CBS Midseason Pilot Review: Friends with Better Lives - Premieres March 31; Three's Company Returns to TV Land, That '70s Show Quietly Now on Nick at Nite

Monday, March 31, 2014

CBS Midseason Pilot Review: Friends with Better Lives - Premieres March 31; Three's Company Returns to TV Land, That '70s Show Quietly Now on Nick at Nite

Friends with Better Lives - Mondays at 8:30PM ET/PT on CBS
Premieres Monday, March 31, 2014 at 9:00PM ET/PT

by Skees

As we come of age, we all think that we're the ones suffering, and it's our friends who have the better lives. So, naturally, that would be the premise of the latest sitcom on CBS, Friends with Better Lives. The series follows a married couple (Andi and Bobby), a divorced man (Will), a soon-to-be-engaged couple (Kate and Lowell), and the eternally obnoxious one who finds the flaws in everybody (Jules). So who really has the better life? That's what this CBS series tries to answer, in sitcom form.

Cast Details:

James Van Der Beek as Will Stokes

Brooklyn Decker as Jules Talley

Zoe Lister-Jones as Kate McLean

Rick Donald as Lowell Peddit

Majandra Delfino as Andi Lutz

Kevin Connolly as Bobby Lutz

James Van Der Beek (Will Stokes) is primarily known for playing the starring role in the teen drama Dawson's Creek. More recently, he was on ABC's Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23. His first TV appearance came in 1993 on an episode of Clarissa Explains it All, and since Dawson's Creek ended, he has been cast in several unsold pilots, and has also played roles in many dramas such as Criminal Minds and One Tree Hill

Brooklyn Decker (Jules Talley) is primarily known as a swimsuit model, having appeared in many magazines including Sports Illustrated, but she has also made appearances in series such as Chuck, Ugly Betty, and New Girl. She is married to retired tennis player Andy Roddick.

Zoe Lister-Jones (Kate McLean) is possibly best known for her role of Lily on the series Whitney. She has also made guest appearances on three out of four series in the Law & Order franchise, as well as an episode of The Good Wife.

Rick Donald (Lowell Peddit) is an Australian actor who has made appearances on series such as House Husbands, The Doctor Blake Mysteries, Underbelly, and Home and Away. This series marks his American television debut.

Majandra Delfino (Andi Lutz) is a Venezuelan-American actress who is best known for her role on the series Roswell. She got her start in Hollywood in the film Zeus and Roxanne, as well as appearing in the short-lived sitcom The Tony Danza Show, and has appeared in episodes of The Office and Boston Public.

Kevin Connolly (Bobby Lutz) is best known for his role of Eric on the HBO series Entourage. Before that, he was a regular on the series Unhappily Ever After. He has appeared in movies including The Notebook, Antwone Fisher, Secretariat, and will be reprising his TV role in the upcoming Entourage film.

Pilot Plot:

"Pilot" – airs Monday, March 31st, 2014 at 9PM ET/PT

Andi (Majandra Delfino) and Bobby (Kevin Connolly) are married and happily living on their own... well, sort of. They've also got to deal with parenting, and also Will (James Van Der Beek), who recently moved in after his own marital troubles. Bobby is about to throw a surprise party for Andi, but it is something that is going to end in disaster for almost everybody, except for Kate (Zoe Lister-Jones) and Lowell (Rick Donald).

Analysis:

In the 21 minutes of the episode that I watched, I mostly found myself confused by who the characters were and what their backstory was, which can be expected to some extent in a pilot... but that is also a solid indication that there is little, if anything, that is exciting about the characters or the series. The premise here is that we've got the married couple, the engaged couple, the one who is dating, and the one whose relationship just crashed. These are, ideally, all distinct characters that should have completely unique personalities. But everything just seemed to sort of mesh together into a horrible mess.

Like many pilots, a lot of things happened in the pilot. But in this pilot, maybe it was a bit too much. An engagement and a divorce happening within minutes of one another in the same house (all during a wedding anniversary celebration of another friend, to top it off) was a bit too much for the pilot. It would have been better to see the pre-engagement relationship play out a bit first, followed by a drawn out divorce. Now the series has already turned into two people dating and two couples married married (or one of them is at least close to it).

While the pilot did have some great actors in it, I felt that their potential was not utilized as fully as it could have been. While I was never a fan of Dawson's Creek, it cannot be denied that James Van Der Beek is a talented actor... but having him played the desperate divorced guy seemed out of place. It may have felt more natural for Kevin Connolly (another talented actor) to play that role, but instead, he was the happily married guy. Personally, I'm still seeing him as Eric from Entourage, or to go back even further, Ryan from Unhappily Ever After.

I can't say that I laughed at all during the entire episode. Of course, I'm always willing to give a sitcom the benefit of the doubt if it isn't a laugh-filled riot, because even some of the greatest sitcoms ever have good story telling with few laughs. The problem is, there wasn't a great story to be told here. The pilot attempted to focus on getting quick laughs, particularly related to some sexual content. But the problem is that a lot of sexual jokes are going to get their biggest laughs from a much younger audience than this series could ever hope to target.

Conclusion:

In all honesty, CBS probably doesn't have a hit on their hands with this series. I'm not sure what can be done about this series to make it a bit more watchable, as it honestly seems to show little promise. Of course, I've been wrong about these things before, but it mostly just feels like something CBS is using to fill the hole left by How I Met Your Mother, except there really isn't going to be anything good enough to fill that hole for the time being. Luckily for CBS, they have a mostly solid lineup, with a majority of their lineup already having been renewed for next season, and plenty of pilots in the works, which makes it unlikely that they'll turn back to this series in the fall. The real question, though, is will they continue to turn to this for an entire 13 episode run. The series will be given a very fair chance to capture an audience with what will probably be a solid lead-in for the debut, but what viewers decide beyond that is to be determined.

Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 2/5

Funniness: 1/5

Overall: 2/5

Discuss the show after you watch it on Monday, March 31 at 9:00PM ET/PT on our message board.

Related Links:

CBS.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

Friends with Better Lives Photo Gallery

Preview:

TV Land has picked-up the cable rights to Three's Company once again. The classic 70s/80s sitcom was not renewed by TV Land after its contract expired in August 2013, but now TV Land has made a deal to bring back the sitcom. It will join other recent returnees including The Brady Bunch and Gilligan's Island. The John Ritter-led sitcom will begin starting this Saturday (April 5, 2014). It will air weekend mornings. Times will vary, but this coming Saturday it will air with a marathon block from 4:30am-2pm and Sunday from 4:30am-12pm. To make room for Three's Company, it seems TV Land will be removing The Golden Girls. Not to worry, as that will still air on the Viacom-owned network Logo. And as we mentioned, Three's Company is also returning in April on Antenna TV, so it's twice as nice for Three's Company this April. No foolin'. Stay with us for continued updates on TV Land and Three's Company!

That '70s Show

In other news, That '70s Show has quietly started on Nick at Nite a few weeks ago and it is airing every night from approx. 1:24-2:36am (2 episodes). George Lopez is now pushed to 2:36-4:57am, with Yes Dear rounding out the night from 4:57am-6am. Old Christine and My Wife & Kids are no longer airing on the network, but both can be found on other Viacom siblings (NickMom and BET, respectively). Hangin' with Mr. Cooper remains from 6-7am. Back to That '70s Show, with it now airing on Nick at Nite, it is still airing on TV Land as well. TV Land has not removed it and will continue to air it early mornings after 4am and on weekends after 2am. Stay with us for continued updates.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Wednesday, October 16

The Goldbergs - "Animal House" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Barry decides to rush a fraternity, but it doesn’t quite work out as he expects. Meanwhile, Beverly and Murray find themselves getting closer to being empty nesters, which means more hobbies and activities for Beverly and more TV for Murray.

Schooled - "Kick Like a Girl" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Hoping to improve the football team’s chances at winning the title, Coach Mellor and Principal Glascott recruit star soccer player Felicia to kick field goals. But soon, she is treated like one of the guys, which affects her relationship with fellow player Reza. Meanwhile, CB chaperones an overnight ski trip and hopes to get in some quality time with Lainey but is constantly thwarted by socially awkward Tom Scott.

Modern Family - "Pool Party" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Mitch and Cam help Lily overcome her insecurities about wearing a bathing suit to a pool party but discover their own. Meanwhile, now that Gloria’s new internship is taking up so much of her time, Jay is feeling particularly neglected.

Single Parents - "Big Widow Wives" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
After a house incident leaves Graham in fear of staying in his and Angie’s home, Angie enlists Will to help her get the house back together; however, there is a hiccup in the plan as Angie discovers a possum on the loose that she has to deal with. Meanwhile, Poppy discovers that Douglas is lying to her about a weekly poker game he must attend, as he participates in a weekly widow’s support group instead, causing Poppy to get a little jealous of his emotional vulnerability with the women in his support group.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "The Gang Chokes" (FXX, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Annoyed that the gang failed to react as he nearly choked to death on an appetizer, Frank decides the waiter, his savior, is the only person who has his back.

Family Time - "Age Ain't Nothin' But a Number" (Bounce TV, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Devin starts dating an older woman, which has Tony and Lisa concerned; Ebony's school project inspires her to go vegan.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of October 14)

Wednesday, October 16

Jennifer Aniston (Friends/Muddling Through/Ferris Bueller/Molloy) - Watch Jennifer on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Dane Cook (Maybe This Time) - Dane appears on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Whoopi Goldberg (Whoopi) - Whoopi is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
John Goodman (The Conners/Roseanne/Center of the Universe/Normal, Ohio) - John appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Ed Helms (The Office) - Ed is a guest on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
June Diane Raphael (Grace and Frankie/Burning Love/Players) - June appears on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Thomas Lennon (The Odd Couple/Sean Saves the World/Reno 911!) and Whitney Cummings (Whitney) - Thomas and Whitney are panelists on Lights Out with David Spade at 11:30pm on Comedy Central.
Alyssa Milano (Who's the Boss?/Romantically Challenged) - Alyssa chats with the ladies of The View about her book Project Middle School (Alyssa Milano’s Hope #1) on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly/Samantha Who?) - Melissa visits The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check your local listings.
Michael Rapaport (Awkward/The War at Home) - Michael stops by The Wendy Williams Show, so check your local listings.
Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory/8 Simple Rules) - Kaley is a guest on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Paul Rudd (Living with Yourself/Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later/Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp/Wild Oats) - Paul talks about Netflix's Living with Yourself on CBS This Morning sometime between 7-9am.
Ali Wong (American Housewife/Are You There, Chelsea?) - Ali talks about Dear Girls on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
William Jackson Harper (The Good Place) - William talks about The Good Place on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and on New York Live on WNBC in New York at 11:30am ET.
Angela Kinsey (The Office/Haters Back Off/Your Family or Mine) and Jenna Fischer (Splitting Up Together/The Office) - Angela and Jenna talk about the Office Ladies Podcast on NBC's Today in the 10am hour and on the BUILD Series at 2pm.
Julie Andrews (Julie) - Julie talks about her book Home Work: A Memoir of My Hollywood Years on the BUILD Series at 5pm.