Mike & Molly - General Discussion

[emma675]

I don't think she's pregnant, I think 

Spoiler

they are going to adopt.

[iMonrey]

They are in no position to have children under any circumstances while they're still living with Joyce. They need to establish their own financial independence before they start talking family. It's one thing to be all "ha-ha they're broke and Molly has tens of thousands in credit card debt" so long as they have no children, but it's no laughing matter anymore if they do.

[Actionmage]

I missed some of the Vince Buys a Boat episode, but I thought it was sweet. Yes, it hit almost every beat stories like this generally have, but it was okay because it was Mike & Molly.  Plus we got an air drum solo and "angry Riverdancing" and "that...lasagna is pretty much a smoking gun." I have liked the Mike/Vince relationship. They do have a sort of father/son-ish vibe. They have the other to talk to/ vent to in a house of mostly women.  Seeing Peggy decide she had to speak up for The Boy was great. I'm just surprised Peggy hasn't told Vince to knock off the Mother Biggs. While Peggy likes to complain about stuff, I think she doesn't appreciate others "aging" her and Mother Biggs, to me, is in the same class as Grandma or Granny- used to denote an older woman. (Shouldn't Peggy, Vince and Joyce be roughly in the same age bracket?)

 

The second episode. I liked it, but I'm a sucker for this show when it's about characters not wacky situations. (Though "Vince Takes A Bath" still can make me laugh really hard.) It is apparent that TPTB want M&M to end up parents. So, the story of Frannie the Homeless Pregnant Ex-Student is something I can live with. I love that Frannie and Mike have a fun push-pull and that Mollie just couldn't not help one of her former kids. Mike being afraid that "deep-down" he couldn't get over that the child wasn't biologically his was a nice realistic touch, but Carl and Samuel's responses to that were sweet. Mike is a ball of love who just has rules, like "Trix is 4 Frannie...& Mike."  I just hope that, since Molly seems to be doing well enough, that they end up either in a nice apartment or their own house.   The song at the end that Vince and Victoria were singing was cute and Joyce was just setting down another house rule. *g*

[random chance]

That was my first thought too @iMonrey - she didn't even ask her family before she agreed to it, at least do that much!    Ah well.  Sitcom.  Different rules.  Maybe the series finale will be them getting their own house.

[msani19]

Were these episodes filmed after they found out they were canceled? I can see them deciding that Mike/Molly would become parents and maybe move out. I suppose if they are going the baby route, this is a nice way to do it. No long pregnancy to watch and they will just get a baby! But seriously just deciding to adopt a baby impulsively without talking to your husband or anyone else it would impact, is quite the sitcom conceit.

I hope that if they are trying to tie things up, the rest of the cast gets some "happy" endings as well. I don't care if Carl has a relationship, I'd just like him to be less desperate and needy. Oh and obnoxious. Vince and Joyce seem like they are fine. Victoria...maybe she gives up smoking everyday?

[Snow Apple]

If they must have a baby, I think that's a nice way to do it. Goes with the theme of finding love and family when you least expect. At least it's a better story than ending the series with a cheesy "I'm pregnant."

[Quof]

And we don't have to watch the "hilarity" of clueless new parents coping with an infant.    

[iMonrey]

So long as they take what Molly has earned from her books and put that down towards a place of their own, I'll be OK with the new baby. Otherwise I'm going to remain really cranky about it. I get that they wanted to have the whole family under one roof for the sake of convenience but with the show ending it's time for them to move out on their own.

[Big Mother]

The last 2 episodes were really strong! I loved it! I'll really miss this show.

Am I dreamimng, or did Billy Gardell lose quite a bit of weight?

[theatremouse]

On 4/27/2016 at 11:41 AM, candall said:

So do I understand from the comments above that this was the first of the final four episodes?  Why are they screwing around with a dog--which they don't even keep--instead of spending those few (19?!) minutes giving the various characters a nice ending?

I forget why I think this but I was under the impression they had already finished filming (or possibly all but one episode?) when they found out they were cancelled.

On 5/3/2016 at 8:01 AM, Actionmage said:

Mike being afraid that "deep-down" he couldn't get over that the child wasn't biologically his was a nice realistic touch, but Carl and Samuel's responses to that were sweet.

