Retired at 35

I'm writing this review for one reason. This thing turned itself around hard. I have no idea if they got new writers or what, but after the first two episodes I was like everybody else and ready to bail on the show. But I gave it one more shot and it totally swayed me. They've aired 4 episodes as I write this and the last two are hugely better than the first two, which were kind of all over the place and not very funny.

The show seems to have settled down and figured out what it wants to be, which looks like a throwback comedy with some basic conflict and a cute resolution at the end. And I'd say it does that slightly better than average.

One thing I will say though, in reading some of the early stuff on here, the guy who plays David, Johnathan McClain, seems to have caught some heat, which is crazy to me. I think dude's the best thing about the show. I read a review of this series in The Daily News which called his work solid, and I totally agree, and in the last two episodes he's far and away the funniest part of the show. He seems natural and comfortable on screen, and frankly looks like he's putting way more effort into making the thing work than George Segal and Jessica Walters. Somebody I read said they should have gotten Matthew Perry, which is weird because to me dude seems to be playing a cross between Perry and Schwimmer, which is kind of how the part's written, so I think the guy's doing great.

I mean all in all, it's not like amazing and it's not gonna change TV, but I don't think that's probably the point. My girlfriend watches Hot In Cleveland, which I kind of sit through, but then this comes on and I've got no problem watching it before we go to bed.

If it keeps going in the direction it's headed, I think it could go from being pretty good to just plain good. We'll see.

Being a fan of George Segal's old movies I wanted to like this but can't beat a dead horse anymore. It is now in its second season and I tried to watch it again thinking that maybe it got better. Sadly, I could not have been more wrong.

There is no timing or flow to their dialog or interactions. If you just sit and watch you can almost see each of them running their lines and stage directions in their heads. When one person finishes speaking there is an unnatural pause and then it is like the other person "wakes up" to the fact that they must respond either with verse or action.

To each their own little bubble and they never connect. No chemistry, no comedic talent and poor direction. Bury it already it is really starting to stink to high heaven.

IF: - You are new to the world of sitcoms - You are easily amused - You are about 15 years old in mind or body - You are too tired to change the channel - You are curious what this thing is like after the non-stop flogging/hookup with Hot In Cleveland commercials - You are alone in the house and want some kind of noise so it doesn't feel so echo-y and empty - Yearn for something that isn't vampires/lawyers/reality shows

THEN, my friends, this show is for YOU!

35 year old wearies of working,'retires', moves in with comical (separated) mom and/or dad, blahblahblah. Of course mom and dad are still zesty, active (though the mom looks about 40 and the dad looks about 70), full of vim and vigor, enjoying life far more than their son, and diving head first into dating, potty talk, innuendo, and blabbing about S-E-X. Without a scrap of wit, originality, or humor. Just kind of embarrassing and dull. If you think this is the "family show" you have been yearning for, you are wrong. A carbon copy of a carbon copy of a carbon copy of ... well, any dumb 'racy' sitcom from the past 30 years... In real life, Dad would be a bitter old crank after a heart attack and Mom would be a bitter old crank with the beginnings of dementia, and sonny boy would be run ragged trying to get home health aides in so he can catch a break. No, this is some senior citizen's fantasy of what life should be. Derp!

Like its predecessor, "Hot in Cleavland" this show lacks chemistry between the actors and both sitcoms have terrible writing. Neither sitcom elicits a smile let alone a laugh. Very boring, contrived (mostly sexual connotations) jokes and stupid story lines. What happened to sitcoms like TV Land shows like "Sanford and Son", "Roseanne", "All in the Family", granted the writer's of some of these older shows may not even be alive today, but these new writers need to do something else with their time. The producers of both shows should invest some valuable money in getting better writers and perhaps these shows might have a chance. Just because they both have good casts, does not mean that either sitcom is not a dud.

The premise is a young executive son moving back in with his parents. The cast is wonderful... with the exception of one actor... the lead (Johnathan McClain) who is just God awful in comedy... it just does not work. And what a wonderful backing cast... all with talent, all who CAN act. McClain lacks the interpretation, the timing, the physical comedy cues that make a great lead actor in a great sitcom.

McClain appears about 20 years too young for the lead role of "Dave." George Segal, playing his father, looks about 40 years older than the son... too bad they did not cast Clark Gregg from "New Adventures Of Old Christine" for example in the role... a Bob Newhart kind of character actor who could carry this role off. Matthew Perry would of course be the perfect ideal lead actor in this series, but I imagine his asking price is about a million an episode as of this writing. Average sitcom writing, great acting by all except for the atrocious McClain.