Season 1 Discussion

[Aileen]

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

Both Will and Angie had serious lovers, but without saying anything about it, those seem to have been dropped?

 

ETA: I'm referring to the pediatrician and the guy who dressed as Santa

Didn't the pediatrician dump him at that party where he was in the cellphone suit? I do think that Angie is still dating Brother from Champions, though.

 

I really like this show. The characters are so likeable and the kid are a bit much at points, but not obnoxiously so. It's warm and I do laugh out loud a couple of times each episode.

[politichick]

I like it a lot, too.

[possibilities]

I like it, too. I think I'm just in the mood for something that's not depressing, and this show is fundamentally populated by people who care about and are kind to each other. It's not like they don't have conflict, and they're certainly snarky. But it's playful, not cruel.

Though I admit, it does undermine that idea when they are randomly cruel to dude who wanted to join the group. Why can't they add someone? He seemed to be fitting in just fine. I don't care if the show wants to limit the number to the original group, but to introduce someone just to have the group be shitty to him is not really supporting what I like about the show.

[tennisgurl]

Really good episode, I loved how things went with the ex wife, and how things ended with her and Will. She isnt an awful person or anything, but she clearly doesent have the same prioritizes that Will does, and they just dont work as a couple. She really is weirdly both selfish and selfless at the same time. But some people are like that. Really giving and charitable to strangers, but put their own families on the back burner. 

I really cant tell if Will and Angie will hook up. Sometimes they seem to have a bit of romantic chemistry (and the ex saying that Angie sounded like his wife) other times they seem to have a platonic friendship. On the other hand, Douglas totally has a thing for Poppy, but not sure if she would be into him like that. I can get behind it though, I think they compliment each other really well, in a weird way. 

I am glad that I ended up sticking with this show, I enjoy it a whole lot. It makes me smile.

[jhlipton]

19 hours ago, possibilities said:

Though I admit, it does undermine that idea when they are randomly cruel to dude who wanted to join the group. Why can't they add someone?

Come on -- it's MARK!!!  They established in a previous episode why Douglas hates Mark, and since he doesn't want Mark in, mark doesn't get in.  I think that Poppy was also happy that mark wasn't "on the grid"!

[Brian Cronin]

On 1/24/2019 at 4:30 PM, Aileen said:

Didn't the pediatrician dump him at that party where he was in the cellphone suit? I do think that Angie is still dating Brother from Champions, though.

 

She told him to stop by later that night and bring the costume, so as of that episode, they were still together.

[SoMuchTV]

Okay, as much as I would hate the twins, or actually their parent(s) in real life, I'm kinda loving them here.

[possibilities]

Yes, I loved the twins this week, from the oil changing to the reveal of the shed workshop to the way they both actually wanted to reconcile. I thought Will was a dumbass for not even trying to actually talk to them about what was happening, instead of just using gimmicks. I usually like Will, but that was just annoying.

[hoodooznoodooz]

I liked Miggy agreeing, “Crazy game!”

[politichick]

7 hours ago, possibilities said:

Yes, I loved the twins this week, from the oil changing to the reveal of the shed workshop to the way they both actually wanted to reconcile. I thought Will was a dumbass for not even trying to actually talk to them about what was happening, instead of just using gimmicks. I usually like Will, but that was just annoying.

I love the twins every week and especially love how they know how to do shit.

[Aliconehead]

I love the fact that “you guys can’t change the oil in my car” was actually the punishment. Followed by them changing Wills. 

[possibilities]

The twins' general confidence and competence make a good refutation of the helicopter parenting style, and I do appreciate that, even though Douglas is too hands off even for me most of the time.

[tennisgurl]

That was really good use of the twins this week, loved seeing how they are actually different kids, and have their own strengths, even if they still work better as a team. They cant change Douglas's oil in his car, but he didnt say anything about Wills car! 

Douglas's ridiculously long list of enemy's (including Siegfried, but NOT Roy) seriously cracked me up. 

