding coming at the expense of other responsibilities, and that’s a stellar way to play into both the premise and some primary character dynamics.

03) Episode 8: “Joy’s Wedding” (Aired: 11/15/05)

Earl tries to make amends to Joy after ruining her wedding to Darnell.

Written by Greg Garcia | Directed by Marc Buckland

At the beginning of the series, Earl and his ex-wife Joy have a much more adversarial dynamic (mostly one-sided, on her end), and although that’s a specific relational construct that can be used for conflict, thawing their tension so everyone can hang out as a collective in a wider variety of stories is helpful, allowing an actual ensemble to solidify. After a few positive steps, this installment is the breakthrough for Earl and Joy, as the two have a tryst while planning Joy’s second wedding to Darnell — after Earl ruined the first and is trying to make amends — for it enables the show to bring those two together and then establish a new rapport for this trio that can persist going forward. And in being so innately about the leads and how they stand in relation to each other, this is a naturally enjoyable offering — and an early milestone.

04) Episode 11: “Barn Burner” (Aired: 01/05/06)

Earl learns that Randy is really responsible for one of his ancient misdeeds.

Written by Brad Copeland | Directed by Ken Whittingham

As noted above, Earl and Randy’s bond is the series’ central relationship — Randy is the most important person in Earl’s life — so utilizing the premise to create comic tension or outright conflict between them is a great setup for situation comedy, thanks to these inherent character interests. This excursion is fascinating because it first concocts an origin story for how Earl went down the wrong path (which is notable by itself) and then says that this formative, almost inciting incident wasn’t his fault — Randy was actually responsible — which then allows Earl to propose that Randy is therefore also responsible for all the bad things he did going forward, and should thus take over the list. I love this; an uncharitable, angry, blame-shifting Earl makes him more complex — it plays against who he tries to be now while also evidencing who he used to be, and in addition to predicating itself on the premise, it also directly deploys Randy as well, who has a terrific episode. (The runner about Randy’s fear of birds is a hoot!)

05) Episode 12: “O Karma, Where Art Thou?” (Aired: 01/12/06)

Earl fills in at a fast-food restaurant and deals with a jerky boss.

Written by Barbie Adler | Directed by Michael Fresco

Jon Favreau guests in this outing that I include simply for being one of the funnier “case-of-the-week” procedural entries here in the first season, memorably putting Earl into a new circumstance that naturally stands out and also serves as a helpful venue for comedy and conflict. I particularly like how its funny teleplay also sets up a discussion about karma though Earl not only attempting to clean up his own, but also via his realization that he functions — as we all perhaps do — within the universe’s grand guarantee that everyone else will get what’s individually coming to them as well, even when that’s negative. In that regard, it’s another fresh play to the premise — suggesting different ways for Earl to exist in appropriate plot.

06) Episode 13: “Stole P’s HD Cart” (Aired: 01/19/06)

Earl tries to make amends to the owner of a hot dog cart he once was paid to steal.

Written by J.B. Cook | Directed by Chris Koch

With a seemingly procedural story about Earl trying to make good to the owner of a hot dog cart he once was paid to steal, this installment smartly finds a solution to better involve other elements of the situation, including Giovanni Ribisi as Earl’s recurring former partner-in-crime Ralph, who extends the conflict when he undoes Earl’s work by burning down the restored cart. This then sparks a fine ensemble show — one of the first examples of the main cast coming together as a group — when Earl and his crew infiltrate the corporation responsible for hiring them so they can enact some restorative karma to make things whole again for “the little guy” that they helped wrong in the first place. It’s a great, fresh use of the premise.

07) Episode 16: “The Professor” (Aired: 02/09/06)

Earl endures some bad karma when he sets aside his list in favor of a girlfriend.

Written by Danielle Sanchez-Witzel | Directed by Marc Buckland

A highlight of the entire run, this MVE contender boasts another terrifically fresh application of the series’ premise, as Earl sets aside his list and the good deeds he’s promised to do in favor of a new personal interest — a love interest, in fact — a professor played by Christine Taylor. As Earl pursues his own wants, he finds that his karma is veering negative — with some deliciously big mishaps getting the point across: he’s being punished for putting himself above others. This is a very funny and unique way to utilize Earl’s list — by having him not complete something on it — and it’s a great exploration of his character as a result, ultimately getting him back on track (and thereby restoring the status quo that enables this situation), but only after a story that capably examines him, creating a wonderful human conflict that’s thematically in line with the concept and thus a total corroboration of the series’ identity. A favorite.

08) Episode 19: “Y2K” (Aired: 03/23/06)

Earl remembers the time when he and his friends took over an empty store on Y2K.

