As horrible as Sean Saves the World is (and oh, it is so horrible), I’m constantly amazed by the dual nature of this disaster. On the surface it’s a show that is exactly what NBC wants: a typical sitcom starring one of their former gigantic stars, but in the background is a show much more akin to the weird ideas and programs NBC currently wants to shy away from. Yet what NBC and Sean Saves the World don’t understand is that the weird aspects are what make this show work to the extent it does.
In “Best Friends For Never,” Sean Saves the World takes on a typical sitcom joke where two friends “break up.” Both make comments in the break up that make it seem like they’re in a relationship, leading to the laugh-track blasting chuckles at the idea of two friends seeing other people. It’s such a tired sitcom joke, but that’s the type of thing that Sean Saves the World thinks works.
The plot is basic and understood from the moment it begins. Both Sean and Liz start hanging out with new friends. Sean spends time with Tippy, an incredibly obnoxious and overwhelming woman whose goal is to sleep with Sean. (She doesn’t realize she’s barking up the wrong tree.) Liz is hanging out with Carl, a man who is addressed as super gay, which is what really bothers Sean about the whole situation.
But we all know how this will end. The two realize that their new friends are horrible and decide to reunite. Everything goes back to normal, and a little part of the viewer (i.e. myself) dies inside.
But lo! What is going on in the background? Is that Echo Kellum and Tom Lennon here to save the day?! I swear, the only thing that has got me through nine entire episodes of this show is these two. Watching this show is like being Andy Dufresne, crawling through a pipe of crap, and just when you’re about to give up, you feel the sweet air of relief that keeps you going (Kellum and Lennon).
Lennon’s Max is jealous that the employees of the online store he manages adore Sean for his ability to point out which stuff will sell and which stuff is crap. Max believes he can be as much a tastemaker as Sean and decides that due to the success of Game of Thrones and Lord of the Rings, chain mail pants will be the new hot thing this year. After selling absolutely no pants, Max brings Kellum’s Hunter to a bar to pick up ladies in their metallic pantaloons.
Keep in mind that this takes up probably less than five minutes of the episode, while the rest is spent suffering through Sean deflecting the advances of Tippy. It’s a shame, as I’ve said many times before, that the show can’t get rid of Sean and give the audience more of Max and Hunter.
But hey, if NBC wants a generic waste of time like Sean Saves the World, so be it. Unfortunately, ratings and reviews are saying that this clearly isn’t what the viewers want.