“Samantha Who?” sets up Sam’s subsequent search for herself by asking some very deep and pressing life questions: Are her parents nuts because they’re using her misfortune to get on “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” or is that their way of showing love and concern? Has she already found her soul mate, or was playing the field her thing? And is she really best friends with an obnoxiously clingy chick, or a brusque alcoholic bad influence? Yes, it’s a sitcom, so not everything needs to be true-to-life, but the split between who Sam was and who she now wants to become is way too black and white—a few shades of gray are nice every now and then.
Who’s that?: Christina Applegate (“Married…with Children”) stars as Samantha; Jean Smart (“Designing Women,” “24”) and Kevin Dunn (“Transformers“) play her parents; Jennifer Esposito (“Crash”) is Samantha’s best friend Andrea; Melissa McCarthy (“Gilmore Girls”) plays her not-so-best friend Dena; Barry Watson (“What About Brian”) is her boyfriend Todd; and Tim Russ (of “Star Trek” fame) steals every scene he’s in as Frank, the doorman.
Buzzed about: After playing the name-change game for a few months, then settling on the (not-so-catchy) title “Samantha Who?,” you can’t throw a rock without hitting one of those adorable angel/devil ads.
The “ooh” factor: Applegate is one of the most likeable actresses on television—she’s fresh, delightful and incredibly talented. The supporting cast is stellar as well, heightening the comedic moments with impeccable timing and some interesting character quirks.
The “eh” factor: Predictable writing and a heavy reliance on Applegate’s aforementioned freshness, adorableness and talent leaves the show feeling lopsided. They took an interesting premise, not often seen on TV, and turned it into a drawn out taste test of naughty vs. nice—complete with a million cliché ways of exploring that. Lemon bars or brownies? Low-cut tops or professional button-downs? It tries really hard to forge a path for poor Sam to tread back and forth on, but ends up feeling just as lost as its main character.
The verdict: After 30 unexceptional minutes of this show, a little head bump and some amnesia don’t seem so bad after all!
"Samantha Who?” premieres Monday, Oct. 15 at 9:30 p.m./8:30c on ABC.
