TV tonight: 'Two and a Half Men'
Posted April 29, 2012
If you watch Two and a Half Men (CBS, 9 ET/PT) tonight, your reward will be an entertaining performance by Kathy Bates as Charlie's ghost.
You may also, however, get a lesson in why this show has been plummeting in the ratings since its seasonal start.
Whatever Charlie Sheen may think, it's doubtful the answer has much to do with his departure, as he was barely a presence in his final season even when he was on screen.
Nor is it the barrage of sex jokes, despite CBS' oversaturation of such humor on its Monday lineup, as they've always been a large part of Men's comic repertoire.
No, the larger problem this season is the mean streak that seems to run through most every episode.
And nowhere is that more clear than in tonight's treatment of Jon Cryer's Alan as a whining, parasitic punching bag — a late-run transformation one hoped might be reversed by the removal of Charlie's constant abuse, but has instead accelerated.
Here's an easy fix for the show next year: Give Alan a little dignity. And bring back Melanie Lynskey, because the show misses the refreshing note of sweet, daffy wonder she added as Rose far more than it misses Sheen.
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