“Man with A Plan” was supposed to be the rebirth of great comedy from Matt LeBlanc (“Episodes”). LeBlanc is known for the “smooth talking” Joey Tribbiani on the ‘90s classic “Friends” and who currently plays a warped version of himself on ShowTime’s very smart and funny “Episodes.” When picking a project this time around, LeBlanc must have been blindfolded and picking from a bag of really bad scripts. It is arguable he did not pick the worst script in that bag, but he did not pick a decent one.
“Man with a Plan” stars LeBlanc as Adam Burns, the fun dad that comes home after work ready for dinner and rough housing then putting the kids to bed. When his wife Andi (Liza Snyder, “Yes Dear”) goes back to her job at the hospital, they decide it is dad’s turn with the kids and the responsibilities of school, parent teacher organizations and their busy schedules.
What makes it easier is that Adam owns construction company and can make his own schedule to be able to take care of the kids and create this premise for a generic CBS sitcom. What makes it even better is that viewers know all of this because Adam simply says he owns a business and can make his own schedule.
LeBlanc plays a dad that does not know how hard it is to actually take care of children full time while still being a dumb, man’s man dad.
Snyder plays the exact same character she played on “Yes Dear,” this time she is just older with a new husband and more kids. Almost every aspect of this show has been done before and is just too played out.
It seemed like LeBlanc had his career rerouted with his role in “Episodes,” as both he and the show are very funny. It is something actually original and fresh from him after his time in basic sitcoms for so long. From “The 101,” then “Friends” and its spinoff “Joey,” it seemed the days of LeBlanc with a laugh track were over. He could have started choosing decent roles in movies and TV, but he decides to go with the Frankenstein’s monster of generic television aimed at boring, middle-class, middle-aged, white people.
Jeff and Jackie Filgo have been involved with sitcoms for quite some time. They produced the wildly popular “That ‘70s Show” which was able to get the early 2000s teenager punk generation by displaying a relatable, rebellious, troublesome group of high schoolers in 70s Wisconsin. Another demographic that was able to relate to these kids were the middle-aged men and women that actually experienced what Eric Foreman and the gang were doing. The ability to latch onto these polar opposite demographics made it possible for “That ‘70s Show” to quickly develop cult status.
After “That ‘70s Show” ended another sitcom they had their hands on was “The New Adventures of Old Christine.” Old Christine was able to push Julia Louis-Dreyfus away from the stigma of “Seinfeld” and provide a fresh platform to play with on CBS. Aimed toward a primarily middle-aged market this time, it was still a very popular half hour comedy for the network.
Now with “Man with A Plan,” also on CBS, the married producing team dives 100 percent into mediocrity. After having their names attached to some quality traditional television products over the years, it is safe to say this is one of their biggest mistakes yet.
