Welcome to a new Wildcard Wednesday! This week, I’ve got another Sitcom Potpourri, featuring brief commentary on a few short-lived series and picks for the episodes that I think best represent them, based on what I’ve seen. For this post, I’m looking at five broadcast network single-cams from the middle of the 2000s decade…
JAKE IN PROGRESS (March 2005 – January 2006, ABC)
Premise: A playboy celebrity publicist searches for love while managing his busy life.
Cast: John Stamos, Wendie Malick, Ian Gomez, Rick Hoffman, Dondre Whitfield, Charlotte Ross
Writing Staff: Austin Winsberg, Linda Wallem, Stephen Lloyd, Jeffrey Richman, Chris Marcil, Sam Johnson, Chris Harris, Kerry Ehrin, Andrew Green, Jeff Greenstein, Jane Espenson, Sonja Warfield, Ari Posner
Thoughts: Originally conceived as a real-time single-cam (à la Watching Ellie) where the entire first season would cover its eponymous playboy on one long blind date, Jake In Progress lost all its high-concept color in development, eventually making it to air in a generic dual structure format, splitting time between his personal and professional lives with episodic stories about either his career maneuvers or romantic pursuits. This proves to be a disappointment, for Jake doesn’t have the character work to make interesting or fresh its otherwise clichéd ideas, which now feel collectively muted because of that risk-avoidant dilution of premise. Although the titular Jake as played by John Stamos retains enough of his suave serial dater persona to suggest something of a characterization, nobody else is well-realized in terms of personality or with specifics that can be used to then inspire or tweak plot (not even Wendie Malick as his boss — a sort of pregnant and tame Nina Van Horn), rendering this an ultimately nondescript show — one that never figures out how to exist without the high-concept hook the network removed. Now, perhaps its second season — for which at least ten episodes were written — would have refined the situation and created some viable character-rooted prospects, but based on this first season and the opener of its second, it’s just flat and forgettable, with little to recommend. I like the cast and several of the writers (including a few Frasier alums), but this is a letdown.
Episode Count: About 21-23 episodes produced over two seasons, 14 of which were broadcast (13 + 1).
Episodes Seen: All 14 broadcast episodes.
Key Episode (of Seen): #6: “Loose Thread” (03/24/05)
Why: This strong, fast-paced entry utilizes part of the initially premised real-time construct when Jake juggles a bunch of little office conflicts, with support from the ensemble that reveals how everyone is supposed to be defined. It’s never truly great, but it evidences more of what this series wanted to be, attempting to reach Frasier levels of farcical kineticism.
EMILY’S REASONS WHY NOT (January 2006, ABC)
Premise: An editor of self-help books takes a methodical approach to her love life.
Cast: Heather Graham, Nadia Dajani, James Patrick Stuart, Khary Payton, Smith Cho
Writing Staff: Emily Kapnek, Tom Caltabiano, Cynthia Greenburg, Alicia Kirk, Dan Kopelman, Bill Diamond (Based on the book by Carrie Gerlach)
Thoughts: Famously yanked from the schedule after only one episode, Emily’s Reasons Why Not was derisively compared to Sex And The City because of their obvious similarities — it’s another wannabe-naughty single-cam based on prewritten material anchored by a narrating blonde with a writing/publishing background and lots of romantic troubles that assume the focus of weekly story. The higher concept wrinkle here is that this lead has a threshold for determining when a relationship is wrong: she notices five red flags — a device that allows every episode to structure itself around this natural template, pointing out said flags. In this regard, it’s a bit like My Name Is Earl too — which has its own organizing principle in Earl’s list and can similarly become procedural because of the inherent checklist nature of the storytelling, which has a tendency to require a different “case” or person of the week. But Earl is a lot better about connecting its premise to its characters (via his history), while Emily just doesn’t have the capacity to do that, for although Emily herself is sort of naively optimistic in a comedically definable way, she doesn’t get to showcase her persona as the main attraction, and certainly not opposite other ensemble members within the regular situation. Instead, the show’s narrative concerns simply fish around for jokey dating scenarios that, after the rom-com saturation of the 1990s, aren’t very fresh or original by themselves. (A gal dating her gynecologist! How awk!) And that high-concept framing just can’t compensate for tired ideas and tangential character work.
Episode Count: Six episodes produced, only one of which was broadcast.
Episodes Seen: All six.
Key Episode: #2: “Why Not To Date A Twin” (Unaired)
Why: It’s an accurate display of the show narratively, as Emily dates a man with an intrusive twin sister.
HELP ME HELP YOU (September 2006 – December 2006, ABC)
Premise: A dysfunctional therapist dispenses advice to the oddballs in his group counseling.
Cast: Ted Danson, Jere Burns, Darlene Hunt, Charlie Finn, Suzy Nakamura, Jim Rash, Jane Kaczmarek
Writing Staff: Jennifer Konner & Alexandra Rushfield, Alex Reid, Rodney Rothman, Ron Weiner, Daley Haggar, Chester Tam, Joel Madison, Craig DiGregorio, Rodney Rothman, Linda Wallem
Thoughts: Ted Danson and a solid cast are trapped in this ultimately mediocre sitcom that seems like it has a good idea but doesn’t. Its central group therapy construct is theoretically smart, allowing different types of people to interact, making it so disparate characters can bounce off each other comedically and for conflict, revealing and sharpening their definitions in the process. But in practice, the show realizes it has to break them out and follow them individually — or at best, in pairs — in order to get any kind of comedic story going, and that means they all don’t exist in direct narrative juxtaposition very often, which means that it never truly feels like a cohesive display of the situation and what’s promised by its group design. (At least, not beyond those initial scenes where they’re all together and the weekly theme is established.) What’s more, the whole concept of Ted Danson playing a shrink who can help others while being a mess himself is a sort of conventional sitcom notion that has to be true for comedy’s sake but then sounds false and writerly when it’s harped on in story. And I think the main reason why it doesn’t quite land is that the scripts don’t give him enough interesting specifics to make this actually look character-rooted or personalized in a real way. Yes, he’s dealing with the ghosts of Sam Malone and even John Becker — two well-defined, precise characters who also had the capacity for depth and nuance — but even without those reference points, Danson’s lead still lacks the care he requires given the demands placed on him within weekly plot. And that’s a shame, for these are good people here with, again, a theoretically correct idea — but a product that just doesn’t navigate its difficulties or maximize its strengths.
