Living Biblically

I really really really wanted to love this show. Camryn Manheim is a goddess and truly the only solid actor in this show. Everything else just lacks.....well.....everything! The dialogue is cheesy and much of the acting is wooden. But the canned laugh tracks are the straw that breaks the camel's back -- just horrible. They overuse the laugh tracks and even manage to misuse them in spots that should be without.

So very very very disappointed. Hopefully, the producers will see the divine Ms. Manheim and give her a show of substance.

After the death of his friend Ray, Chip Curry (Jay R. Ferguson) is struggling. Like Ray, he had faded from his religious attendence. His wife Leslie (Lindsey Kraft) reveals her pregnancy and he decides to live biblically for the nine months. Co-worker Vince (Tony Rock) is his friend. He seeks counsel from Father Gene (Ian Gomez) and Rabbi Gil (David Krumholtz). His boss Ms. Meadows (Camryn Manheim) gives him a column to write about his new experiences.

It's very simple. I didn't laugh. The question becomes why. This is a traditional network sitcom based on a non-fiction book of how A.J. Jacobs spent a year living strictly by the bible. I don't think this high concept idea fits easily with the laugh-track infused network sitcom genre. Dealing with religion is tricky. Mostly, I don't find these characters compelling. The actors are mostly functional although they are missing the wacky friend character. Maybe Gomez and Krumholtz are set up to be a comedy duo but it's hard to laugh at a rabbi and a priest. At least make them walk into a bar. Oh yeah, they do that. While I'm fine with the actors, I don't find their characters that appealing. This is not a good show and it didn't get much of an audience. I would have pitched a bet between the devil and god about Chip living biblically in the form of a single camera dramedy.

This show has been so disappointing. With a refreshingly new plot and a pretty stellar cast, you'd think this would've been a slam-dunk from the beginning, but...no. The dialogue is so forced and predictable it's really hard to watch the actors attempt to make something of the lines without cringing.

I posted a very low rating earlier mainly because I hate hate hate the very loud laugh track & how it affects the acting, timing, etc. I have to rethink the rating i gave because a 1 implies that it is among the worst. It is not. There are several truly awful shows that are very popular and get renewed many seasons. This show has some really enjoyable actors. I loveJay R Ferguson & think he makes everything better. I so enjoy David Krumholtz and Ian Gomez. I think their acting is great and they function as the voice of reason that is just not grasped. There are many great elements to the show. I just feel the show could be so much better and that it really needs to start with losing the loud laughtrack.

The canned laughter is extremely disruptive and unnatural. People say a line, wait for the canned laughter, say another line, etc, etc. The show dynamics would be completely changed if the canned laughter would disappear. I love Jay Ferguson, the lead, & I love AJ Jacobs, the author of the book, but this series needs to be a lot of tweaking. It is annoying and preachy as it is. Surely with such great components, awesome actors, this could be made good. I hope they are able to fix it. Start with that horrible laugh track!!