September 20, 2011

TV: Two and a Half Men (CBS, Mon 9)

Not a new show, of course,  but the first post-Charlie Sheen episode of Two and a Half Men seemed to be worth a quick comment. Producer Chuck Lorre wastes no time getting rid of Sheen; the first shot is of Charlie's coffin, and we're told that he's been killed in violent, messy fashion that doesn't leave much room for any "he's not really dead!" visits down the road. (Though since the only person present at his death was Rose, his crazy stalker, I suppose we have to leave open the possibility that she's lying about the whole thing and has Charlie tied up in a closet somewhere.)

The show's style and tone haven't changed much -- broad, vulgar jokes that are (for what they are) reasonably well written and delivered by a top-notch cast. Ashton Kutcher fits in reasonably well, and his Walden Schmidt is a different enough character from Charlie Harper that the rest of the cast will get to play different relationships than they have in the past. It appear that Jon Cryer, in particular, can be grateful that he won't always have to be the pathetic guy, and may even get to occasionally provide the voice of wisdom and experience.

Unless you were only watching the show for Sheen, your reaction to THM2.0 should be about the same as your reaction to the original version.

No comments: