Tommy Lee Goes to College

I like Tommy Lee. He's brutally honest and just happy with life and in the few interviews I've seen with him, he always comes across as a cool guy. He's had a rocky past and been involved in some drug abuse and physical abuse but he battled his demons and seems to be content nowadays. I mean, he took his ex-wife on a week-long vacation recently (which sparked the whole remarriage rumors) and I've never heard of that involving divorced couples - he could have acted like a jerk after Pamela Anderson claimed he gave her Hepatitis C (which is probably true anyway) but he didn't hold a grudge. He's also mellowed out a lot musically and his new album "Tommyland" sounds much softer than I ever imagined. (This is both good and bad.) So following suit with his "reformed lifestyle" (well, not really) he decides it's time to go back to college - and hence camera crew follow him around a Nebraska college campus and we get to see him make an ass of himself.

Yet another reality TV show where humiliation plays a big part, but this one's funny. A lot of the stuff is probably scripted - Tommy gets a hot tutor for example: a blonde girl, the chances of whom being a regular guy's tutor are probably 1,000,000 to 1. When he sees her he says, "You're my tutor? Awesome!" This show is a bit basic and juvenile, and some might find it pathetic to see a brainless, drugged-up veteran rock star acting like he's 20 years old - but that's part of the fun, because Tommy Lee is a kid trapped in an adult's body. He never grew up, and he probably never will. The show works because of him, not in spite of him.

Tommy's ventures make me smile! I look forward to watching it each week. He is so "likeable" sweet actually! Most of us enjoy having something nice to look at! This is a fun, refreshing, feel-good half hour! Tommy is a guy that most people can relate to, down to earth and non-threatening. I find myself cheering him on wanting him to succeed in the challenges he takes on. We know that he is a "great" drummer but fitting into college life is hard enough for normal people; I am sure there was a certain amount of pressure from many directions for him to do well as far a being able to fit in with the "Drum line" which is Totally different than being a drummer in a Rock band. I was "Screaming" with excitement!, when he Nailed his performance at the Football game! I love to watch any show that makes you pull for someone to succeed! We need more of that in our world today!

I loved this show. Obviously it's nothing deep and intellectual (even though it deals with college...) but it's hilarious and well worth watching. Finally we get a break from the string of reality dating shows they've been pumping down our throats .... guess what, nobody cares if the Bachelor finds a girlfriend!

This show is a definite guilty pleasure. Tommy is great - he messes up in marching band, correctly answers a question in Horticulture, and says "killer" a lot.

Give this show a chance. I guarantee you'll get a good laugh out of it, and maybe like me, you'll be immediately hooked.

9/10 (because nobody's perfect. and I hate the voice-over guy's voice)

Network: NBC; Genre: Comedy, Reality; Content Rating: TV-PG; Available: DVD; Perspective: Contemporary (star range: 1 - 4);

Season Reviewed: Complete Series (1 season)

If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it. "Tommy Lee Goes to College" is a reality/comedy series done right - a balance struck rarely on network TV. It is a delightfully frivolous guilty pleasure and a perfect summer season diversion... well, actually, its better than a diversion.

The premise of the series is summed up in the title. Motley Crue rock star Tommy Lee, more famous for his off-stage talents then his music, puts the past behind him, puts on a letter jacket for the University of Nebraska and tries to finish up his final college credits and get a diploma.

But the show has its tongue planted firmly in cheek the whole way through. In true wacky sitcom style, ensnared in this adventure is his mismatched roommate, Matt, and his model-hot tutor Natalie. If that isn't enough Lee's antics keep raising the eyebrows of the school's Dean who insists he shape up or be thrown out. All the while, off-screen narration is delivered with a perfectly hilarious thick-as-molasses, nose-in-the-air high society voice compliments the wackiness perfectly.

The show stumbles on a gold mine when Lee, sick of scrubbing toilets with toothbrushes, start his own fraternity - hilariously titled the "House of Lee" where he assembles all the other house rejects to create more staged, over-the-top mischief. The "Animal House" spirit is alive and well in "College" and the show's frequent dips into unbelievable fantasy (like Lee's wild physics project) only match the light-hearted sitcom tone - well established by the show's intro, "Good Times" from Tommy Lee's own album.

Audiences will probably be more on the edge of their seat, wondering if, at any moment Lee will bed that tutor, then on whether or not he gets his diploma. But Lee, himself, comes off surprisingly well. A likable goofball of a character, the show knows it can put Lee in a situation and not only will he make the most of it, but the resulting juxtaposition with his childlike enthusiasm and 80s lingo is funny. Fitfully, stupidly, funny. I laughed in spite of myself.

The premise allowed for only one season, but I really wish they could have found a way to get Tommy Lee back in college for more fun. While it runs way to short and doesn't quite match the greats of this odd hybrid genre (including "The Osbournes" and "I'm With Busey"), "Tommy Lee Goes to College" is agreeably entertaining, laugh-out-loud funny and, best of all, has no pretension about its purpose in the world. It doesn't even try to get us to like Tommy Lee, it is just good, clean, stupid fun.

* * * / 4

This show is great to watch if you are a Tommy Lee fan. He is so funny and looks so hot. I wish he would come to West Virginia University! Buy this DVD. It is very entertaining. Tommy not only can sing but he is a down to earth person and this show is well worth watching. A lot of people don't like him but give him a chance he isn't that short tempered person many people play him up to be. This show lets you see how he handled college life and I think he does very well plus entertains the students and they really seemed to enjoy him being on their campus. He has a real talent for playing the drums and really has a hard time trying to play with the university band. It's just not the same as playing in a group.