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When I watched the premiere episode of "Life in Pieces (Monday, 7:30 p.m., CBS/Ch. 2), I was confused and not amused for about the first half.
Then I warmed up to it. And laughed. Several times. Which is a good thing.
This new series is very much in the tradition of "Modern Family" – various plotlines about various members of an extended family, all of which tie together. Sort of.
And, unlike "Big Bang Theory" and most other CBS comedies, "Life In Pieces" is filmed like a movie — no studio audience, no laugh track.
In the premiere, Matt (Thomas Sadoski, "The Newsroom") goes on a date with a co-worker; runs into her ex-fiance (Jordan Peel of "Key & Peele" in guest shot); runs into the police; and runs into his parents … because he still lives at home.
In story No. 2, Greg (Colin Hanks) and his wife, Jen (Zoe Lister-Jones) are adjusting to become parents. She's also adjusting to what having a child has done to her body — she's not taking it well — an they're both adjusting to having no sex life for a while.
In story No. 3, Heather (Betsy Brandt, "Breaking Bad") and Tim (Dan Bakkedahl) are adjusting to their son growing up — they're dropping him off to college. And, attempting to give advice, Tim reveals waaaaay too much about his sexual history.
This is not a show for kids. It's filled with adult humor.
What brings them all together is dad's (James Brolin) 70th birthday. Which he chooses to celebrate by throwing his own funeral, so he can hear what people would say about him if he was actually dead.
Mom (Dianne Wiest) humors him.
The fact that the second half of the episode is better than the first is a good sign.
I'm still rather iffy on "Life In Pieces," but I'm willing to give it a chance and see where the next few episodes take us.