Well, hey, too many comments here about the laugh tracks of this sitcom, but if you're allergic to it, you'll be glad to know it died its own death towards the last episode.
The show is good family fun. Gave it a solid 7 here only because it took me until episode 5 before I really laughed out loud. Granted I didn't want to waste my time going through the grueling part of adjusting to the first few episodes of forced camaraderie between an ensemble of characters, they saved it midway, and towards the last episodes, Merry Happy Whatever just became more fun. The acting became better (not forced), the punchlines were perfect, and best of all, everything fell into place. Dennis Quaid is pretty much the attraction here, but all supporting characters, like the Outlaws and the siblings were interesting.The show touched --- grazed? glossed over? --- on topics that could have been more seriously explained, but understanding the limitations of time in a sitcom, I'm actually surprised they were able to include homosexuality, religion and divorce as topics. I think the real struggle this show had from the start was bad writing. Thank God it felt like the writing shifted halfway through the series, and instead of focusing on one-liners, Merry Happy Whatever focused more on the humor of having a controlling family. I am looking forward to seeing the next season.
Review of Merry Happy Whatever