[biakbiak]

Baby Graham was particularly adorable.

[DNR]

I love this show. The characters & the dialogue makes me laugh out loud every week .  Is there a season 2 ??  🙏 hope so!!!!!!!!

[Whimsy]

14 hours ago, biakbiak said:

Baby Graham was particularly adorable.

I thought that was EXCELLENT casting.  They look exactly the same!

[Koalagirl]

5 hours ago, Whimsy said:

I thought that was EXCELLENT casting.  They look exactly the same!

They looked so much alike that I searched on line to see if perhaps it was a younger brother but apparently Tyler is the youngest in his family.

[jhlipton]

On 1/31/2019 at 1:20 AM, possibilities said:

I thought Will was a dumbass for not even trying to actually talk to them about what was happening, instead of just using gimmicks. I usually like Will, but that was just annoying.

Yes, but that is so Will.  He is always a "gimmicks first" kind of guy.

[SnarkySheep]

On 1/31/2019 at 3:00 PM, tennisgurl said:

That was really good use of the twins this week, loved seeing how they are actually different kids, and have their own strengths, even if they still work better as a team. They cant change Douglas's oil in his car, but he didnt say anything about Wills car! 

Douglas's ridiculously long list of enemy's (including Siegfried, but NOT Roy) seriously cracked me up. 

Agree on both points! I also thought it was pretty realistic, more so than this show's kid storylines have been so far.

[jmonique]

I binged this show recently, and once I realized the schtick is that the kids are basically 50-year-olds in 7-year-olds' bodies, I felt like I kind of got it.

All three storylines last night were kind of trying, though. 

[possibilities]

The adults were acting like kids while the kids were in the faux adult roles this week, is how I saw it.

[tennisgurl]

Poor Miggy, stuck being second, or third, choice for Pal-entines day. At least he and Will got to get their groove on towards the end. 

I thought this was another good use of the twins, and it was fun seeing most of the kids interact and try to help each other, in their quirky kid ways. 

The running Gotham jokes (which I am actually watching right now!) will never get old to me.

[biakbiak]

Even as a young child I was uncomfortable about this holiday which is supposed to be about romantic love being forced on children in schools! I am Sort of surprised it’s still a thing that is done.

[Gothish520]

Really liked Big Red in this episode, more than her previous appearances. I love Douglas, and I love his mid-century modern house. 

Will and Miggy's love for Rhythm of the Night was great - I'd be dancing right along with them!

[xander874]

On 2/15/2019 at 3:27 AM, Gothish520 said:

Really liked Big Red in this episode, more than her previous appearances

Agreed. They are making her a bit more 3-dimensional which I like. And I am glad she is going away for 6 months. I think she is best in small doses. I assume Poppy/Douglas is endgame. Maybe they will get together just as Big red comes back and declares her love...that would be so cliche but it is a sitcom.

I like the twins when they are just being one of the kids, so this episode worked well for me. And Sophia's crush on Graham was an interesting development.

Apparently Angie is still with hot Santa, but can they throw in one line about the pediatrician and that it's over. Obviously it is, but I need that closure.

[SnarkySheep]

On 2/15/2019 at 3:27 AM, Gothish520 said:

I love Douglas, and I love his mid-century modern house. 

I loved how he had his whole "Great Americans" set still on cassette...you know he's the kind of guy who would make absolutely no apology for not moving forward with technology.

I still feel like the show has no real overall plot. Like, they have their little storylines in each individual episode, but usually most sitcoms will have something overarching throughout an entire season. Other than them all struggling as single parents, there really is nothing emerging here.

[Eeksquire]

Quote

I still feel like the show has no real overall plot.

YES. I think that's why I can't really get into it and I think I'm out, even though I had high hopes and like most of the actors.

[jhlipton]

15 hours ago, SnarkySheep said:

I still feel like the show has no real overall plot. Like, they have their little storylines in each individual episode, but usually most sitcoms will have something overarching throughout an entire season.

