A Big Night of Reunions

Wednesday night, ABC brings us a big night of reunions…

No doubt you’ve heard that Jennifer Aniston is guest starring on Courteney Cox’s “Cougar Town.” And having seen the episode, I can tell you that the duo has not lost a step. They still have as much chemistry as they ever did and Aniston is funny in the episode.

But unfortunately for “Cougar,” she’s all that’s funny about the episode…

I haven’t seen “Cougar” since the first episode, but I could’ve sworn it was funnier than this. The plot of the guys staking out the bench with Jules’ (Cox) ad on it to see who is drawing on her picture is stupid. And why is Ellie’s (Christa Miller) husband (Ian Gomez) so obsessed with Jules’ picture anyway? That doesn’t make sense.

I am a big fan of Josh Hopkins (Jules’ boyfriend, Grayson), but it’s a little sad watching him be so unfunny…

The funniest reunion of the night is actually on “The Middle,” as Doris Roberts guests, reuniting her with her “Everybody Loves Raymond” co-star, Patricia Heaton. But in this case, it’s the story surrounding the reunion that’s funny and not the reunion itself.

Frankie (Heaton) realizes how unorganized her home is, so she decides to “get out in front of it.” That includes talking to Brick’s (Atticus Shaffer) teacher, Ms. Rinsky (Roberts) before she says anything to Frankie about Brick’s quirky behavior (I still don’t get him whispering to himself.). But Ms. Rinsky perceives it as going too far and she decides to take it out on Brick. This, of course, leads to a showdown between Ms. Rinsky and Frankie, but it’s a tad meaner than Marie and Debra ever got.

The real laughs come from the B story involving Frankie’s daughter, Sue (Eden Sher), and her pride over being a part of the cross country team.

It’s great to see both of these duos back on TV and doing their thing again. But you want these shows to be about more than just the reunions. You want them to be worth watching as a whole.

Sadly, only one of them is…

“The Middle” premieres Wednesday, September 22nd at 8 p.m., while “Cougar Town” premieres at 9:30 p.m. on ABC…

Photo Credits: Karen Neal/ABC & Michael Ansell/ABC