Since It's Now A Few Weeks Into the Fall Season

...I can actually write about sitcoms that are non-reruns! And for a change, the new series aren't all total crap.

In no particular order (except for the first one):
- My Name Is Earl: If you, a relative, a friend or even someone you've met at a bar or at work or something would fit the label of "redneck" (and no, not the glossied, feminized, Gretchen Wilson/Big & Rich version) or one of its regional synonyms (i.e. "hillbilly", "river rat", "countrified", "Central Cali", etc.) you are hereby ordered to watch this show at least once. It is hilarious for not only parodying hick-life better than even the Blue Collar Boys can, but it's actually "deep". Hell, a large part of the premise is about the concept of karma, when Earl hears the Hollywood 2-second definition on Carson Daly and decides that's what he's got to fix by making amends for his past misdeeds (no matter stupid they are.) Not only Zen, but very Catholic and 12-steppy. Not that Earl has any concept of that. And if these characters had any brains and actually learned a deep lesson from this, we wouldn't enjoy it so much.
- Before I Met Your Mother: For some reason, this show made me think of Seinfeld. Rather, I thought of how it was supposed to make me think of Seinfeld. Y'know - zany friends, speaking their own language, just real enough to relate. Problem is, these guys are way too nice. It's like they put the cast from the U.S. version of Coupling into Seinfeld. I want to like Alyson Hannigan in this, because she's the only Buffy character I really liked, but she's just too damn sweet! It doesn't fit. However, Neil Patrick Harris is a gem of a stereotypical, late-20s egotistical jerk, and he needs a better show to show that off in.
- Out of Practice: Saw this kinda by accident, and I think it might grow on me in a fungusy-sorta way. The casting is great - best thing I've seen Stockyard Channing or Henry Winkler do in decades. Props for building in a lesbian character who is so non-stereotypical that you barely notice she's gay. In a Fab-5 world, that's a concept. Watch this one for the cast and pray they're allowed to improvise more, since this is supposedly a critical hit.
- Oh, and BTW...you know that your new show is tanking when the star's name becomes part of the title in promos. As in "E-Wing, with Benjamin Bratt!" Just do us all a favor and make sure the clip of the actor right afterward doesn't suck. And if that doesn't work, add, "Used to sleep with Julia Roberts!" after the name.
- The Office: Hated the US version when it dropped, despite NBC's valiant efforts to tell me otherwise. Watched the beginning of Season 2 and realized that this is a show that is built to showcase one star and one star alone. In the UK, of course, that was Ricky Gervalis as David Brent. However, Steve Carrell doesn't do it for me, and no $100 million movies or SNL skits can convince me otherwise. But Rainn Wilson is my man. Loved him in Six Feet Under, and enjoyed his bit part in Entourage. He makes being so freaky he's scary into a real comedy act. I would say he's a new Jim Carrey, but like Steve Carrell, I never got him either.
- Extras: Speaking of Gervalis, I'm so glad he got all those Golden Globes, because it gave him enough star power to sell his new series to HBO so it airs in the States at almost the same time as across the pond. Dear BBC: please take notes. We know that no one over here has a clue who Billie Piper or Chris Eccleston are, but if you'd ease up on the US distribution deal so that all of us who know about Doctor Who could actually watch it legally, you might get a nice deal for the next series. Seriously. /end rant
Anyway, I liked Extras. Not sure if everyone else will agree, because it's unapologetically British, and I think that might annoy everyone who's not already watching BBC America and reading The Sun regularly. But I always watched The Office for David Brent, so I was expecting another character like that. But it's not. This show I'm watching for Ricky Gervalis, who actually managed to develop a character with a lot more depth than Brent ever had. Once again his character is the guy who's trying to be more than he is and has people openly snickering at him. However, he's also got a lot more faith in himself and his talent (as you can gather from the title, he plays a film extra) and shows a little more heart. So even if this isn't the smash hit over here that The Office was, I think this was a much better sophomore effort for Gervalis than I was honestly expecting. And HBO, it might be a good idea to add a bit of a glossary to the show website. I have a feeling that a lot of viewers have no clue what EastEnders is.
- Finally, tonight's episode of Two and a Half Men reminded me of why I started watching the show and why it continues to entertain me. With lines like this...
Charlie: "Better watch it. You don't want your mouth to write a check that your ass can't cash."
You had to be there...