That's a relatively new thing.  Other than soaps, TV dramas and comedies tended to be self-contained episodes (such as the original Star Trek).  It wasn't until the 80's or so, when shows like Hill Street Blues started having on-going stories.  Story-lines in comedies came even later, although I can't remember off-hand the first comedies to have storylines.  

[ItCouldBeWorse]

First graders (or are they in 2nd grade?) "dating" is gross.  That's not how crushes work at that age. Sophie and Graham are acting in a manner that is much to close to adults' social behavior, as a response to their parents over-sharing of their personal lives.  And what Poppy is doing to Rory by making him her best friend is not healthy, either.  And Poppy shouldn't be so proud of the fact that Rory gets to insist on "Gucci down to his toes."  Kids shouldn't get every extravagant thing that they want.

Edited February 21, 2019 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Aryanna]

9 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

First graders (or are they in 2nd grade?) "dating" is gross.  That's not how crushes work at that age. Sophie and Graham are acting in a manner that is much to close to adults' social behavior, as a response to their parents over-sharing of their personal lives.  And what Poppy is doing to Rory by making him her best friend is not healthy, either.  And Poppy shouldn't be s proud of the fact that Rory gets to insist on "Gucci down to his toes."  Kids shouldn't get every extravagant thing that they want.

Yeah, none of that's healthy.

I think this show is written by people who don't have kids or don't know any kids because they're written as adults in little bodies. If they're in first grade or second grade or whatever then Graham should think girls are gross and Sophie should be into squishees and slime and such.

[jmonique]

9 hours ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

Sophie and Graham are acting in a manner that is much to close to adults' social behavior

Every kid on the show is like that to me. I take it as some sort of conceit of the show; the heightened reality of the Single Parents universe in which they steer into the "overly wise/mature/flamboyant" cliches of child actors. None of these kids act like actual kids. 

(Or maybe that's just a thing I had to tell myself in order to get past that and try to enjoy the show because there's nothing else on for me at that time slot on Wednesdays.)

[rhys]

I hate having kids grow up fast. Talks about first graders "dating" ugh.

[Katy M]

Just now, rhys said:

I hate having kids grow up fast. Talks about first graders "dating" ugh.

I was engaged in nursery school.  His family moved so we never officially broke up, but I'm going to assume I'm free to move on.

[tennisgurl]

Maybe my friends and I were weird, but I very much remember having crushes and "dating" in first and second grade. My friends and I would gossip and pass notes about the boys we thought were cute, and we would go on "dates" by hanging out at the jungle gym for two minutes than running away to our friends to report back. None of really knew what dating actually was, so...

Douglas and Miggy are a fun combination, I always like when they get plots together. "Your father must be so disappointed" *Miggy nods sadly* "You have sports tattooed here. Thats a choice you made."

It was actually a good observation of Miggy that Poppy shouldn't be making fun of her exs girlfriends with Rory. Poppy and Rory are close, but she needs to set more boundaries with them,and her talking smack about all of his dads exs is just going to create problems. 

[qtpye]

On 2/21/2019 at 10:04 AM, Aryanna said:

Yeah, none of that's healthy.

I think this show is written by people who don't have kids or don't know any kids because they're written as adults in little bodies. If they're in first grade or second grade or whatever then Graham should think girls are gross and Sophie should be into squishees and slime and such.

On 2/21/2019 at 12:54 AM, ItCouldBeWorse said:

First graders (or are they in 2nd grade?) "dating" is gross.  That's not how crushes work at that age. Sophie and Graham are acting in a manner that is much to close to adults' social behavior, as a response to their parents over-sharing of their personal lives.  And what Poppy is doing to Rory by making him her best friend is not healthy, either.  And Poppy shouldn't be so proud of the fact that Rory gets to insist on "Gucci down to his toes."  Kids shouldn't get every extravagant thing that they want.

