The Ellen Show was an obscure show which premiered in September 2001, when few people were interested in laughing, and quickly failed. I watched the show for the first time, years after its cancellation, for no other reason than that it was co-created by Mitchell Hurwitz, the brains behind Arrested Development, and partially written by Hurwitz and Chuck Martin, who also wrote for AD. Besides Ellen DeGeneres, the show stars Martin Mull, who appeared on AD. The Ellen Show had some promise with Hurwitz on board, but it never fully realizes its potential and stays an average sitcom with mostly uninteresting characters, sometimes predictable humour, sometimes mediocre acting and no deep meaning. Not to mention an annoying laugh track.
The two best episodes are the Pilot, co-written by Hurwitz, and "Joe", the seventh episode which is also written by Hurwitz. These have Hurwitz playing with awkward situations, double meanings, wit, occasional physical humour, and the basic idea of losing a fortune- all of which became bigger on AD. But the rest of The Ellen Show's episodes barely feel Hurwitz's presence, even when he's a credited writer, and Martin's episodes don't achieve much either with such two-dimensional characters.
In short, I had hoped I found a gem no one knew about but discovered the show is obscure for a reason, and it probably deserved to go.
The two best episodes are the Pilot, co-written by Hurwitz, and "Joe", the seventh episode which is also written by Hurwitz. These have Hurwitz playing with awkward situations, double meanings, wit, occasional physical humour, and the basic idea of losing a fortune- all of which became bigger on AD. But the rest of The Ellen Show's episodes barely feel Hurwitz's presence, even when he's a credited writer, and Martin's episodes don't achieve much either with such two-dimensional characters.
In short, I had hoped I found a gem no one knew about but discovered the show is obscure for a reason, and it probably deserved to go.