TV - My Boys

So, I've been watching My Boys for the past couple of years and I just wanted to do a little shout-out here. Generally, I think TV comedy is in a mess right now. There are a few shows getting it right, but for the most part, hour long dramas, or dramedies in some cases, are just way, way better. Exceptions include The Office, 30 Rock, and How I Met Your Mother but that's really about it.

Now, My Boys. There's no particular reason to think it would be any better than most of the sit-coms on ABC or CBS. It is a single camera show without a laugh track, like The Office or 30 Rock (as opposed to a multi-camera show with a laugh track and a studio audience like Two and a Half Men), which is a good sign, but there isn't really any star power. The most famous person on the show is Jim Gaffigan, who is certainly at least a D-list celebrity, but still.

Also, the show has some traditional sit-com style jokes, which can be a bit groan-worthy to modern TV viewers. I generally avoid that style of comedy, but I'm able to get past the occasional groan on this show.

The reason I put up with all of it is that there is something so natural about the performances that I sit through almost the entire episode wishing that I was friends with the characters.

First of all, the writing is, on occasion, insanely realistic. Like normally, even on shows like The Office and 30 Rock, I, as a viewer, notice something strange, and wish the characters would comment on it, but they don't. On My Boys, they do. For example, recently, two female characters were having lunch and for some reason, the analogies they were making kept coming around to animals. I turned to my husband and said, "Man, they just can't stop talking about animals." Seconds later, one of the characters says something like, "This conversation has a lot of animals in it." It was just so gratifying. I felt like "Yes! That's what normal people would actually say in that situation!" And it happens a number of times each episode.

Second, the actors are just completely natural. I mean, the Office seems forced compared to these performances. I have to imagine that the actors really like each other and have a great time making the show, because it really just comes across as a group of friends hanging out and living their life. And they are funny and seem like a lot of fun.

To summarize, basically, I watch the show because I wish the people on it would be friends with me.