Wednesday, January 19, 2011

NBC Mid-Season 2011 Schedule Changes; NBC Mid-Season Pilot Review: Perfect Couples - Premieres January 20

NBC has announced some changes to its mid-season changes. NBC announced that it will continue with new episodes of Parenthood on Tuesdays at 10pm through April 19. This means there will be either 3 repeats or preemptions somewhere so all 22 episodes can air. It is unclear what will air starting April 26. Also, Law & Order: Los Angeles, which was previously scheduled to resume on that day and time beginning February 8, will return on a day to be determined. The series is going through a number of changes. Parenthood was scheduled to move to Mondays at 10pm starting March 7, but that will not happen and mid-season drama Harry's Law will now air all of its 13 episode order rather than just 6. Harry's Law will air through May 9 and it will also have to be repeats for three weeks.
In addition, the new alternative competition series America's Next Great Restaurant will now debut on Sunday, March 6 at 8pm instead of the previously announced Wednesday, March 16 at 9pm. The Marriage Ref, which was intended to return for its second season on Sunday, March 6 at 8, will return at a later date. Airing Wednesdays at 9pm after Chase concludes after March 2 will be repeats of Law & Order: SVU leading into new episodes at 10pm.
See a full list of these changes. Still yet to be scheduled are new comedy-drama Love Bites and new comedies Friends with Benefits and The Paul Reiser Show. They are now joined by The Marriage Ref (10 new episodes) and Law & Order: Los Angeles (14 episodes remain to air from 22 episode order), which now have to be determined return dates. Could some of these possibly air in summer? Stay tuned.

Perfect Couples

Perfect Couples - Thursdays 8:30PM ET/PT on NBC
Premieres Thursday, January 20, 2011 at 8:30PM ET/PT

Perfect Couples is a romantic comedy that follows three flawed pairs trying to get it right.

Dave (Kyle Bornheimer, Worst Week) and Julia (Christine Woods, Flash Forward) are the "everyday couple," messed up in all the "normal" ways. Dave struggles to keep both his wife and his needy best friend, Vance (David Walton, NBC's 100 Questions) happy. Vance and the volatile Amy (Mary Elizabeth Ellis, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) are the high-passion, high-drama couple who bring out the best and worst in each other.

The third duo features Rex (Hayes MacArthur, She's Out of My League) and Leigh (Olivia Munn, Attack of the Show, The Daily Show). Rex is a reformed party guy who has channeled his jock energy into a competitive drive to be the ideal mate. Leigh, a self-anointed relationship guru, has formed the perfect union with Rex, and now considers it her duty to mold the other couples in their image.

Perfect Couples is produced by Universal Media Studios. Show creators Jon Pollack (30 Rock) and Scott Silveri (Friends) serve as executive producers with Andy Ackerman (Seinfeld, The New Adventures of Old Christine), who also directed the pilot.

Cast Details:

* Kyle Bornheimer as Dave
* Christine Woods as Julia
* David Walton as Vance
* Mary Elizabeth Ellis as Amy
* Hayes MacArthur as Rex
* Olivia Munn as Leigh
* Nicolette Robinson as Isabella

Pilot Plot:

#1 "Pilot" (Airs January 20)
Dave and Julia's plans for the perfect anniversary fall through. Rex and Leigh gear up for game night instead. Vance and Amy break up and make up again. Nicolette Robinson also stars.
Directed by Andy Ackerman

"Perfect Health" (Airdate: TBD - possibly February 3)
After discovering that Dave has high cholestrol, Julia puts him on a strict diet and realizes it's time to start acting like adults. Vance tries to curb Amy's outrageous spending. Rex takes Leigh's suggestion of building a "man cave" where there are no rules -- and no judgments. Nicolette Robinson also stars.

