What’s even worse is that all the producers really have to do is come up with some nonsensical, completely and totally idiotic, absurd reason that the Malloys can’t just pack it all in and move on. The excuse, whatever it is, only needs to have the smallest, the tiniest, just the absolute littlest bit of credibility. It only needs the smallest shred of believability to get the audience to go along with the Malloys sticking around as the Riches. 

Why the producers haven’t provided it I don’t know, and what really bothers me is that up until this story arc began everyone but Wayne was all for packing it in and moving on rather than trying to tough it out as the Riches. As soon as it became apparent that they should pack it in that entire discussion disappeared. 

It’s bad writing and badly conceived. The producers seem to be trading on the audience’s good faith, something they haven’t yet earned. I’ll go on with them, at least for a little while, but I want to make it completely clear that they’re now in our debt.