I don't doubt it's a realistic reaction, but I didn't like that scene at all because it's just about the most predictable plot point they could've gone with there.

[candall]

I'd be very cranky if M&M were irresponsible enough to get pregnant while they're living with Joyce and deep in debt.  But you have to admit, the whole setup with the former student hits all the right notes for grabbing that baby.  Molly and the mom know each other so there's no scam in place or vetting process.  The mother's shown to be mature enough to know she can't provide for a baby, so she's not going to be a recovered methhead crackpot down the road, trying to get her baby back.  She's estranged from her parents, because they're horrible, so we don't have to worry about the grands causing trouble adoption-wise. 

They've conveniently mentioned the handy assistance programs the birth mother can funnel into, so there's no worry about the awkwardness of taking her baby and then wondering what to do with the mom.  However. . .

I do sort of see M&M deciding to buy the house next door and parent both mother and baby.  I guess that storyline largely depends on how much cancellation notice they had.  Heh.  Administrative problem.

[jumper sage]

On 5/3/2016 at 11:01 AM, Actionmage said:

(Though "Vince Takes A Bath" still can make me laugh really hard.)

My favorite episode of all time.  It had been a long time since I laughed until hiccups.

On 5/6/2016 at 1:18 AM, candall said:

I do sort of see M&M deciding to buy the house next door and parent both mother and baby.  I guess that storyline largely depends on how much cancellation notice they had.  Heh.  Administrative problem.

I agree with this plot line.  I was thinking the same thing.

[candall]

I'm hallway through tonight's double-header and I think this won't be a popular opinion, but here goes:

Has Molly grown so accustomed to being in charge of Mike's life that she now feels qualified to make all the decisions for everyone's lives?  I mean, I think **I** know what people need better than they do, too--ha!--but it would be so arrogant if I actually started making the moves to get everyone organized per the Candall vision.

Edited May 10, 2016 by candall

[SmithW6079]

I haven't watched this show since season 2, when it stopped being about two sweet fat people falling in love and turned into fat Molly pratfalls and the idiotic storyline of Molly quitting her job to become a writer.

I watched tonight, because the TV was on. Did they say why Mike and Molly are adopting a baby? Can she not get pregnant, or is something wrong with Mike?

Drunk Mike is funny Mike.

Swoozie Kurtz is sooo thin. She looks like a Barbie doll or one of those knock-off dolls -- giant head and skinny body. It can't be healthy. 

I think I'm in the minority, but I can't stand Peggy. I'm glad she wasn't in this episode. 

[Rhetorica]

These two episodes reminded me of what I loved about this show, great ensemble cast, good writing, laugh at loud moments, and heart. I'm sorry to see it go but glad it didn't overstay it's welcome like other Lorre shows. 

Doll Guillotine.... perfect comic timing.

[pennben]

I was surprised, but pleased that they let the "Molly meets a former student who is pregnant and has no means, so Mike & Molly get a baby" plot go. And, maybe they will have a similarly easy resolution to the show, but I thought it was lovely that ultimately she took the hard way out and reunited that family.

Moving past that to behind the scenes stuff, because I love me some gossip, one TV critic I follow joked that "I'm convinced Melissa McCarthy taped like 10 seasons of that show at once and they just keep releasing them".

Regardless of one's feelings about this show, she deserves a round of applause for never thinking of walking away from this show, standing by it throughout her contract and walking away with absolutely nothing but good things to say about it.

[random chance]

9 hours ago, SmithW6079 said:

 

I think I'm in the minority, but I can't stand Peggy. I'm glad she wasn't in this episode. 

I can't stand her either, just so you don't feel alone! 

6 hours ago, pennben said:

Regardless of one's feelings about this show, she deserves a round of applause for never thinking of walking away from this show, standing by it throughout her contract and walking away with absolutely nothing but good things to say about it.

 That is an excellent point!  She has been a class act her entire career.  I don't think I have ever heard a single piece of negative gossip about her.

[candall]

3 hours ago, random chance said:

I don't think I have ever heard a single piece of negative gossip about her.

