TV Review: Men of a Certain Age

Few shows on TV (and absolutely no shows on TNT) are better than Men of a Certain Age. And yet few shows on TV make me more hesitant to admit I watch them religiously. Sure, you might get cool points for talking up flashy violence like Sons of Anarchy or my personal favorite show Breaking Bad. You will even get nods of agreement from people who love crowd pleasers like Parks and Recreation and any of the comedy shows on HBO.

But Men of a Certain Age just isn’t something a guy in his twenties is supposed to love. Similarly, young males afraid to face the prospect of getting older don’t like to watch shows about older guys unless they’re killing people or stopping others from killing people. And young women watching this show? Forget about it.

So that leaves me to enjoy the exploits of Ray Romano, Scott Bakula, and Andre Braugher all by myself. And that’s fitting since Men of a Certain Age is a razor sharp show about what it means to try to hang onto relationships as you get older and if anything is still important to you in your late middle age. The three men try every week to reinvent themselves or live bigger dreams, and even if that’s sometimes futile (undone by the frustrations and limitations of being 50) the show manages to be funny, touching, and realistic without being depressing. It’s a rare hat trick and more than worth watching in the show’s second season.

Supporting Scene Stealer: It’s almost impossible to talk about the show’s supporting cast because the three lead characters are so good and each of them are giving some of the best performances of their careers (Andre Braugher was nominated for an Emmy). Critics usually single out Ray Romano’s Joe because it proves Romano can be a good actor–and boy is he, simultaneously playing desperate hope and quiet rage without ever becoming unlikable–but this season has really belonged to Scott Bakula’s Terry. First season’s Terry was an aging party guy struggling to become an adult but this season finds him realizing just how much he wants to grow up even if it constantly slips through his fingers. Watching Terry suffer a breakup because his girlfriend thinks he’s “just fun” proves the end of a relationship can be devastating at any age.