The fifth and final season of Episodes premieres August 20 on Showtime.
With the five-season run of Showtime’s Episodes coming to an end, I decided to reexplore why I disliked it. To be fair, I never got past season two, but what I watched did not impress me in the slightest.
None of the characters were exceptionally funny, and I found the British humor off-putting. But I think the main reason this show failed in my eyes was due to the star: Matt LeBlanc.
Now look, I love Joey from Friends as much as anyone else, and the prospect of seeing Leblanc playing himself and parodying his post sitcom stardom life is hilarious in theory, but let’s face reality; he can’t carry a show. Friends thrived off the chemistry between it’s tight-knit group, but LeBlanc’s spinoff Joey was downright terrible. He simply doesn’t have the charm to hold viewers by himself.
Another example is Man With a Plan, returning soon for a second season on CBS. In truth, I’m not a fan of any CBS laugh track sitcoms, but this one is particularly bad. Bad writing is made all the worse with LeBlanc’s terrible, corny delivery.
Courteney Cox carried Cougar Town, Lisa Kudrow carried The Comeback. Jennifer Aniston has starred in movies. Even Matthew Perry has proven himself to be a solid actor outside of his most famous role. At least Matt LeBlanc has David Schwimmer to keep him company in TV hell.
TV and City 