I heard one recently.  The Gilmore Girls people say Melissa was "unavailable" to film the new Gilmore flicks, even though they had made every effort to set everything up for her convenience--she could just rush in, film a couple of hours and be on her way.

Melissa McCarthy says she was never contacted about coming back.  Without any evidence whatsoever, I believe McCarthy.  It makes sense the Sherman-Palladinos didn't want their much-anticipated reunion overshadowed by the fact that supplementary character Sookie is played by "the world's number one box office comedienne." 

But then maybe don't push it that you bent over backwards to be accommodating and MM blew you off.  Although, likewise, I guess, if the reverse is true, better to say you had scheduling conflicts than that you were excluded.  Who knows--Hollywood people are so strange.

[iMonrey]

I'm back to being irritated. Sure, it was sweet that Joyce, Vince and Victoria set up a nursery for the baby, but the fact remains, this isn't an ideal situation to bring a baby into. Not even a fairly good situation. Molly is still in debt up to her ears, Victoria still smokes pot and Joyce is still a lush (who, by her own admission, seriously considered abandoning her own children back in the day). And I shudder to think of the kind of hateful prejudices Peggy is going to ingrain into a baby.

I get why the show wanted to give Mike and Molly a baby. I'm not thrilled with it and I don't agree that "baby=happy ending" no matter what, but I get it. I just wish they'd gone about it in a way that makes it less unreasonable.

[readster]

I have to agree, the plan should have been Mike and Molly moving out and then going with the baby. Instead of Molly just all of a sudden quitting her job as a teacher when she was trying to become a VP and also getting loan forgiveness. They really don't know how the Chicago school system works or how loan debt can be forgiven.

[wilsie]

I completely agree, iMonrey and readster.  I think it's especially odd when they have avoided mentioning a baby since the end of the third season, unless I missed something.  This really came out of the blue.

[theatremouse]

They also really don't know how adoption works (or are intentionally avoiding the reality of it for comedic effect, which to me undermines anything funny that may come out of it since every other second I'm vexed by how they're just glossing over and fast tracking everything.)

[readster]

I know, its just like TV troupe with divorces and how alimony works. Since season 3 they really didn't know what to do with Mike and Molly. They decided to turn Molly into this spread thrift, who unlike her sister living rent free, amounted a ton of money and yet spent it on pot and good times. Yet Molly, who could have: A. paid her student loans down. B. gotten forgiveness as she also has her masters and was at the same school for over a decade. C. Could have gotten the VP job no problem and then still became a writer on the side. D. Had to have her and Mike have fertility problems just like all married couples on TV who are trying to have babies. 

  Instead it comes that Molly has no sense of finances, her mother and stepfather couldn't at any point go: "You have good jobs and tons of money, get your own damn place!" Or even have Mike who also passed his promotion tests get a better position as detective or field trainer and still be in the job. Yet it turned into: "We don't know how to write that and make it funny, so, let's just have Molly quit her job for a stupid reason and have Mike look like a moron and make both sets of parents seem like they should have died from stupidity at one point or another.

[momtoall]

I can't get pass the ridiculousness of them adopting a child while still living with Molly's mother.  WTH???

Edited May 12, 2016 by momtoall

[possibilities]

Why not? Intergenerational families are often a better way to raise kids than the nuclear option.

[Actionmage]

If the writing staff were working toward having the adoption play out over this and a next season, maybe what we are getting is a super-condensed telling of how M&M get to be parents. The glossing over the bajillion steps and hoops to become a credited adoptive family is a by-product of being cancelled.  I think the folks who have given us Victoria's and Peggy's stories would be able to give us a really good adoption story- if they had the time/space.

 

In order for my kids to not go into The System, two wonderful sisters-in-law ( my husband's sisters) stepped in ( four volunteered, two ended up adopting my kids.) I see where Molly is coming from when she tells Frannie to keep the baby because Frannie has a support system now. Yet, I loved how Frannie's immediate response was to honor the promise to Mike & Molly because she trusted them enough with her child; she knew that baby would be loved.  Then I just instantly dissolved into a puddle.   

