The Whole Truth About Two and a Half Men

In every show buisness award program there is much competition to see who is the best in every imaginable category.We know the regulars like Best Actor and Best Actress. We look forward to learning which is the Best Comedy or Variety Show. There is often great competition in determining which show is presented by the best ensemble cast. This season of Two and a Half Men has opened up the question of whether or not it might be time to initiate an award for the show that surpasses all others in their category for really not being good. Simply put, this award would be given for the show that proved itself the Best at Being the Worst. " Two and A Half Men" seems a likely candidate to dominate the field and here's why.

1. The Script. What immediately strikes even the most casual viewer who tunes in to "two and a Half Men" is the repetitively immature and banal quality of the language used each week. The script writers seem incapable of, or unwilling to, put together more than 5 minutes of on screen dialog without making a sexually explicit or anatomically obvious reference. On those rare instances when a viewer escapes this boring barrage they can expect to be "entertained" with the latest in junior high toilet humor.

The writers seem to have missed the college course work in creativity and the text chapters on avoiding the cheap laugh. They appear to be oblivious to the fact that sitcoms really can be written without constant body part/toilet illusion humor. "Everybody Loves Raymond" and "Frazier" are two obvious examples of shows which repeatedly demonstrated creative humor. These were not "goodie two shoes" shows. They won the big awards and got the big audience shares. What they didn't do was dumb down their scripts or go for the easy laugh. They gave their audiences a little credit for wanting quality in comedy and they made it work.

For some reason the creators, producers, directors and writers of "Two and a Half Men" have chosen another approach . The result has been
a show that can be described only as being the best at being the worst.

2. Offensive All the Way Around. It's quite possible to watch "Two and a Half Men " and come away thinking that this show is really offensive to women. After all, women on the show are typically objectified, devalued, manipulated and simply used in almost every half hour presentation. Even Charlie and Allen's mother seems inserted in the show to humorously portray a mother who is heartless, non-nurturing and interested only in self gratification. While genetically this might explain her sons' behaviors, it only adds to the negative portrayal of women on this show.

To be fair, men don't really come across much better on "Two and a Half Men" then their female counterparts. Watching Charlie's cavorting each week aren't viewers getting the message: look, this is how men behave? They want either to have sex or get drunk or both . Women really shouldn't expect anything better from men. Men shouldn't expect anything better from themselves. It really is about all they are capable of. All we can really do is laugh at them.

Those who look for a better image of men in the person of Allen will be quickly disappointed. The bottom line there suggests that those men who try to live slightly more moral, dependable and respectable lives , a la Allen, really are doomed to become nerds with no life whatsoever. "Two and a Half Men", by offering a menu so potentially offensive to anyone and everyone of either gender again succeeds only at being the best at being the worst among sitcoms.

3. It's All About Relationships A much used flash word in modern society is "relationships" . America's fascination with relationships helped to hoist "Friends" to its consistently high ratings and popularity. People were consumed by the relationship between Ross and Rachel, between Chandler and Monica and between Joey or Phobie and whoever.

In "Two and a Half Men" what stands out is not solidarity of relationships but rather the variety of ways in which relationships can be trivialized or trashed. Little value is placed on loyalty, caring or respect . The guide for relationships on "Two and a Half Men" seems to be to pursue a relationship only if it offers benefits that greatly exceed the investment you need to make for the relationship to work. But don't worry very much if a relationship folds. They are after all a dime a dozen.

By debasing relationships, "Two and a Half Men" keeps its record in tact for being the best at being the worst.

4. Making a Statement On paper, "Two and a Half Men" appears to have extraordinary potential to be one of those special sitcoms that can be funny but make a worthwhile and uplifting statement as well . In a nation where half of all marriages end in divorce, "Two and a Half Men" could have been an excellent vehicle to encourage all parts of a divided family. It could have touched upon brothers helping one another to manage more or less on their own. It could have sent out a lot of positive subliminal messages and still have been a very funny and well received show.

Somewhere along the road to air time a decision was made not to take a chance on a good story but to go for the quick laugh. That choice resulted in the show we see each week ( if you are still watching) that excels only at being the best at being the worst.