I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Chuck Lorre is currently dominating 50% of CBS’ Thursday night lineup, and with some of the best multi-camera sitcoms television presently has to offer.
Last night, minor surgeries, affordable housing, and marriage fraud were hot topics among ‘Lorreland’. Brief recaps of each await you after the jump!
THE BIG BANG THEORY
Last week, softening Sheldon allowed the character to be vulnerable while remaining true to his persona as he professed his love to Amy for the very first time. Similarly, last night’s “The Septum Deviation” allowed for the character to show how much he cares for his roommate in a manner that, while bothersome, was actually very sweet. I wish that same sweetness could parlay itself upon the current dynamic between Howard and Bernadette. The news of Raj’s parents splitting up paved the way for the couple to examine the ways they can improve upon their relatively young marriage. All it did, though, was allow for husband and wife to bicker about the qualities they hate most about one another. It was unflattering, and uncomfortable to watch, and it’s getting harder and harder to remember the last time these two seemed happy to be together.
MOM
The sophomore comedy’s premiere was delayed a month when CBS decided against premiering it on Mondays, and instead, giving the Emmy winning sitcom a chance at an entire fall behind “Big Bang Theory.” Keeping that in mind, I’m going to go out on a limb and assume “Chicken Nuggets and a Triple Homicide” was meant to act as as close to a Halloween episode as we were going to get. Unfortunately, the killer house seemed like an easy way out of last week’s dense cliffhanger. The show could have capitalized upon the parallels between Christy and Violet’s relationship and Christy and Bonnie’s relationship. Instead, the writers chickened out, and mother and daughter have made peace. Fortunately, the Plunketts are still sleeping on Marjorie’s couch, and are still a ways off from finding affordable, non-murdery housing.
TWO AND A HALF MEN
“Charlie Sheen doesn’t live here anymore,” and I’m glad the writers know that, but I wish they’d know when enough’s enough with Courtney Thorne-Smith’s Lyndsey. She went from believable girlfriend to drunken cartoon last season, winding up intoxicated, alone and deranged at a wedding that was originally meant to be her own. It seemed like a fitting end to her relationship with Alan, but apparently, Chuck Lorre & Co. don’t share my opinion. “Glamping in a Yurt” was not only the best installment among these early season 12 episodes, but among the best of the post-Sheen era. I just wish it hadn’t wasted so much time trying to salvage, then re-dehumanize, a recurring character that’s long past its expiration date. Fortunately, that was the only wrong turn this episode took. The “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry” dynamic at play is going better than anyone could have imagined, and thankfully, the jokes have been more “Will & Grace” than “2 Broke Girls,” which is unnecessarily coarse and offensive and in no way is integral to its plotting.
THE McCARTHYS
No one’s got time for that! Move it along…
Next week: “Big Bang Theory” takes a rest, while the other three comedies march along without their juggernaut lead in. Presumably, this is to see if “Mom” does any better without “Bang” as a lead in than “The Millers” is doing without it on Mondays. It’s also worth noting that between its Monday and Thursday airings, “Bang” has already blown through over a third of its season just halfway through November sweeps. Expect only an episode – maybe two – before the new year.