Episode Count: 13 episodes produced, nine of which were broadcast.
Episodes Seen: All nine broadcast episodes.
Key Episodes (of Seen): #1: “Pilot” (09/26/06)
#3: “Fun Run” (10/10/06)
Why: The pilot shows the most promise and is the most comedically written, while #3 is the first with the lead’s own therapy group comprised of other group therapists — a recurring device that’s notable and amusing, boasting Jane Lynch and Phil Rosenthal — and it’s got a plot that attempts to focus on definable attributes of his characterization.
THE KNIGHTS OF PROSPERITY (January 2007 – August 2007, ABC)
Premise: A group of misfits plans an elaborate heist on a celebrity.
Cast: Donal Logue, Sofia Vergara, Lenny Venito, Maz Jobrani, Kevin Michael Richardson, Josh Grisetti
Writing Staff: Jon Beckerman & Rob Burnett, Steve Tompkins, Eric Horsted, Karey Dornetto, Josh Siegal & Dylan Morgan
Thoughts: With a high-concept premise-driven setup that seems to prioritize story over character while also suggesting finite narrative possibilities therein, The Knights Of Prosperity behaves like a movie that’s been shoehorned into the sitcom form. This ethos, perhaps more novel in 2007 (especially on network TV), has since become common in the streaming era, where all shows — even half-hour comedies — have gotten more plot-based and less concerned with longevity or consistency, often exploring flashy attention-grabbing premises rather than the established elements within an established situation. This design tends to favor dramatic tension over the comedic (an inevitability of chronic story), and also, once longevity and consistency don’t matter, the cultivation and maintenance of a situation becomes less of a concern as well. So, this isn’t exactly a hospitable model for sitcommery. But I digress… Since Knights Of Prosperity is forward-looking in this way with its design and sensibility, I was poised to be critical. But I must admit that I came to enjoy it, for despite a constraining premise and a story apparatus that’s obviously more plotty than character-focused, it is funny and most of the main players are decently delineated. Also, to the show’s credit, it tries to find ways to enhance our understanding of the leads’ personalities and backgrounds alongside its flashy, gimmicky satisfaction of the high concept. Oh, I still have some trouble picturing this show running for several years of 22+ episodes (even if they kept moving the target by shifting the mission, it would get old fast). But as a half-season one-and-done, it stands out as a better-than-expected version of what it’s trying to be, with amusing and occasionally smart ideas.
Episode Count: 13 episodes produced, 11 of which were broadcast.
Episodes Seen: All 13.
Key Episodes: #2: “Operation: Seduce Simone” (01/10/07)
#6: “Operation: Caught On Tape” (02/07/07)
#8: “Operation: Panic Room” (02/21/07)
#10: “Operation: Rent Money” (08/08/07)
#11: “Operation: Steal The Safe” (08/08/07)
Why: Episodes #2, #8, and #11 are funny ensemble shows that showcase the premise well, while #6 and #10 are examples of the series exploring individual characters in stories that also play to the high concept. All, I reiterate, are surprisingly fun.
IN CASE OF EMERGENCY (January 2007 – April 2007, ABC)
Premise: Four former high school acquaintances reconnect over their mutual failures.
Cast: Jonathan Silverman, David Arquette, Greg Germann, Kelly Hu, Lori Loughlin, Jackson Bond
Writing Staff: Howard J. Morris, Tracy Poust & Jon Kinnally, Bob Kushell, Jack Kenny, David Feeney, Eric Siegel & Eric D. Wasserman, Jenny Lee, Rosalind Moore, Michael P. Fox & Robyn Adams
Thoughts: This is basically just a high-concept, narratively convoluted, and cynically mid-‘00s take on the previous decade’s hangout sitcom — reuniting four high school acquaintances who are all now adult losers, contriving reasons for them to coexist under the same roof. The pilot is fast and funny and surprising in its circumvention of expectations, while its single-cam sense of abandon is naturally exciting when it’s initially deployed. However, the show never reaches those heights again, eventually devolving into some predictable rom-com tripe and delivering stories that simply don’t solidify a concrete understanding of the situation. That is, In Case Of Emergency’s desire to be unconventional with a format that is nevertheless conventional doesn’t translate well in weekly plot, and the show ultimately feels like it’s not living up to its higher concept promises. It’s both try-hard and unsure of itself at the same time. An oddity.
Episode Count: 13 episodes produced, 12 of which were broadcast.
Episodes Seen: All 13.
Key Episode: #1: “Pilot” (01/03/07)
Why: Again, I’m afraid nothing quite lives up to the promise of the premiere.
Ultimately, I say… ENJOY THE KNIGHTS OF PROSPERITY and FORGET the rest.
Come back next week for a new Wildcard! And stat tuned Tuesday for more Earl!