Rules of Engagement – Maybe they should never leave the diner

Network series have been on vacation for too long. My DVR has turned into a wasteland of movies I can’t find the time to watch and shows my wife keeps taping but never gets around to.

The hiatus also had one other unintentional side effect: it lulled me into forgetting that Rules of Engagement has been an uneven mess this season. But if time off made me forget that, last night’s episode put the notion right back in my mind.

When Timmy joined the cast he was a timid, proper MBA looking to break into the business world. Now, understandably, the show has looked to expand his character both because he needed to grow, and because Adhir Kalyan added a lot to an already funny show. When Timmy began joining Russell, Adam, and Jeff at the diner, I said great. Jeff and Timmy, in particular, are a super team.

When Timmy started dating I got a bit wary because he was so wide open to a slew of bad Russell jokes. But having Timmy and Russell compete over a girl? Reducing Timmy, who was a great straight man, to another slapstick artist alongside Russell? Awful move.

I hadn’t remembered that Audrey was still out of work. What with her bakery idea and then the hostess job at the muffin shop, I had remembered her as being gainfully employed … guess not. Her Pilates instructor getting her revved up at home was beneath all that is funny about Jeff and Audrey.

I just don’t understand why the writers waste our time — and theirs, and the actors — having such a hilarious duo muck around with such stupidity. I’m not going to make the argument again that there’s gold sitting there for the taking — surrogate! — but at the very least they could be doing something on their level. This was even beneath Adam and Jen.

Which isn’t to say that Jen discovering that Adam was a cheerleader wasn’t stupid too. It’s not like the writers went and mixed up couples and plots; both were beneath even Adam and Jen. I mean, of course I laughed at some of it, but that doesn’t mean it was a good idea. I did love when Jen warned Adam not to go into the diner wearing his varsity jacket, telling him that she was “from the future” here to tell him that “it does not go well.” By the way, even a season ago Adam would not have been dumb enough not to know that. He’s shedding brain cells faster than Russell’s losing his humor.

But back to the cheerleader thing. At the very least Oliver Hudson could have worked on the craft a bit. His routines at the end of the episode — and in the coda — weren’t even halfway believable as someone who cheered years ago in high school. It was meant to seem silly, but the least the actors can do for us is sell what they’re selling. Adam failed on that end.

And the show failed on its return. This is not how Rules of Engagement is meant to be. Hopefully the second half of the season will shape up.

Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Jan 04, 2011 @ 16:30 EST5EDT