While I love my fair share of dramas, such as Smash, my true loyalties lie with comedies. I'm a sucker for the funny ones. And ABC's Happy Endings really makes me laugh out loud.
The sitcom returned to the air for its second season in September 2011. And while almost all the actors are new and unknown, they are already experts at grabbing the viewers' attention and making them laugh until they almost pee their pants. Was that too far? Sorry, it's the truth.
"One way the show has gotten attention is because of the edginess of the humor," said Henry Hanks of CNN.
See? Told you! I'm certain what keeps me hooked on this show are the ridiculously funny quotes. For instance, in last week's episode one of the main characters, Max, says to his friends, "'We are too inside the box. We gotta branch out. Talk about restaurants that maybe don’t exist. For example, where does Gollum eat?'" In what world is that statement normal? Middle-earth. That's about it.
For those of you new to the show, I'll fill you in on the necessities. The show revolves around the complicated lives of six friends and their tangled relationship web: Jane (played by Eliza Coupe) is the older sister of Alex (played by Elisha Cuthbert) and is married to Brad (played by Damon Wayans Jr.). Alex was engaged to Dave (played by Zachary Knighton) until she left him at the alter. Well, at least they are still friends and it isn't awkward anymore, right? Anyway, then there is Penny (played by Casey Wilson), who is an old friend of Alex's from their childhood, and Max (played by Adam Pally), who is one of Dave's friends from college.
In last week's episode, the time has come for the gang to celebrate Penny's 31st (excuse me) 29th birthday. According to the episode - I apologize in advance for the spoilers to come - Penny suffers from having the worst luck with birthday celebrations. A typical birthday party could consist of a punch in the face, a wild beast or a defibrillator.
Let's face it, no four-leafed clover can salvage what's become of Penny's birthday. As the quest for the perfect dinner location begins, each restaurant suggested is accompanied by an anecdote by altering characters explaining why they cannot ever show their face there again. Literally anything you can think of (anything) would be an offense that one of the six has committed in a public location. After multiple failed attempts to try new restaurants around town, the group decides to end the night at their typical hangout place: Rosalitas.
Ok, I know what you're thinking: six friends, one favorite restaurant, siblings...THIS SHOW IS JUST LIKE 'FRIENDS'! And if there was one thing I loved more than anything about growing up in the 90s it would be Friends. The sitcom opened my eyes to a whole new world of comedy beyond The Lion King's Timon and Pumba.
I won't go into too much detail, but both Happy Endings and Friends share similar concepts and characteristics. However, the former puts a modern-day twist on the types of characters and relationships between them. For example, instead of having the smooth-talking ladies man (Joey), Happy Endings offers a currently popular type of male: the gay best friend (Max). While Friends will always hold a special place in my heart, I think I'm drawn to Happy Endings because I actually understand the crude humor initially - that is most likely due to the fact that I am 10 years older and wiser.
The cast of Friends. (Photo: WB) The cast of Happy Endings. (Photo: ABC)
REVIEW TIME! (Cue cheering crowd noises.)
For this week's show, I will rate Happy Endings on a Friends-themed scale (for obvious reasons). Based on my personal bias, the scale will be from Ross to Chandler; Ross is the lowest rating because, well, he's pretty boring while Chandler is ranked highest because he has spot-on comedic moments and is great overall.
With this in mind, I will give Happy Endings a "Rachel-rating" because Rachel has hysterical one-liners and depicts the most relatable role, similar to each character in Happy Endings. I just imagine myself in their situations and I can't help laughing.
If you have 30 minutes to spare and love to laugh, then tune into ABC on Wednesday nights at 8:30 p.m. to watch Happy Endings. I recommend everyone watch at least one episode. You will be hooked (and possibly peeing in your pants).
*The first photo was found on IMDb.
No comments:
Post a Comment