PILOT REVIEW: The Odd Couple

THE ODD COUPLE

Starring: Matthew Perry, Thomas Lennon, Lindsay Sloane, Yvette Nicole Brown, and Wendell Pierce

Based on the play by Neil Simon
Developed for television by Matthew Perry, Danny Jacobson, and Joe Keenan
Teleplay by Matthew Perry, Danny Jacobson, & Joe Keenan, Directed by Mark Cendrowski

THE PREMISE: Well, everyone should know the premise of The Odd Couple. A reboot of the play, movie, and 1970s TV series of the same, the show centers on two roommates with very opposite personalities. Oscar Madison (Matthew Perry) is a complete slob while Felix Unger (Thomas Lennon) is about as neat and stuffy as they come. Rounding out the main cast is Oscar's assistant, Dani (Yvette Nicole Brown), Oscar's friend, Teddy (Wendell Pierce), and a neighbor, Emily (Lindsay Sloane).

THE GOOD: The cast is likable. I said when Matthew Perry's Mr. Sunshine and Go On failed that he needed to have a live audience to work with it. Well, he has it here so maybe he'll grow into having the same comic timing he did for so many years on Friends. Thomas Lennon fits the Felix part quite well and is reminiscent of Tony Randall. The supporting cast is solid and it takes place in one of the best apartments I've seen. I want it!

THE BAD: Everything feels pretty stale here which is unfortunate because it has good people and I don't want every multi-camera sitcom to feel that way. The "odd couple" premise has been done to death with many shows, the last thing we need is a reboot of the show itself. There were way too many set-up/joke moments (the most obvious one being when Oscar talked about all the women they could meet in the city before an angry woman beeped at them). That's just lazy writing. As much as I like Perry and want him to succeed, he was doing a whole lot of over-acting. Every line was delivered with the same incredulous tone.

BOTTOM LINE: I saw Matthew Perry being interviewed on Letterman the other night and he talked about the best line from this episode - the "FU" bit - and said it was lifted directly from the play. That's the exact problem with this show. It's not bringing anything new to the genre much less the title itself. Making Oscar Madison a sports radio host instead of a sportswriter is about as innovative as this show got compared to the original.