Bottom of "The Class"

After three weeks of watching the new CBS sitcom The Class, I still can't tell you any of the characters' names. This is partly because there are so many of them, but mostly because I just don't care enough about any of them to even bother trying to learn their names. Quite frankly, if The Class is, as its promo spots claim, being hailed by critics as "the best new sitcom of the season," then all the others must really suck, and maybe those who have been declaring the form dead are on to something.

The Class is horribly unfunny and, even worse, totally predictable.

For example, in the first episode the players are gathered together by Ethan (I'm checking the CBS web-site for the names, which I'll most likely promptly forget upon posting this), who gives a surprise party for his fiance, whom he first met in third grade, and invites members of his third grade class, many of whom he hasn't seen since then and have completely forgotten about him. Predictably, the party goes horribly wrong when Ethan's fiance breaks up with him and one of his former classmates, Kat, says, "This is the best party ever."

Even if that line hadn't been in all the promos for the show, you would have known that someone was going to say it, because it's the standard joke that lazy, uninspired, unimaginative sitcom writers have their uninspired, unimaginative characters say when such an uninspired, unimaginative event occurs in their uninspired, unimaginative story.

It doesn't get any better from there, so I won't annoy you with any more examples.

It would seem that viewers aren't as impressed with The Class as CBS hoped they would be, since beginning this Monday, the network has switched its timeslot with the equally lame How I Met Your Mother. Apparently The Class' ratings weren't strong enough to justify keeping it in the lead off spot for the night. Unfortunately, they apparently do justify keeping this steaming pile of crap on the air.

It's almost enough to make me willingly watch Deal Or No Deal.

But not quite.