Dear John

This is a funny TV series, because the title character, played by Judd Hirsch, is willing to be a straight man to the other characters in a support group he attends.

In essence, much as "Good Times" is Kid Dynamite's show, this is really Jere Burns show as he portrays the rogue, Kirk. Kirk is just enough of a rascal to cherish and laugh at, both at the same time.

The others put in a dash of humor, too, one of them without ever saying a word.

The standard for comedy in the eighties was a comedy that would make people laugh. That's what this show did. It din't try to be too "situational", and hope for a smile, the way most comedies of the nineties and naughts do. It reached for the guts, and pulled them out.

This wasn't "slapstick", but just a bit shy of it. It jumped the shark a bit at the end, and that didn't work. It was best when staying true to its character of the support group.