The Paul Reiser Show was such an unfunny, odd fit, nestled between Community and The Office on Thursday night, you had to wonder what NBC was thinking, or if it was thinking at all. The new show has the feeling of a payoff on some old contract addendum Reiser had written into his Mad About You agreement. “You mean a decade after Mad About You ends, we have to give you a half hour on Thursday nights to do whatever you want? Oh, maaaan… Well, okay…”
Reiser decided to play himself – former star of Mad About You; apparently now a rich guy who spends his days talking to friends about his wife, kids, and things that bother him. Those people are played by actors. It’s a measure of how bad this show is that it makes performers as good as Ben Shenkman and Andrew Daly only slightly less irritating than Reiser himself. Think the premise sounds like Curb Your Enthusiasm? Reiser thought it would be clever to address this head-on by having Larry David on as a guest. Turns out, not so clever. The big laugh line in the David scene was supposed to be when Larry said he thought Paul had asked him to lunch because “I thought you were gonna tell me that you were gay.” Ha-ha.
Guest star Mark Burnett, playing himself, plastered a plastic-looking smile on his face and said to Reiser, “Your misery is the funny part.” Fill in your own misery/funny sarcasm here.
As imperfect as it was, Perfect Couples was a lot better than this.
Agree? Disagree?
Twitter: @kentucker
This did not look funny at all. I didn’t even give it the one and done.
Hoping NBC reconsiders Perfect Couples. It was really starting to pick up steam and was quite funny the past few weeks. It fit in nicely on the NBC comedy lineup as well.
Get rid of that America hatefest “Outsourced”. Not funny to those Americans not working.
This will be a 30 minute food/bathroom/e-mail break between Community and The Office.
Just turn the TV off or to a different channel and keep the ratings down
does ken tucker like anything? seems the answer is no.
i love this !… My friend Vanessa, a 25 yrs lady, has announced her wedding with a millionaire young man Ronald who is the CEO of a MNC. It’s amazing, she said she just posted her profile on a millionaire d’ating site called ———Bla’ckw’hi’teCu’pid. ℃○M—- – and received his chat invitations a few days later. Then, everything went so well that I can’t believe it’s true! Every love story will unfold on it’s own. you can start your own wealthy love story for real at there too !many famous and wealthy people had a profile there ,why not me?
I completely agree with you. I liked Perfect Couples and think it at least appeals to NBC’s Thursday night demographic. When I first read they were replacing it with Paul Reiser, I was so confused. Even if the Paul Reiser show was funny, it just doesn’t fit into their Thursday night demo/target market.
I watched five minutes of Paul Reiser. Nope, doesn’t work at all and won’t work. I went to OnDemand and watched last week’s episode, and final, of Perfect Couples that I missed last week. It was so funny and cute. I had at least five or six LOL moments. What a shame it’s gone and that more people didn’t tune in.
Agreed, “Perfect Couples” made me laugh, I did not laugh once at Reiser’s show. And I love Andy Daly, he’s so much better than this crud.
Didn’t like the show. Paul is OLD! I’d ditch the Andy Daly character. It’s stupid, and he’s not just bad, he’s extremely annoying. In fact, all the friends except the iranian looking guy (who wasn’t so great either, but at least wasn’t embarrassing) were god-awful casting choices. Why were they picked? Can’t Reiser find some talented comedic actors who want to be on his show?
And also, who gives a rats behind about some old rich guy who decides to leave the house because he’s bored?
Does a shallower premise exist?
Why are all Paul Reiser’s friends 10 years younger than Paul Reiser? That’s very weird.
The inherent problem with the show is everybody is trying too hard. They don’t let moments play out. It’s like they’re performing before a firing squad.
The actors also seemed to not agree with what style of show they were in. Energy levels and styles all over the map. It was like watching an octopus tear itself apart for no reason.
As an audience, I just sit there thinking, “Ew! Why? Why?”
The reason Paul Reiser’s friends are so much younger is because they are the right age to have kids of that age. Paul Reiser’s kids should be in their late teens by now, but apparently that wouldn’t be funny enough so he has kids of an unlikely age.
For me it was the short films that made an imriesspon on me right away. Watching Bugs Bunny cartoons as a kid was pretty much my introduction to the world of animation.I love the NFB shorts like "Special Delivery" "The Cat Came Back" and "The Big Snit." I also loved Aardman's "Creature Comforts," and all the Wallace and Gromit shorts.I've enjoyed many animated films over the years, but one that sticks out was "The Iron Giant." I still think that is one of the best animated features ever.
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Yeah man, the show… It wasn’t good.
