Round Two: Better With You

Better With You: Season 1, Episode 2 “Better with Firehouse” (B+)

You know what, this show works. I hadn't expected a strong second installment after what I would classify most as a guilty pleasure in the first week, but I am pleasantly surprised to report that episode two was a whole lot of fun. The introductory bit showing the three different couples trying to record an answering machine message demonstrates that the device of comparing the various couples actually works, and even the title makes sense. Since I don't watch either “The Middle” or “Cougar Town,” it's good to have a companion Wednesday night comedy for the fantastic “Modern Family.” While it may be ridiculous to think about people seriously considering living in a firehouse, this episode was a bit loose and appropriately silly. The sentimental end where Casey describes to Mia exactly what he envisioned for how they could fix it up to make it into a wonderful home was actually touching, and it's nice to see that this show has some dramatic skills in addition to its comedic ones. Speaking of which, what really gets me pumped about this show is the dynamic between Ben and Casey. The older boyfriend's desperate yearning for the younger guy's admiration is a great way to ground their relationship, and it helps that Casey really is a relatively clueless idiot that Ben still looks up to for childish reasons. I laughed out loud when Ben thought up his “bringing home the bacon” joke and then was told by Maddie that he wasn't allowed to tell it, only to have Joel deliver it a minute later to roaring laughter. I'm definitely sticking around for a while to see how this show pans out – it's much better than I thought after two installments.