On 2/21/2019 at 10:06 AM, jmonique said:

Every kid on the show is like that to me. I take it as some sort of conceit of the show; the heightened reality of the Single Parents universe in which they steer into the "overly wise/mature/flamboyant" cliches of child actors. None of these kids act like actual kids. 

(Or maybe that's just a thing I had to tell myself in order to get past that and try to enjoy the show because there's nothing else on for me at that time slot on Wednesdays.)

On 2/21/2019 at 2:42 PM, tennisgurl said:

Maybe my friends and I were weird, but I very much remember having crushes and "dating" in first and second grade. My friends and I would gossip and pass notes about the boys we thought were cute, and we would go on "dates" by hanging out at the jungle gym for two minutes than running away to our friends to report back. None of really knew what dating actually was, so...

Douglas and Miggy are a fun combination, I always like when they get plots together. "Your father must be so disappointed" *Miggy nods sadly* "You have sports tattooed here. Thats a choice you made."

It was actually a good observation of Miggy that Poppy shouldn't be making fun of her exs girlfriends with Rory. Poppy and Rory are close, but she needs to set more boundaries with them,and her talking smack about all of his dads exs is just going to create problems. 

I do remember kids having crushes but these kids are ridiculous. That little girl talking with a British accent and then Graham pretending to be John Stamos. They were even supposedly printing out team t-shirts like team Jennifer and team Angelina. Are they trying to say that the kids of single parents are much more mature because of their parent rely on them (a little too much) as friends?

I think the writers find it is cute that these kids act like adults or High Schoolers. It's like all of them are young Manny from Modern Family (who did not grow up to be a good actor).

In the Valentines Day episode when the little girl just blurted out she liked Graham after they had all gone to the house of the girl HE liked, so he could profess his love I was rolling my eyes. I really do not need a "will they or won't they " with elementary age children.

I do love Douglas and it is nice to see Brad G as something other than Raymond's sad-sack brother. The adult actors are growing on me and Miggy seems a little more toned down.

[Aryanna]

On 2/23/2019 at 5:07 PM, qtpye said:

I really do not need a "will they or won't they " with elementary age children.

lol

I agree but at the same time I can see what they're doing with the thing between Graham and Sophie. It's supposed to be the manifestation of the subtext of the relationship between Will and Angie. But it would be nice if these children were written a little more as children instead of little adults. I can understand one precocious child in the cast but to make them all that way doesn't work.

[ItCouldBeWorse]

On 2/25/2019 at 2:47 PM, Aryanna said:

But it would be nice if these children were written a little more as children instead of little adults.

No 7 year old should think his mother is a "hot tamale."

[jhlipton]

10 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

No 7 year old should think his mother is a "hot tamale."

True, she's a bit more of a blintz!

[tennisgurl]

"She quit to work at a gas station to make more money." 

I normally dont mind the kids being portrayed as 50 year olds in the bodies of kids so often, but couldn't Angie just order the girls a quick pizza? Come on, Grub Hub takes like five seconds, and they're 1st graders!

I knew where the Miggy plot was going right away, but I still liked it, and him realizing that he is a different guy now that he has a kid, and has different priorities. I am super glad that they have toned back a bit on Miggy since the first few episodes. At first he seemed so stupid it was a bit disturbing to think he was the primary care giver of a baby, but now he seems to be a more normal rounded character.

Douglas finding his calling in beer pong was great too. And Will looks good with a beard! 

[possibilities]

That dig about teacher salaries was awesome. I forgive them for having a child deliver it, because it was so good.

[jhlipton]

The rest of this sitcom is hardly realistic, so I don't mind the surrealism of the kids.  It's just part of the gestalt of the show.

[Kel Varnsen]

On 2/14/2019 at 8:22 PM, tennisgurl said:

The running Gotham jokes (which I am actually watching right now!) will never get old to me.

I haven't been really paying attention. What is with all the Gotham jokes. Why do the characters kewp talking about it and is there a connection behind the camera? I stopped watching Gotham years ago so I am curious.

