Not Hitched to UNHITCHED…Yet

I feel the premiere of Fox’s new comedy UNHITCHED (Sunday at 9:30pm est) has been a long time coming. Back in the day when it was called ‘The Rules for Starting Over’ it sparked my interest because at the time it was the vehicle that would get Rashida Jones off THE OFFICE and therefore Karen Filippelli away from Jim Halpert. That was enough of a reason for me to root for the show. But now that Karen is gone (at least for now), Jim and Pam are happily together, is there a reason for me to watch UNHITCHED. Yes…kind of.
UNHITCHED gives us a glimpse into the lives of four recently single friends living in Boston and all looking for love. Jack “Gator” Gately (Craig Bierko) is a successful businessman who is back on the dating scene while still dealing with the aftermath of his very recent divorce. Lucky for him, his three best friends are seem to be in the same boat. There’s Tommy (Johnny Sneed) who can’t seem to make marriage work after three tries. Freddy (Shaum Majumder), a recently divorced successful surgeon who can’t seem to get it together when it comes to the ladies. And finally, Kate (Rashida Jones), a divorce attorney who upon turning 30 finds herself single when her seven year engagement ends.

Trying to navigate the dating scene is though enough when you don’t have the Farrelly Brothers finding your dates. Yes, Peter and Bobby Farrelly known for their outrageous but with heart comedies such as “There’s Something About Mary” and “Stuck on You”, are Executive Producers and directed the pilot episode. Had it not been for the involvement of the brothers, I’m not sure UNHITCHED would have made it on to the Fox schedule, and because of their involvement, I’m not sure it will stick around.

Like many new comedies, two episodes in and UNHITCHED is still having a bit of an identity crisis. Is it an over-the-top Farrelly-esque comedy or a comedy about the real trials and tribulations of starting over in love in your 30’s? I’ve found that trying to be both could be the downfall of this show.

When the show goes for the broad, our there comedic moments, like in the pilot when Bierko’s character is anally compromised by a monkey it feels more than a little forced. It felt like the show was moving along just fine and someone said ‘oh right, this is the Farrelly Brothers, we better throw something crazy in there to remind everyone.’ It’s almost as if they couldn’t resist. Yet at the same time, another big comedic reveal involving Kate and a certain Boston Celtics employee works very well and had me rolling. Personally, I enjoyed the smaller moments when the four friends would find the time to talk about their lives and new loves. Those scenes had the right combination of heart and humor. But sadly those scenes were few and far between in the pilot. It seems that UNHITHCED would only benefit from having the time it needs to find the right balance. But with fickle viewers and Fox’s trigger happy past, I’m not sure that this show will have the time to figure out who it wants to be when it grows up.

Good news for those of you who do give the pilot a shot. I found the second episode to be a vast improvement over the pilot. Still way too many forced moments, but there’s a lot more heart. And look for a cameo by MY BOYS star Reid Scott and his mad musical talent.

Should you give UNHITCHED a shot? Yes. For how long? I’m not really sure. Maybe it’s out of devotion for Rashida Jones or the charming Craig Bierko, but I’m going to stick with this one and see if it can’t figure out who it wants to be when it grows up. I do think that the show has potential. Rashida Jones will tell you herself, this is no The Office, so as long as you remember that going in, and you leave your prudish behavior at the door, then you might actually dig it.