'Mr. Sunshine' Premiere

Mr. Sunshine is an uneven but promising comedy with a dark sense of humor, a solid lead performance from Matthew Perry and a scene-stealing supporting turn by Allison Janney.

Matthew Perry proved with Aaron Sorkin’s Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip that he could play a character with complex problems, and with Mr. Sunshine he takes that darkness and funnels it into comedy, combining the strengths of his work on both Studio 60 and Friends. Here he plays Ben Donovan, the manager of San Diego’s Sunshine Arena, a struggling venue that books everything from rock concerts to sporting events to political conventions. Ben is a loner and a bit of a misanthrope, but after hitting 40 he realizes that he may need to form stronger connections with the people around him. Perry gives Ben just the right balance of selfishness and charm, so that he doesn’t come off as unlikable even while sometimes doing some pretty insensitive things.

The show overall struggles a little more with balance, as sometimes the humor is quite caustic (in Ben’s treatment of some of his employees) and at other times it’s more lighthearted, with typical sitcom-relationship banter between Ben and co-worker Alice (the always appealing Andrea Anders), whom he’s clearly destined to be with even if she’s currently tossed him aside for someone else. The whole thing comes together whenever Allison Janney is around, though. Another veteran of Sorkin’s fast-talking style of dialogue (from The West Wing), Janney does a wonderful job playing Crystal Cohen, the arena’s insensitive, oblivious, frequently high and very wealthy owner. With a character that could easily become a grating caricature, Janney is never annoying or over-the-top, instead selling Crystal as a gleeful maniac who’s somehow endearing even in her insanity.

The show clearly has some kinks to work out, especially in the love triangle among Ben, Alice and fellow co-worker Alonzo (James Lesure), and it needs to find a more comfortable role for Crystal’s awkward, hyperactive son Roman (Nate Torrence). But with a concept that brings in entirely different situations and challenges every week (the first episode features the arena hosting a circus), Mr. Sunshine has plenty of directions to explore. And with Perry, Janney and Anders leading the cast, it has a solid team onscreen to take it to interesting, entertaining places.

Disclosure: A review screener was provided by the network. For more information, please see our Ethics Policy.