I am glad they did not show Peggy's reaction to the news about Frannie and the baby leaving. It wouldn't be funny in any way. Just a lot of hurt. But knowing Peggy is actually, in her heart, excited  to be a grandma is a lovely thing. Plus there's always "Uncle" Jim. ;p

 

The beat I could understand but really disliked was Molly super-uber-micromanaging everyone before the interview. It 9x out of 10 always blows up in the manager's face spectacularly.  The baby guillotine was fabulously quietly physical, with the doll head punchline. The interviewer knows she's going to talk to people and people get hungry. Let folks nibble; they aren't planning on eating the whole platter before the woman gets there.

 

I haven't caught the one about Joyce's will. Did Victoria actually end up with the house? The ads for that episode made Molly so distasteful, I wasn't interested in seeing it then. Victoria keeping the house made sense to me. Victoria was at loose ends outside of the morgue job- if she was doing that while going to school. Having her childhood home- possibly paid off completely- would lessen any pressures Victoria may have if Joyce died. Molly not only had Mike for financial help, but she was a published author, her mother-in-law had space ( if things got really tight budget-wise), and M&M could rent an apartment/buy a house of their own. Unless Victoria was ready to kick them out, there seemed to be no reason for Molly to insist the house go to her. But there probably was. 

[Snow Apple]

On 5/10/2016 at 10:39 AM, candall said:

I heard one recently.  The Gilmore Girls people say Melissa was "unavailable" to film the new Gilmore flicks, even though they had made every effort to set everything up for her convenience--she could just rush in, film a couple of hours and be on her way.

Melissa McCarthy says she was never contacted about coming back.  Without any evidence whatsoever, I believe McCarthy.  It makes sense the Sherman-Palladinos didn't want their much-anticipated reunion overshadowed by the fact that supplementary character Sookie is played by "the world's number one box office comedienne." 

But then maybe don't push it that you bent over backwards to be accommodating and MM blew you off.  Although, likewise, I guess, if the reverse is true, better to say you had scheduling conflicts than that you were excluded.  Who knows--Hollywood people are so strange.

I don't know what happened, but they must have worked it out. MM is in the new Gilmore Girls. I don't remember where I read it (internet or a magazine) but I was surprised when I read MM say she just finished filming. IMDB list her in two episodes.

[random chance]

They did work it out and I assume that's because someone put pressure on Amy Sherman-Paladino.  It was a she-said she-said situation but I believed Melissa McCarthy (who said she wasn't even asked) because I have read enough interviews with ASP to know that she exaggerates and frequently contradicts herself.  Also she's a little bit nuts.

I didn't get to see the last episode of Mike & Molly but it sounds kind of sad.  Maybe I'll just leave off now.

[pennben]

41 minutes ago, Snow Apple said:

I don't know what happened, but they must have worked it out. MM is in the new Gilmore Girls. I don't remember where I read it (internet or a magazine) but I was surprised when I read MM say she just finished filming. IMDB list her in two episodes.

Interesting.  I just assumed she'd be in a quick cameo in one episode.  I hope you don't mind, but I shared the imdb info over on the GG revival speculation thread (full credit to you).  That is good news to me, although I'm sure it's just going to be quick appearances in each episode.

[Rhetorica]

Well, that was sweet and tied up in a bow. I'll miss this show, and Galavant, and The Muppet's Show. I guess I'm a jinx... 

[me5671]

I loved that finale to pieces.  It was cute, we got to see all the major characters one last time, and it tied in with the beginning of the series so well.  I'm glad that Victoria and Carl got back together.  :)

When Mike told Molly that what he said about her when he first met her, it brought back the magic of the early seasons.  I want to re-watch the first episode... haven't seen it since it first aired, but I do remember when he said that to Carl!  I also loved Mike and Molly humming the theme song to the show to the baby.  That was a well-done finale IMO.  I'm gonna miss this show, but I am glad it went out on a high note.

Edited May 17, 2016 by me5671

[Sparger Springs]

On 5/12/2016 at 6:17 PM, possibilities said:

Why not? Intergenerational families are often a better way to raise kids than the nuclear option.

Do you think the typical adoption agency feels that way? I think Mike and Molly would've been disqualified as soon as they realized 3 other adults were in the house. There is a long line for adopting newborns. No way Mike and Molly would've made the cut,  other than a tv show.

