“This Is Us” Is Fine

The TV show.

Everything is bad. It’s easy to think “why even bother?” and that’s why I’m thinking it currently, because of how easy it is. My head is essentially empty but one thought I had recently is: the TV show “This Is Us” is fine.

It could be that I had that thought because I had just watched an episode of “This Is Us.”

This show is supposed to be the new “Parenthood.” One thing I have to say right now is that TV shows go in quotations on The Hairpin because of a style rule Alex Balk made up that I disagree with personally. I feel like they should be in italics. If you’re talking about a specific episode of a TV show and you put the TV show in quotations, how do you — does the episode also just go in quotations? I asked Alex this once and I believe he said something like, you shouldn’t be talking about specific TV episodes. OK — ha-ha. But my point stands.

Ideally I would be italicizing “This Is Us.”

Oh. Yes it’s supposed to be the new “Parenthood,” which is fair enough, it’s about a family and it’s on NBC. It’s fine. Sort of charming, sort of fun to watch, sort of sad. Mostly I like it: medium. Sometimes a little more than medium, sometimes a little less than medium. I like Sterling K. Brown and the fact that his estranged former drug addict father who is dying from cancer is also gay. (It was just revealed.) I dislike the whole thing with the play. Ugh, I just don’t care about it. “Who will he date, who will be the lead in the play?” If we’re talking in terms of things I didn’t care about on “Parenthood” it’s like, “I hope Joel’s construction project works out.” Or, “I hope Drew’s relationship with his girlfriend is fulfilling.” Or, “Will The Luncheonette survive?”

I do realize you have to have knowledge of both “This Is Us” and “Parenthood” to understand what I am saying but I do promise you that my opinions are correct.

I don’t know why people say it makes them cry. I knew why “Parenthood” made people cry — most of the crying came from the Kristina and Adam’s relationship with their son Max and his Asperger’s. Remember when some kids peed in his canteen and he told Kristina and she climbed into the backseat of the car and held him and they both cried while Adam drove the car also crying? I could see why you would cry about that. On this show — what? Was I supposed to cry when the sister’s boyfriend had a heart attack? I don’t care, no offense. It is sad when, in the flashbacks, the white brother is mean to the black brother, but mostly that makes me angry and also it makes me strongly dislike what is supposed to be one of the sympathetic main characters of the show.

Anyway this show is fine. It was funny how the milk guy from “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia” was going to kill himself on Christmas Eve and Sterling K. Brown stopped him. Heh. Maybe “funny” is wrong.

I like when Sterling K. Brown and Jess from “Gilmore Girls” have their shirts off.

Hmm. I’m thinking now and I couldn’t tell you even a single character’s “character name” from this show. Wow. I’ve watched ten episodes. But that’s not the show’s fault — it’s my fault.

In conclusion: it’s fine. There are two hot guys. (Sterling K. Brown and Jess.) I recommend it sort of.

Bedtime now.