| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b1dZVjc99dc
For the first time this century, The Odd Couple is back on TV and you don’t want to miss its debut at 8:30p tonight on CBS. This incarnation stars two very funny TV stars, Matthew Perry as Oscar Madison and Thomas Lennon as Felix, and both of them were born to plays these roles.
If you don’t know the premise of the show that aired in the’70s, Oscar is divorced sportscaster who is a complete slob. Felix, his college roommate, who has just been dumped by his wife, is the neatest neat freak you will ever meet. After Felix’s wife throws him to the curb, he moves in with Oscar. Now these two very different men have to try to make it work as they live together. Things that are much easier said than done.
There are some parts of the remake that are very much like the Walter Matthau/Jack Lemmon and Jack Klugman/Tony Randall versions, and then there are parts that are modernized for today. Instead of working as a sports writer for a newspaper, Oscar now has a radio show he does from his apartment. Talking about the apartment, this one is so much more beautiful than the one from the original TV version. I would love to live in their place.
Now, when it comes to how this show is like the classic play, movie and television shows, it is the humor. I laughed just as hard with the update and I did with the 1.0 and 2.0. Perry is perfect as the messy grouch and he captures Oscar’s essence. When it comes to Lennon, if you close your eyes, you would swear he was Randall reincarnated. He even has his sinuses, down to the honk. Or whatever you want to call that sound he makes.
The Odd Couple is the type of show that people who like the original one can enjoy, and it also a sitcom that newbies can enjoy as much as the fans. The reason why it still works today as it did then is that the concept is timeless. Opposites will always attract and friends will always be there when you need them.
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