[msani19]

That was a decent enough finale. I can't remember how many tv shows I've seen do the "I'm pregnant and we just adopted a baby!" storyline. That was as cliche as it could be, but I was mostly ok with it. lol.

Wrapped things up nicely and we can imagine that they will live happy lives in the future.

[jewel21]

I'm so sad it's over but I loved the finale. Everyone got their happy ending. Molly is pregnant, Carl and Victoria are together. We saw Nana! The only one I missed was Jim. Seriously, no Jim?!

Now I want to go out and buy the whole series on DVD.

[cmahorror]

4 hours ago, msani19 said:

That was a decent enough finale. I can't remember how many tv shows I've seen do the "I'm pregnant and we just adopted a baby!" storyline. That was as cliche as it could be, but I was mostly ok with it. lol.

Wrapped things up nicely and we can imagine that they will live happy lives in the future.

It may be a cliche but I actually know a couple that happened to. They were in China adopting their son and she got pregnant while they were over there so I had no problem with that turn of event. I have heard that it is not all that unusual for a couple to conceive while in the process of adopting because their stress levels are down.

I thought it was a really sweet way to end the series. Absolutely loved them singing the theme song to their son at the end - it was a nice button on the series.

[pennben]

Oh, this sweet little show that never quite found its way really went out on a high note!  What a fantastic two final episodes.  Way to bring it all home show, that was lovely.

Some thoughts:

1. Randomly noticed that McCarthy directed the next to last episode, has that ever happened before?
2. Loved a quiet nod to Gilmore Girls with Rose Abdoo playing Mike's psychic (and Mike's line, "she's no gypsy, she's from Toronto"...for those that didn't follow GG, Abdoo played a character named Gypsy on that show).  Maybe that was MM's quiet tribute to GG when she thought she wasn't going back for the revival?
3.  When Carl's grandma and, was it Harry? showed up, I just smiled, nice to see them back in the fold.
4.  I would have laughed and laughed and laughed if somehow Gerald McRaney showed up again, he was the captain that dated Peggy, given what role he played in the Castle finale.

What a great sendoff for this show.  Well done! Very well done!

Edited May 17, 2016 by pennben

[random chance]

I'm glad I watched that after all.  I was afraid it would be sad but it was a nice wrap-up (as everyone has already said in better ways), and a nice closure on the original premise.  It's tough times for broadcast TV shows so kudos to CBS for allowing it to end instead of just yanking it off the air in mid-commercial.

[emma675]

It was sad but sweet, which I enjoyed. I think this went out on a high note (although I would have loved to have seen "in the future" pics of Mike and Molly and the kids, personally).

I loved that they were able to bring on all of the major players for the last episode and they were all true to form. Vince being totally stoned on Ambien cracked me up and I loved how he finally "woke up" in the hospital not knowing where he was or how he got there. Joyce in the car seat was funny, too.

[FineWashables]

This was a clever show throughout its run, based on a clever premise. The last four episodes seemed to be a Beat the Clock version of how to cram every tv romcom cliche into a finale.  I think the characters all deserved better.  When Mr Washables and I saw an episode description three weeks ago that said "Molly encounters a former student" we both said, well the student must be pregnant and so Mike and Molly will adopt a child and then find out she's pregnant for real.  We were kidding because we assumed the writers could do better.  Guess they're too busy polishing their resumes.  That said, glad to see Carl and Victoria got together again.

[barbedwire]

I did like it, not loved it.  I know 2 couples who that happened to: one got pregnant during the adoption process and the other about 6 months after they brought their baby home.

I like that Carl and Victoria were back together and what Nana said "I was talking to her." - LOL!  So glad Nana was there.

The sweetest part was Mike's mom worried that she would hardly get to see the baby and her little speech about wanting to do better with the grandchild since she was hardly home being a single mom when Mike was growing up.  I get that.  Always seems like one side of a family spends a lot more time with a grandchild.

The theme song sung to William at the end was very sweet.  I will miss this show!

[illdoc]

Was it just me, or did it look like Victoria & Molly are about the same size now?!! 

