Yikes. I loved Mad About You back in the day and have always been a big fan of Paul Reiser. I did not, however, enjoy his latest sitcom attempt, The Paul Reiser Show. Mad About You (1992-1999) premiered at a time when NBC was at the top and sitcoms were the way to go. It was a clever show about a modern couple living in New York City. The writing was snappy. Paul and co-star Helen Hunt had great chemistry. It fit well with its contemporaries, even crossing over with both Seinfeld and Friends. (Surprisingly, it also crossed over with The Dick van Dyke Show which was completely awesome.) Given Paul’s excellent writing and unique humor I was excited to hear he was coming back to TV. My excitement was short-lived, but I haven’t given up all hope just yet.
The Paul Reiser Show premiered last night (4/14/11). It’s Curb Your Enthusiasm-esque premise revolves around Paul Reiser being Paul Reiser. Clearly, Paul was smart enough to realize that everyone would make the Curb comparison so he decided to just do it for us with guest star Larry David. The scenes between Paul and Larry were genuinely funny, but unfortunately they just made me realize I’d rather be watching Curb. With the exception of Ben Shenkman (who did much better work in Lights Out), the supporting cast fell pretty flat. There were some funny moments but for the most part it felt forced and, worse than that, dated.
The weak pilot aside, I think it has a few other things working against it. The first is the title. “The Paul Reiser Show” would have meant something 10 years ago. Now it comes across as uninspired and old-fashioned. It doesn’t make you curious or interested. It’s just, “Oh, that Paul Reiser show. No thanks.” Another few nails in the coffin are both the timeslot and the network. Right now it airs Thursday at 8:30pm, smack dab in the middle of Community and The Office. It doesn’t fit there at all. They appeal to completely different audiences. The types of humor completely clash here. Then there is NBC, a network which has no patience for shows that don’t fit their (cough, last place, cough) mold. If it’s on NBC, it’s probably going to get cancelled. I think it is probably more similar in style to the CBS sitcoms, but the smartest bet would have been TV Land. They are building a brand of new shows based on nostalgia. Hot in Cleveland is an ensemble full of sitcom vets led by Betty White. Retired at 35 stars Just Shoot Me’s George Segal and Arrested Development’s Jessica Walter. Pretty soon they’ll be taking The Nanny’s Fran Drescher out of mothballs for a new show. Paul Reiser would thrive at TV Land. They would provide him with time he needs to fine tune his show. The show has potential, but I’d bet my signed Kirk Douglas photo that NBC will pull the plug in about 3 episodes.
I’ve read Paul’s writing. I’ve seen his stuff. He’s a talented and hilarious guy. I’m going to stick with The Paul Reiser Show while it lasts because I think he can get it back. He’s rusty. It’s been a decade. He can get it back. He just needs the time NBC won’t give him. Now if you’ll excuse I’m going to go buy Mad About You season 4.
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