Undateable not unwatchable

The first two episodes of the Detroit-based sit-com Undateable, created by Detroit native Adam Sztykiel, aired on Thursday night on NBC. We’d love to know what you thought.

Early impressions are that this is a fairly standard mainstream buddy sit-com, with tons of canned laughter and a few good gags. It might take a while to settle into its stride, but we didn’t absolutely hate it.

That said, there are flaws. Not every joke hits the mark. Main character Danny Beeman (Chris D’Elia) is hopelessly unlikeable (although there is humor to be found in his self-proclaimed superficial outlook on life). Supporting characters Shelly (Ron Funches), Burski (Rick Glassman) and Brett (David Fynn) have so far been relegated to goofing in the background and throwing out one-liners. And we’re supposed to believe that Danny’s sister Leslie (Bianca Kajlich – last seen wooing Kenny Powers in Eastbound and Down) has trouble getting laid in Detroit.

Then there’s the character of Justin (Brent Morin) – an annoying sop of a man who succeeds in making Danny the douche bearable. For much of the two aired episodes, Danny was giving Justin tips on how to score barmaid Nicki (Briga Heelan). In the real world, it’d never happen but here, it probably will.

The bar, Black Eyes, looks like a standard sit com bar, with a few Tigers, Wings and Lions plaques on the wall.

The show needs more work, but it’s not without hope.