Analysis:

NBC aired a sneak preview of the show on December 20, 2010 at 10:00pm. In the episode "Perfect Tens," Dave confronts Julia about her slovenly ways, and the two push each other to be "perfect tens" by dressing up and going out every night. The preview was barely promoted and watched by only 3.8 million and had a 1.4 18-49 rating. You can watch the episode online at NBC.com .

Perfect Couples is a single-camera comedy from Universal Media Studios. NBC has ordered 13 episodes. The show will air on Thursday nights at 8:30pm ET/Pt. Kyle Howard was originally cast as Dave, but he was replaced by Kyle Bornheimer for the pilot episode. In the pilot, we meet the three couples as they try to go to bed. Dave and Julia plan a game night. Vance and Amy break up. Isabella is Dave and Rex's secretary at the real estate company they work at. Vance plays some dramatic exit music after arguing with Dave. Luke is Dave and Julia's dog. In a closing montage scene with a song played in the background, Dave and Julia take some sledgehammers to a house and tear it up. Vance and Amy are on a plane to Paris and plan on getting married.

The show uses a lot of quick editing, scene description title cards, flashbacks and freeze frames. It's a little bit like How I Met Your Mother, but not nearly as funny or outrageous. An opening theme song and credits sequence is used in the additional episode that was provided for review. In "Perfect Health," Julia puts Dave on a strict diet after she discovers he has high cholestrol. Rex shows Dave and Vance his man cave. This episode wasn't quite as good as the pilot.

Conclusion:

This seems to be the season of romantic comedies featuring couples dating or already married. Every network seems to have a few on the air or planned for mid-season. ABC's Better with You is the best of the bunch that I've seen so far. There's really nothing truly unique about Perfect Couples, but I think it is well cast and they appear to have good chemistry. They look to be having fun working together. I liked the physical comedy and things get a little silly at times. Kyle Bornheimer is good here, but I think he was better on Worst Week. Olivia Munn is quite attractive and seems to have a big following online. She steals a lot of the scenes she appears in. The other actors do a decent job portraying their characters.

Perfect Couples appears to be a good fit with NBC's other single camera comedies, but the competition on Thursdays is pretty fierce with American Idol on a new night. It's going to be tough for them to get an initial audience, but maybe they can pick up some additional viewers in the upcoming weeks. I'm not really a big fan of romantic or single camera comedies, but if you enjoy them or are a fan of any of the actors, you will probably want to check out the pilot and at least a few other episodes as they air.

Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 3/5
Funniness: 3/5
Overall: 3/5

-- Reviewed by Todd Fuller on 01/19/11

Discuss the show after you watch it on Thursday, January 20 on our message board.

Related Links:

  • NBC.com Official Site
  • TV.com
  • epguides.com
  • Internet Movie Database
  • Wikipedia
  • Perfect Couples Photo Gallery

    Preview:



  • Sitcoms Airing Tonight

    Friday, December 8

    none scheduled

    Complete TV Listings


    Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 4)

    Friday, December 8

    • Eddie Murphy (The PJs) - Watch Eddie on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
    • Da'Vine Joy Randolph (Only Murders in the Building/High Fidelity/People of Earth/Selfie) - Da'Vine appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
    • John Caponera (The Good Life) - John is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen on CBS between 12:37-1:37am.
    • Robert Smigel (Let's Be Real) - Triumph the Insult Comic Dog aka Robert Smigel chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
    • Noah Galvin (The Real O'Neals) and Molly Gordon (Ramy) - Noah and Molly talk about Theater Camp on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
    • Eric Stonestreet (The Santa Clauses/Modern Family) - Eric talks about The Santa Clauses on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
    • Kenan Thompson (Kenan/Kenan & Kel) - Kenan sits down with Sherri to talk about his new book, When I Was Your Age, on Sherri, so check your local listings.
    • Sebastian Maniscalco (Bookie) - Sebastian appears on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.


