Written by Pirata Hermosa
Gary Brooks (Jay Mohr) is an average working guy with two kids. He has just recently divorced his wife, Allison (Paula Marshall). It doesn’t take Gary long to bounce back, and being that he is somewhat of a playboy, he immediately has a new girlfriend, Vanessa (Jaime King).
Even though the two are divorced, Gary finds himself having to hide his new girlfriend because he promised to follow the advice of their former marriage counselor, Dr. Krandall (Ed Begley Jr.). And that advice is to not get involved right away in any new relationships as it could adversely affect the children. But Gary’s charade doesn’t last long when he finds out that Allison is not only dating, but her new boyfriend is Dr. Krandall.
While this appears to be just another typical sitcom it actually has its own spin on the genre. Gary and Allison have a fairly amicable divorce and as the season plays out you can see that the reason that the two have separated isn’t because they don’t love one another, but more because of Gary’s inability to mature causing them to grow apart. This also is a downfall of the characters as their new partners will find it difficult to accept such attachment to a former spouse.
The chemistry between the two exes is very strong and the main reason the show works. Even when they are in a heated argument, which is usually based on something stupid Gary does, the love/hate aspect pulls it all together.
There’s also a lot of play on boundaries, and what they are after having once been married to someone. How are in-laws supposed to react towards their former daughter/son-in-law? Is it possible for ex-wife and new girlfriend to be friends? And what about dating your counselor?
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