Episode Review: HAPPY ENDINGS, "The Marry Prankster" and "Our Best Friend's Wedding"

I must be an in odd mood because I thought that this week's double dose of Happy Endings had some funny moments, but I didn't think either episode was all that great.

In "The Marry Prankster," Dave was hell-bent on getting Max back for some prank he pulled involving his food truck, and the obvious course of action was to rip-off The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. When the joke backfired, Max pledged to make them pay. While all of the craziness was going on, Brad got a new job at a kid's gym while Pete proposed to Penny. And it turned out that Alex Keyser Sozed them all by being the instigator of the entire prank war.

Now that Penny's engaged, nuptial related hijinks ensued in "Our Best Friend's Wedding." Of course, Jane insisted on being the wedding planner, but Pete wanted to elope in order to bypass all of the stress and chaos that comes along with big ceremonies. Cue the standard "what she wants vs. what he wants" fight and shenanigans. Penny and Jane decided to convince Pete to give in by fooling him into going to a bridal expo where Alex and Dave fought about their wedding day, and Brad and Max pretended to be a gay couple to get free stuff. Since this is a sitcom, everyone kissed and made up by episode's end.

When I think about it, the reason I didn't care for these two episodes as much as others had to do with the fact that they highlighted what's wrong with Happy Endings. I've been pretty upfront about my low tolerance with show's that focus on unlikable people at their worst, and that's a card these episodes played way too often. Jane was too controlling. Penny was too selfish. Dave was too douchey. Max was too much of a sociopath. Thankfully, Alex and Brad saved the day with their hot hands, but even their impeccable comic timing couldn't wash out all of the bad tastes that the other's left in my mouth.

Other Odds and Ends:

• Max's Pranks: Brad = glitter in his lotions and creams, Jane = an exploding waffle, Penny = slimed twice (and a mistaken fake proposal), Alex = pranking herself, Dave = faking his death in a car explosion.
• Usually, my enjoyment of Happy Endings is closely tied to whether or not I feel sorry for those around the gang, and I really felt bad for Pete this time around.
• Speaking of Pete, he stole my dream wedding and he won't even get to have it because the guy's always supposed to give in. That explains why I didn't love the show tonight... I'm bitter.
• No Lines of the Night this week. There were plenty, but I didn't feel the need to regurgitate them here. Sorry.

Look, I don't need characters to be perfect or saints or even good, but I do have to root for them and that's not something I was able to do during these two episodes. That's not to say that I want these miscreants to change because I don't, but Happy Endings needs to find the right balance to be successful, and "Prankster" and "Wedding" were too wobbly for my liking.