I was actually confused by how not funny it was. It was like it was a trick to get us to watch it again, because, heck, it can’t possibly be that unfunny next time. Nothing could.
Anyone else a little creeped out by such a young actress
playing his wife?
The final puzzling thing: how could anyone have such an ugly sofa?
Actually the wife seems closer to his age than the wife of Larry David on Curb Your Enthusiasm, and no it wasn’t creepy
The Paul Reiser Show was so unfunny, it was offensive. Offensive that NBC apparently believes it can throw this mess at its loyal Thursday night viewers, and expect them to lap it up like a bunch of brainless fools. Perfect Couples wasn’t flawless. It started slow; the pilot wasn’t great, but as the episodes progressed, it became one of the funniest ensemble comedies that has been on tv since Friends. Give Perfect Couples a chance, NBC, and please, don’t insult us with a really crappy and boring version of Curb Your Enthusiasm.
“Offensive that NBC apparently believes it can throw this mess at its loyal Thursday night viewers, and expect them to lap it up like a bunch of brainless fools.”
They already do with Outsourced.
You can’t compare PC to Friends. 1. Friends is a classic, PC is not and never will be. 2. PC is a single-camera show, Friends was not. That’s like comparing apples and oranges.
But Perfect Couples was the best friends-based sitcom I’ve seen since Friends (not work-based, not family-based, etc). If given enough time I think PC could have really taken off… too bad NBC decided not to barely market it, and they did it poorly.
@pb: really?! What about HIMYM? Big Bang? Those two are both friends-based, smart, and hysterical…and way, WAY better than PC.
NBC must have NO respect for their stockholders to have the balls to upchuck this horror into the audiences laps. They KNOW this show was a disconcerted mess, and they put it up anyway?! And what’s with Reiser crying out like a bitch at the Huffington Post for his bad reviews? Who’s great idea was that? Who is the captain of this slow motion shipwreck??
Absolutely. Perfect Couples was an amazingly funny show and with a little work it could be great.
You’re an idiot. This show and Perfect Couples were terrible.
You’re pathetic.
Hiro Kitty isn’t smart enough for the humor.
personally, I thought it was hilarious. honestly.
Then you honestly have no sense of humor.
I agree! Sure hit!
Are you kidding me waddayoucare? You think this is a sure hit, it’s a sure miss actually.
not hilarious, but not dreadful. But then, I’m a big fan of Outsourced. My taste is not that of the crowd being targeted, because I’m ten years older.
Loved Perfect Couples!! Bring it back!
You’re a writer on that show, aren’t you
Ken Tucker is kind of an old fart anyway, who likes old fart stuff. the fact that he farted on the show does not surprise me.
Your assessment makes no sense. If you’re going to talk about his age then you’d think he would like this. Reiser and David are older. Moron.
@ vader1013…hey, Ken Tucker’s awesome. The Paul Reiser Show…not so awesome.
An acquired taste. Seinfeld, Curb your enthusiasm. Too many new characters all at once BUT it was funny.
Perfect Couples!! Bring it back!!!
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Bring back Perfect Couples it was pretty funny!
I didn’t pay the slightest attention to the promos for “Perfect Couples,” so I didn’t see the show, and therefore don’t care about it. I’ve always liked Paul Reiser, so I had no problem with him in this first episode, but ALL of his irritating friends have got to go. I wanted to strangle each of them, one by one, with my bare hands by the end of the episode. Keep Paul Reiser, just re-work everything else!
I guess we’ll find out next week if there was any retooling between the pilot and episode 2.
This was painful to watch. Thanks NBC for screwing us out of another great show. Bring back Perfect Couples!!!!
I agree, make sure everyone changes the channel before this stupid show next week. I did!
beofre and after that he never had any intention of trying to break Carpenter’s record. That is a poorly written section and makes it seem that Tony blew up because he pushed too hard. Some days your body just can’t function up to the level that is needed for the amount of continuous effort.
I feel satisfied after reiadng that one.
It was the first episode. Anyone who passes judgement on a show based on one episode is….paid to write about TV. What a country.
It was damn funny. Too bad this article decided to suggest otherwise and even use the Larry David moments as a reason why it shouldn’t work. But it does.
Thanks, Paul Reiser.
Aw man, you got me. What gave it away??
lol
Keep Perfect Couples on. It was funny. I turned over to David Spade on another channel.
I HATE Rules of Engagement and I turned The Paul Reiser Show off and watched it instead. I can’t believe that NBC managed to make me miss the dreadful Perfect Couples.
This was pretty decent. What’s with all the hate?
what IS with all the hate? I liked quite a bit of it!