[theatremouse]

16 hours ago, Sparger Springs said:

Do you think the typical adoption agency feels that way? I think Mike and Molly would've been disqualified as soon as they realized 3 other adults were in the house. There is a long line for adopting newborns. No way Mike and Molly would've made the cut,  other than a tv show.

It's not an issue of how many people are in the house. It's an issue of how many bedrooms there are. If, for example, Victoria moved to the basement, then if the adults have bedrooms and the baby has its own, it's not an issue. That they were shown to have lied to the new agency in the previous episode is a HUGE issue and would get them nixed if found out much more so than the number of people living in the house. Also no way they get matched in less than six months, if not longer; plus this made it seem like they went private adoption, with costs tens of thousands of dollars, which they presumably do not have. Unless they flashed a "X months later" on the screen at some point and I missed it, or they did something else to imply A LOT of time passed, this was total fairy tale bullshit.

[Quof]

Quote

It's an issue of how many bedrooms there are

And bathrooms.  I like "one per person", please.

[Pdxblonde]

I loved it, but didn't the "King of Queens" do the same thing for their final episode? They were adopting their baby (In China) and Carrie found out she was pregnant.

[reggiejax]

13 minutes ago, Pdxblonde said:

I loved it, but didn't the "King of Queens" do the same thing for their final episode? They were adopting their baby (In China) and Carrie found out she was pregnant.

I am not positive about King of Queens, but I know Rules of Engagement ended the same way. Although on Rules of Engagement, they had a baby via surrogate ( a pregnancy that lasted 2 years on the show, so you know they were big on continuity) and then it was revealed Megyn Price's character, Audrey, was pregnant.

Edited May 17, 2016 by reggiejax

[pennben]

5 hours ago, random chance said:

I'm glad I watched that after all.  I was afraid it would be sad but it was a nice wrap-up (as everyone has already said in better ways), and a nice closure on the original premise.  It's tough times for broadcast TV shows so kudos to CBS for allowing it to end instead of just yanking it off the air in mid-commercial.

I'm glad you watched as well! I read what you wrote last week thinking about things being sad and not watching.  I thought about saying something then, because I really thought this would turn out okay, but I didn't because I could have been wrong, and, well, I wasn't ready to guess and be horribly wrong! So "Yeah" to a happy ending!

[possibilities]

RE the adoption, I thought the original objection to M&M having a baby was based on them living in an extended family situation because it somehow was a bad idea for them to become parents before they go their own place, and that's what I was disagreeing with. I don't share any moral outrage about that at all, and I think it can even be preferable in some situations to just having two parents + kid(s) living alone. I think this issue was raised before we knew for sure it was an adoption and not a surprise conception.

However, if the objections are purely bureaucratic, not moral, I'm certainly not going to argue with that. Adoption typically takes a long time, especially if you are looking for a "healthy newborn" -- and they got a kid within a couple of weeks. That's purely a TV convention to end the show on a high note without much notice.

They did attempt to explain the selection process by saying the birthmother chose them (i.e. the agency didn't give them priority for a placement, it was the luck of having a birthmom like their profile). But again, if the complaint is about realism, not morals, I don't disagree.

Edited May 17, 2016 by possibilities

[msani19]

5 hours ago, Pdxblonde said:

I loved it, but didn't the "King of Queens" do the same thing for their final episode? They were adopting their baby (In China) and Carrie found out she was pregnant.

Yes, they did do this. What came to mind when I saw the mike & Molly finale.

[candall]

While babies aren't the icing on the cake for me personally, it was a nice ending and a good way to get the entire cast gathered.  Except Jim!  Tell me Peggy couldn't have stared down a security guard's objection to the baby's Uncle Jim.  I <3 Jim and missed him.  (Or rather, her.)

Second the approval for Carl & Victoria, Nana, Friendzone, groggy Vince and Joyce in the baby seat.  Swoosie must be some kind of tiny--she probably could be comfortable in Delta coach.

Edited May 18, 2016 by candall

[Songbird]

On May 10, 2016 at 7:08 AM, random chance said:

I

I'm glad the finale had a happy ending. I will miss this show and all of the characters.