Written by Hilary Winston | Directed by Marc Buckland

My choice for this season’s Most Valuable Episode (MVE), “Y2K” largely operates as an extended flashback — a device that My Name Is Earl has often employed for quick cutaway scenes but never to this extent, where the event that Earl is attempting to rectify in the present is also the main action of the half hour itself. Naturally, the series’ premise enables this otherwise gimmicky construct to exist, for its whole concept is about Earl reviewing things he did wrong in the past and making them right. But, as with most sitcoms that engage flashbacks correctly, it’s also a great opportunity to explore the characters and their relationships, for showing their shared history with each other better fleshes them out and ripens them for future comedy and conflict inspired by these newly discovered details. And that’s exactly what happens here, as we go back to the turnover from 1999 to 2000, when Darnell just moved into town, Joy was pregnant, and this core group (including the recurring Donny) was worried about Y2K. Of course, all of this is mainly just about setting the stage for a hilarious main plot, as they take over an empty Bargain Bin store in the false belief that they’re the only people still alive in the town. It’s a broad notion that asks us to accept their conveniently heightened naiveté, and it only works because of their established lack of education and our understanding that, as casual criminals, they already reside on sort of the fringes of society anyway. That is, these are folks who could buy into Y2K conspiracies and probably not know about the town parade. Also, it’s ultimately worthwhile because this provides an excuse to contain the characters in a singular location where they can interact, while their combined efforts to create a new “society” within the Bargain Bin store (which they were planning to loot) also allows the series to play in the class-based sandbox that is becoming even more of a defining attribute of Earl, both inside of its own storytelling, and in the genre where it was (mostly) an outlier. So, this is a quintessential example of My Name Is Earl, exceptionally using several crucial aspects of the show’s identity — premise and character among them — with a dynamite comedic story.

09) Episode 21: “The Bounty Hunter” (Aired: 04/06/06)

Joy is hunted by Earl’s ex-girlfriend.

Written by Hunter Covington | Directed by Marc Buckland

Juliette Lewis guest stars in this offering as Earl’s ex-girlfriend — the woman he left to be with Joy — and her inclusion naturally gives the show an excuse to build out Earl and Joy’s relationship history, which has obvious relevance for the characters and thus the situation. But I can’t lie — this one’s really here for its audacious logline, of the scorned ex turning into a bounty hunter looking to exact vengeance on Earl and Joy, the latter of whom knocked her teeth out all those years ago. It’s a lot of fun and sets up a major centerpiece where Joy and the woman fight again, with predictable results — making a fine showcase for Jaime Pressly, who is easily the funniest regular presence on My Name Is Earl and a prime reason to watch.

10) Episode 24: “Number One” (Aired: 05/11/06)

Earl gives away his lottery winnings to the man whose money he stole to buy the ticket.

Written by Greg Garcia | Directed by Greg Garcia

Season One ends with this bookend to the pilot that is intrinsically well-connected to the premise via its acknowledgment of the high concept’s inciting incident — Earl buying a winning lottery ticket — as Earl decides to pay back the man from whom he stole the money to buy said ticket… with all of his remaining earnings. This has the potential to meaningfully alter the status quo, for Earl has been able to do good deeds largely because he can afford to, and without that money, this could theoretically be the end of his list and therefore the premise. But, naturally, Earl had already been renewed, so this really just becomes an opportunity for the series to again play to its core situation-rooted thematics and discuss the notion of karma — reiterating the thesis that everything happens for a reason, and people will get what’s coming to them. So, the status quo gets restored by the end and Earl can keep working away at his list… in Season Two.

 

Other notable episodes that merit mention include Greg Garcia’s Emmy-winning premise-establishing “Pilot,” along with “Quit Smoking,” the funny sophomore outing that introduces Donny and continues to flesh out the main characters (it was closest to the above list), and “Teacher Earl,” which introduces Giovanni Ribisi’s Ralph and has both real personal relevance for Earl and pertinent thematic concerns for the series. I’ll also take this space to cite “Randy’s Touchdown,” an early but amusing installment that does some good things with both Randy and Joy, “Broke Joy’s Fancy Figurine,” which is a step towards the thawing between Earl and Joy, “White Lie Christmas,” which guests Brett Butler (former star of another small-town, working-class sitcom) as Joy’s mom, and “Dad’s Car,” the second and stronger of two entries here in Season One with Earl and Randy’s parents (played by Beau Bridges and Nancy Lenehan), who are important for building out the leading characters’ history and world.

 

*** The MVE Award for the Best Episode from Season One of My Name Is Earl goes to…

“Y2K”

 

 

Come back next week for Season Two and a new Wildcard Wednesday!