Hank

This show had a lot going for it. Kelsey Grammar is a sitcom legend and the writer was Tucker Cawley who wrote many of my favourite Everybody Loves Raymond episodes.

Sadly though it didn't catch on and the stories and perhaps the premise let it down. Grammar is so beloved as Frasier that it is strange seeing him play another role. The supporting characters didn't really add much and before you knew it the axe had fallen before the show even got into double figures in terms of episodes. Even Grammar's previous show 'Back to you' got through a full season.

Apparently Grammar even had a hand in the show getting axed which is a shame because given time perhaps it could have improved. Hopefully neither Grammar or Cawley will be out of work for too long.

When the economic downturn sees Hank Pryor fired from his company and losing everything he has. Ruined, Hank and his family leave their lavish New York apartment and relocate to Virginia. Unemployed and unaccustomed to being without the corporate power he once had, Hank struggles to adjust to living with his own family, far less the very different pace of life.

I made a point of checking this show out because I enjoyed Frasier and have always been curious to see Grammar fail to get out of the shadow of his success associated with his character of Frasier. Hank was notable because it only had five episodes before it was dropped – a fairly embarrassing way for the show to go considering the prestige of its star. I'm not sure quite why it was axed over the many many other "so-so" family sitcoms that fill out the network time but axed it was and here we are. Watching it the first thing that struck me was how cheap the show looks. That it is on a stage is no surprise for the sitcom but the sets are cheap and never look like anything other than sets. The second thing is that the script doesn't do anything other than what you would expect from a generic family sitcom. There are "hilarious" scenarios but ultimately they all lead to sentimental life lessons and family bonding.

There is more here that should have been had and, while it is a little unfair to expect it to have hit the ground running and gunning in the first five episodes, it never actually does it. The character of a fallen captain of industry adjusting to normal life away from assistants, staff and luxury offers much in the way of barbed comedy but the show never even gets close to having teeth. Nothing about it is worse than the many other family sitcoms out there but I don't watch those either and personally I found it all too obvious and bland in regards plotting and comedy.

Grammar is trying and his does his well-worth pompousness and flustered thing as one would expect – problem is though that we do expect it and it feels a little like he is going through the motions in doing it. He drew some chuckles from me but he cannot lift the material and he does settle in. The lack of strong support doesn't help him. McGraw is feisty but her material is obvious and she overacts it mostly. I like Koechner from the Daily Show but here he is just a basic "working man" caricature to clash with Grammar. The kids are annoying and hammy – Hinson is bad but Gamble is so saccharine and "cute kid" that I suspect many more episodes and I would have developed diabetes.

Hank is not awful when you hold it up against the many other average and unimaginative sitcoms but this should not be taken as any sort of defence or faint praise. On its own terms it has one or two funny lines and benefits from Grammar doing his usual stuff but the material is mostly bland and obvious, missing the potential to have edges in favour of obvious laughs and sentimental life-lessons. It doesn't seem to have any heart and, without this, laughs or decent characters, I can't see any reason I'd want to watch this beyond these five episodes – and clearly I was not alone in this opinion.

First, you have to give credit to Kelsey Grammar for getting in shape for his new series - he is sporting the physique of an Olympic gymnast! Now THAT is showing dedication to your profession. His acting chops are as sharp as ever - but people are going to be looking for FRASIER at every turn and how can anyone be expected to live up to that? It may not even be humanly possible. The problem is that Kelsey still LOOKS almost exactly like Frasier - so you constantly find yourself expecting a Frasier line to come out of him. Here's what they need to do to parry the FRASIER curse: simply give Kelsey a mustache -- or maybe even a beard. He looked great with facial hair in the costume party episode that just aired in syndication. Are you listening, producers of HANK? It could turn out to be a show saver. This is the best way to allow the nega-talented Kelsey the fresh start he so richly deserves. Another thing: the Grady character needs more dimensionality - as soon as he enters we are totally prepared for the mean-spirited sarcasm. Way too predictable - and not really that funny. Everything else on the show is terrific!

Don't get your expectations high but it's nice to have Kelsey Grammar back in a regular sitcom. Dr. Frasier Crane is no longer the character but he plays Hank Pryor, a former CEO from New York City, who returns home to small-town Virginia with his wife played by Melinda McGraw who could hold her own against Grammar's television status. They have two children-a teenage daughter Maddie and a pre-teen son, Henry. For Hank, he has come from a lavish style of living on Park Avenue to a house that needs repairs and to rebuild his life which includes rebuilding his relationship with his children. Hank treats his family as the Pryor Corporation but that has changed. This show might relate to some business executives who found themselves at the bottom and starting all over again in life. I think the show needs a chance to grow and evolve. Tim Koepchner plays, Grady, his blue-collar brother-in-law does add some potential humor. I think it's not a bad show and needs to work but it needs time. Even Frasier needed time to grow and succeed in primetime.

Kelsey Grammar is one of my favorite TV actors. Frasier is one of my favorite shows of all time. Also I liked Back to You, the cast on that show was amazing. Now on to his most recent show, Hank...

Hank isn't the greatest sitcom, but it's not the worst either. It has a familiar formula that several other sitcoms have, yet it is the simplest form. At first I didn't like it. But after seeing the Thanksgiving episode I actually have hope for the show. It was a cliché Thanksgiving Episode where wacky things happen to the turkey and the rest of the dinner, but it was actually pretty good. After the last episode I was so close to removing Hank from my DVR schedule, but I didn't and I'm happy I didn't.

There's one last thing I found. When watching Hank and Cougertown together I realize that Hank counterbalances the zany humor of Cougartown.