[swimmyfish]

22 hours ago, Kel Varnsen said:

I haven't been really paying attention. What is with all the Gotham jokes. Why do the characters kewp talking about it and is there a connection behind the camera? I stopped watching Gotham years ago so I am curious.

The father of another student in the kid's class is a writer on Gotham. We met actually met him a few episodes ago - he's married to the woman who hosted the party Angie was embarrassed to deliver the groceries to. 

Why him writing for Gotham is a joke, I can't explain.

I unfortunately find myself liking this show less and less as it goes on. Although I think Leighton Meester is doing the best she can, Angie is so erratic and inconsistent. She doesn't make any sense from week to week. 

And Rory has really gotten on my nerves for the past 3 episodes. I get that all the kids are supposed to be grown-up, but that dating game thing he put together for his mom's date was too over the top, and it really bothered me that the writers of the show would think he was in the right. Like, the whole purpose of dating is supposed to be to get to know the other person and find out what you have in common and how you work together; that they can't answer a bunch of ridiculous questions (oh, excuse me - scenarios) when they haven't spent any time together shouldn't be a sign that they can't be happy together. It should be a sign that the kid needs to mind his own beeswax.

And then this week, lying to Will's boss? Unacceptable. Although she at least had the sense to call out Scenarios for the nonsense it is.

I would hope that all of this is moving toward some kind of lesson or come-uppance for Rory - and also Poppy, for encouraging this. But this doesn't seem like the kind of show that would do that to one of its characters. And it's not that I think a child being punished makes for a great sitcom plot. But Rory's behavior has moved to a degree that it's not funny to me anymore, and I don't know if I can continue to watch a show where 1/3 of the storylines are this bad.

It's a shame, because I really had high hopes for this show. It's overall a strong ensemble, and I do like how the kids have all their different personalities. 

[needschocolate]

On 3/1/2019 at 11:39 AM, jhlipton said:

The rest of this sitcom is hardly realistic, so I don't mind the surrealism of the kids.  It's just part of the gestalt of the show.

The parents aren't very realistic either - they are all single parents who rarely seem to work yet they all seem to have enough money.  The only time I remember that one of them mentioned anything about money being tight was the episode where Angie was delivering food for extra income.  I suppose it is possible that all the exes are paying great child support, but seems unlikely.  

However, I find the writing clever and the acting good.  I like this show.  I can be a stickler for realism, but when everything is unrealistic, like it is in this show, I just go along with it.  

[jhlipton]

On 3/3/2019 at 8:06 AM, needschocolate said:

The parents aren't very realistic either - they are all single parents who rarely seem to work yet they all seem to have enough money.

Poppy has Winebrary, although it seems she's rarely there.  Miggy works there too, and since he's staying above it (I think), he doesn't need much else. And Douglas does have his dermatology clinic, which he seems to work at, and which pays REALLY well.  It's more Will and Angie that they've been back and forth with.

[SnarkySheep]

On 3/5/2019 at 12:21 AM, jhlipton said:

Poppy has Winebrary, although it seems she's rarely there.  Miggy works there too, and since he's staying above it (I think), he doesn't need much else. 

Miggy lives next door to Poppy in her duplex (that's why she and Douglas knew his party was loud).

As for child support, Will and Poppy may get it, but I doubt Angie does. According to what she's said so far, Graham has never met his dad.

[biakbiak]

16 hours ago, SnarkySheep said:

According to what she's said so far, Graham has never met his dad.

Spoiler

Though he might in the season finale when Adam Brody, Leighton’s real life husband, shows up as her ex.

[biakbiak]

There is a girl in this season Masterchef Junior that both in looks and manner reminds me of Sophie.

[Snow Apple]

This latest episode was ok. I didn't like or dislike it. But I enjoyed the two scenes with the little girl who was sick.

[possibilities]

My least favorite of all the episodes so far.