    New on DVD/Blu-ray (September-December)

    Family Matters - The Complete Series Step by Step - The Complete Series ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

    09/05 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Sixth Season
    09/12 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Second Season
    09/12 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-6 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    09/26 - Family Matters - The Complete Series
    09/26 - Step by Step - The Complete Series
    10/10 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Thirteen / The Complete Season Fourteen
    10/17 - ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) (Shout! Factory Special Offers)
    10/17 - Night Court (2023) - The Complete First Season
    11/07 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Sixth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    11/14 - Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
    12/05 - Father Knows Best - The Complete Series
    12/05 - The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
    12/12 - The Dick Van Dyke Show - The Complete Series
    12/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
    12/12 - That Girl - The Complete Series
    12/19 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series

    That Girl - The Complete Series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series

    More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


    Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

    12/07 - Harlem Renewed for Season 3; Netflix Orders Drama Ransom Canyon
    12/06 - Remembering TV Legend Norman Lear; Critics Choice Awards Nominees
    12/05 - Who's the Boss? Now on Hulu; The CW Announces New Series Wild Cards
    12/04 - The Upshaws Renewed for Season Prior to Season 5 Launch; Fox Holiday Movie with Justin Long
    12/03 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of December 4, 2023)
    12/02 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Bob ♥ Abishola Coming to an End; Only Murders in the Building Gets Limited Run on ABC
    12/01 - Abbott Elementary Post-Oscars Airing, Only Murders on ABC; Remembering Frances Sternhagen, Marty Krofft and Others We Recently Lost
    11/30 - Bob ♥ Abishola Ending After This Season; NBC Renews Rookie Dramas
    11/29 - Antenna TV January 2024 Schedule; Max December Comedy Specials
    11/28 - Prime Video's Hazbin Hotel; Lacey Chabert Gets Hallmark Unscripted Series
    11/27 - Sundance Now Gets Original Comedy; Hallmark Original Returns for Season 2 in January
    11/26 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 27, 2023)
    11/25 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Kelsey Grammer Ready to Do 100 Episodes of Frasier; TBS Cancels Miracle Workers
    11/24 - Fox Winter 2024 Schedule; An Evening From the Heart John Ritter Foundation NYC 2023 Event
    11/23 - 2023 Thanksgiving TV Marathons
    11/22 - Kerry Washington's UnPrisoned Gets Season 2; Classic Comedy Shorts Celebrate 40th Anniversary
    11/21 - NBC Winter 2024 Schedule; Netflix Renews Rob Lowe Comedy
    11/20 - BUZZR Celebrates Bob Barker's 100th Birthday; Ted Prequel Series on Peacock Gets Premiere Date
    11/19 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 20, 2023)
    11/18 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Young Sheldon Coming to an End After Seven Seasons; The CW International Sitcom Approach Not Going So Well
    11/17 - ABC Winter 2024 Schedule; CBS Celebrates 98th Birthday of Dick Van Dyke
    11/16 - Whoa Mama! Urkel Is Back for the Holidays!; Hulu Gets Such Brave Girls Comedy
    11/15 - COZI TV's A Very COZI Christmas Schedule; Young Sheldon to End This Season on CBS
    11/14 - CBS Winter 2024 Schedule; The CW Pulls 2 Comedies
    11/13 - Antenna TV 2023 Holiday Marathons Schedule; Rewind TV 2023 Holiday Marathons Schedule
    11/12 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 13, 2023)
    11/11 - SitcomsOnline Digest: SAG-AFTRA Strike Finally Ends; New Digital TV Broadcast Networks Coming
    11/10 - AXS TV's The Partridge Family Thanksgiving Marathon; AspireTV Holiday Programming
    11/09 - Bookie Premieres November 30 on Max; Ted Lasso Star Holiday Special on Apple TV+
    11/08 - FX Renews The Bear for Season 3; Hulu's Australian Original Series Premieres November 29
    11/07 - Disney+ Holiday Specials Extravaganza; Apple TV+ Peanuts Feature Film Coming Soon