"How to be a Gentleman" needs lessons in comedy etiquette
The CBS sitcom has a cast full of big names and a prime Thursday night time slot, but those benefits mean nothing in the face of cheesy voiceovers, one-dimensional characters and jokes that fall flat.
Creator David Hornsby ("It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia") plays Andrew, an uptight writer who pens an etiquette column for an upscale men's magazine. The magazine is sold to a publisher who wants to appeal to a younger audience ("men in their mid- to late-30s who act like they're 15"), and Andrew's editor wants him to make his column more hip.
This change in direction leads him to jerky jock Bert Lansing (Kevin Dillon, in full Johnny Drama mode), a former high school bully who now owns his own gym. Andrew quickly discerns that Bert is just the sort of person his magazine is now aiming for, and employs his help to get in touch with the lowbrow Average Joe. Of course, this also involves trying to reform Andrew's own gentlemanly (which, on this show, means "stuffy") ways.
So Andrew's a snob, Bert's a slob, and together they make a modern-day sort of Felix Unger and Oscar Madison. The problem is that neither actor is given much to work with besides that. The jokes are conventional and predictable, and the pilot has no style or flair.
Mary Lynn Rajskub ("24") is wasted here as Andrew's snarky, husband-controlling sister. Rhys Darby, who plays her cheerfully whipped husband Mike, is the most humorous character in the pilot, but it didn't show much of him.
"How to be a Gentleman" has a prime timeslot, nestled between sitcom veteran "The Big Bang Theory" and buzzy new drama "Person of Interest." But unless the show undergoes a major comedy makeover, chances are it won't be there for long.
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