Thursday, April 5, 2012

'Happy Endings' gets one of its own

ABC's Happy Endings wraps up their second season last night with "Four Weddings and a Funeral (Minus Three Weddings and One Funeral)." As the long title implies, the gang attends the nuptials of their friend Derrick (Stephen Guarino, The Big Gay Sketch Show). Jane (Eliza Coupe) is the only one not in the wedding party, but after a last minute drop out, she is soon taking charge of the entire event. Penny (Casey Wilson) finds herself stuck at the Skype table, which pays off when she meets a cute guy (Brian Austin Green, Desperate Housewives, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles). And two former lovers consider reconnecting.

Happy Endings continues to be consistently funny, and not just because of the awesome episode title. From the visual of a table full of laptops at a wedding, to crazy Jane making the food and drinks last longer, to Max (Adam Pally) headlining a Madonna cover band, this episode has many high points. The cast is top notch, and have really grown comfortable in these characters, continuing to delight week after week.

Of course, it's not just the humor that hooks viewers. There must also be some emotional punch to the characters that fans have been made to care about. Penny's recent crush on Dave (Zachary Knighton) is one such example, though it is tempered by her meeting the hunky guest star this week. Which is OK, because Happy Endings instead chooses to pursue a possible Dave / Alex (Elisha Cuthbert) reunion in "Four Weddings and a Funeral (Minus Three Weddings and One Funeral)."

Dave and Alex break up in the very first episode of Happy Endings, and that past is constantly hanging over these two characters. Will they be a Ross and Rachel, who get together in the end after years of fans longing for it to happen? Or will they just need some closure to move on? Somehow, Happy Endings has avoided either possibility for two seasons. It seems like Alex and Dave are going to need to get back together at some point, even if only briefly, to answer these questions. Their recent tryst did not satisfy this, and it's gratifying that the series isn't just ignoring that.

Plus, anyone rooting for Dave and Penny to be a couple needs to see Dave get past Alex first, so the sooner a reconciliation happens, the quicker he can begin to move on.

Interestingly, for those keeping count, season two of Happy Endings comes up one episode short, even though "Four Weddings and a Funeral (Minus Three Weddings and One Funeral)" is billed as the season finale. If one remembers, last summer a random episode of the show aired. Only people with DVRs really caught this, and other fans may still be unaware of it. It looks likely to happen again, as there is currently no room on the schedule to stick this half hour. Either that, or it will be shoved into next season somewhere. Sometimes things like this just happen, but it's a curiosity, to say the least.

Happy Endings also stars Damon Wayans Jr., and will return to ABC next fall.

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