Watching Cougar Town last night, it occurred to me that the show owes as much to the “don’t forget to breathe/live in the moment” genre of Oprah episodes as it does to the ribald “git some!” comedy of Judd Apatow. That’s a pretty nifty trick, though when it comes to the latter influence, the shock of it is that the characters most obsessed with doing the horizontal mambo are middle-aged women — moms even! gasp! — instead of the particular brand of man-boy Apatow typically deals in. Yet even when the show is mining overly trodden comic territory (like Courteney Cox’s Jules rushing to get a bikini wax before making a date to have sex for the first time with her hot, younger boyfriend), the writing and delivery elevate the material to laugh-out-loud levels. Take Jules’ outraged reply to Laurie’s suggestion that she save time by hiring the same person to perform her bikini- and eyebrow-waxing: “One’s a gardener, the other’s an artist!” And, of course, we had scene-stealer Carolyn Hennesy (as Barb) offering that insane monologue to her own waxing artiste. “That, Carol, is total rejuvenation surgery. Up here I’m 48, but below the belt, I’m 19. Now let’s detail this Ferrari!” (Did that scene make you collapse into the fetal position or giggle uncontrollably?) I’d say that somehow, in all her feral-cat glory, Hennesy makes such disturbingly blue material work, just as she does in the scene below, in which she compares Cox’s boy toy to an omelet (sort of).
Beyond its larger themes of sex and the single post-twentysomething girl, the little details in last night’s episode made it imperative to put down the iPhone game of Scrabble and really pay attention. I howled at the multiple Silence of the Lambs references (Andy whispering “Hello, Clarice” before biting into his bagel; Laurie pointing out that Jules’ nails make her look like she was “trapped in a well”) and that bit about Ellie tapping the beat to “We Didn’t Start the Fire” on Andy’s backside during sex, and Andy later drumming the same rhythm on their toddler’s diaper area, and not understanding why. Bonus points for that moment where Jules pulls the tag off her negligee, only after getting her boyfriend’s thumbs-up, and of course, her depressed monologue about finding out she’s less than stellar in the sack: If guys stay with her now, she bemoaned, “it’s because they like me for me.” Waah waah waah.
What were your favorite moments last night on Cougar Town? Are you like me, waiting with baited breath for Barb’s occasional appearances? Share your thoughts on the message boards below!
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This is a good show and all, but I wonder how much longer the show can be “funny” before the shtick starts to wear off. Judging by the sliding ratings, it seems like viewers might be slowly tiring of this show…
Carolyn Hennesy is the funniest person on the show, even though Cox is good (pardon the pun).
I’m liking it even though I thought I wouldn’t! Barb is actually the most cringe-worthy part (in a bad way). I loved the father-son chat (“And the guys who don’t care what other people think always get the most tail!”) and the banter with Jules’ newspaper buddy (“No last name!”).
This show is awful, despite some zingers, and I guarantee it will be off the air before the season is out. There is a horrifying cloying sense of desperation that makes me turn off the tv as quickly as possible, and it’s not just the 40 something women.
I’m with you. It’s horrible.
How do you know it’s awful? Do you sit through an entire episode of a show you don’t like. I totally disagree. I think it’s gotten better each week, and I’m really starting to like it. I think the writing is sharp and Cox is great. You probably don’t like it because the characters remind you of your mom.
Except Cougar Town just got a full season pickup. So it’s definitely going to be on air for the rest of the season.
Love this show!
Ditto!!
I like the show, but it is getting a bit repetitive. Hennesy’s Ferrari line was the best of the night, but I also love Ian Gomez, whom I’ve admired since the Drew Carey Show. There’s plenty of potential there; the characters just need to spread their wings a bit.
This is my favorite new comedy. The writing is so clever (although it’s too fast for me to follow at times and I can’t bother to rewind) and the characters are a lot of fun. I really like the ex-husband and the “paper buddy” and Jules assistant cracks me up. I hope I have time to learn their names.
I still like it, but everything seems a little overacted. Maybe that is what they are going for- wacky! Maybe I have just watched too much super dry comedy lately. Love Busy Phillips and the kid who plays her son. I used to love him on “Aliens in America”.
ABC owns Wednesday nights as far as I’m concerned, except for Hank. I never really understood Kelsey Gramar’s appeal.
I must say, from all of the hater backlash given by the critics during new fall tv preview season, Cougar Town has turned out to be more funny, cute, charming, witty, well written, and balls-to-the-walls than Modern Family. If Cougar Town keeps things on blazing hot, it will stay around. Modern Family is so dried-up-beyond-prunes humour that it makes 10 day old bread seem hilarious. Seriously Cougar Town deserves a watch (love Courtney Cox’s son Travis played by an adoring Dan Byrd)
It’s a flawed show but it does have it’s moments. I’m hoping that they’ll tighten up their scripts a bit, make it have a touch more heart (and less on the stereotype wackiness) and DEFINITELY have more of Barb. I completely agree with Michael Slezak — whenever I see her on the screen, I’m always 20 times happier. She is a freaking riot!
I love this show. It really is like the female equivalent to films like ‘40 Year Old Virgin’ and ‘Knocked Up.’ I really hope it lasts.
Yes, but they’ll all so shrill. It’s not watchable.
I like it, but I’m wondering if Bill Lawrence will incorporate any “Scrubs”-like wackiness (can’t wait for new Scrubs!).
Love it, Love Courtney, Love all the co-stars, Love the writing, Love that ABC finally has a comedy that I will watch every week.
Didn’t think I would like this show, but WOW, last nights was funny funny funny. My 14yr old son fell off the couch LHAO during the Dad’s boat scenes. We both looked at each other after the show was over and said ‘yes this is a really funny show’