Unsolicited Network Notes for "Happy Endings"

It’s back! Happy Endings, the sitcom starring six attractive young Chicagoans, returns this week with its fizzy brand of hip comedy. It stars some familiar faces--such as Casey Wilson from SNL, who was criminally axed after one season. And Elisha Cuthbert, who was criminally kidnapped quite often on 24. They’re joined by Eliza Coupe (Scrubs), Zachary Knighton (FlashForward), Damon Wayans Jr. (writer and actor on The Underground), and Adam Pally (Taking Woodstock).

Happy Endings’ first season was hit and miss--often within the same episode. It made for frustrating viewing because it clearly has the potential to be a big hit (which is why ABC has given it the time slot right after Modern Family on Wednesday nights). The cast is solid and the writing was frequently almost there.

Because we at AfterElton like to be helpful, here are a few unsolicited suggestions for the show’s writers and producers to make sure Happy Endings gets the, well, happy ending we think it deserves:

More of Max and Penny, Max and Brad, and Jane and Everyone

Penny, portrayed by Wilson, is hilarious! She is real, flawed and relatable. Her gay sidekick Max (Pally), is a beer-drinking, sports-loving slob who makes withering sarcasm fun.

Even better, Happy Endings brilliantly skewered the trend of making gay men straight women’s emotional confidants--exemplified in a scene where Penny, sad about still being single when her designated backup husband got married, needed a pep talk. “Are we going to have to talk about feelings?” Max asked with discomfort. “Blah blah blah you’re a great girl. Blah blah blah you’re going to find someone.”

More of that, please.

Meanwhile, Damon Wayans Jr. (who plays Brad) hails from the Wayans comedy dynasty – and it’s apparent. His witty delivery seems natural and unforced, and he plays the perfect “straight” man to Pally’s withering one-liners. Television doesn’t show us nearly enough friendships between gay and straight men, and “Brax” is a relationship we want to see more of.

Finally, Eliza Coupe’s zaniness is like a great Sauvignon Blanc – it goes with everything. Jane steals almost any scene she’s in.

Eliza Coupe as Jane

And less of Dave and Alex, and Alex and Everyone

Elisha Cuthbert is gorgeous and knows how to rock an exceptionally long indoor scarf. Zachary Knighton is handsome. Their characters, however, could use less air time. They don’t stand out as distinct personalities, and their main conflict – that she stood him up at the altar – has been reduced to a minor slight, not the earth-shattering event that should be mined for barbed humor.

And, well, Cuthbert isn’t just like a Sauvignon Blanc.

Pump Up the Volume on the Jokes

Some of the episodes felt like they were meant to be shot in front of a studio audience, with jokes that were milder and less frequent so as to allow for laugh tracks. The show was its most laugh-out-loud funny when it was being quick – like Jane laughing at Max, saying “his life is in shambles” to herself. Or any time when she is being just bracingly weird.

Such was the case in a scene where Max is encouraging Dave to make another sex tape after being turned off by the initial experience. Max employs a totally insane baseball analogy:

“You know what Babe Ruth did when his first sex tape didn’t work?” he asks, then answers with: “He went out and made another sex tape.”

Whether you like it or not, that joke has a point of view, whereas a lot of the jokes just seemed diluted or too quippy.

And Go With the Wacky Situations

The show often achieved maximum hilarity when the writers went with a premise and took it all the way. One of the first season’s best episodes was “Mein Coming Out,” which had the über-out Max revealed as not yet having come out to his parents. With Penny and Jane both trying to be his beard, things got very out of control. And very funny.