The boys are back! Specifically, they are still boys, with a special emphasis on the adolescent aspect of such. After a stupid stunt with a magician’s watery box and a gun fired in a courtroom (classic Franklin & Bash), we cut to a shapely woman’s rear end delivering a message — we never see her face. Big man Stanton (Malcolm McDowell) has decided to ask the partners to vote on getting brash, arrogant Peter (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) and mischievous, sidekick-y Jared (Breckin Meyer) in as partners themselves. We see plenty of their ridiculous “fraternity” behavior, jostling each other like “bros” and making inappropriate jokes in and out of the courtroom.
As for the trials, one mattered, one didn’t. In the more explicit nonsense element of this show, F&B’s old pal Robbie Ambriano (Eddie Jemison), apparently a teacher, had mistaken a female cop for “hot chick in cop’s outfit” (Kat Foster), and got tasered (turns out he was drinking on the beach, resisted arrest, etc). Hijinks time! We get some contractually required flirting between Peter and “hot girl of the week” Officer Wendy Cowell to start things up, with her “demonstrating” the move she used to subdue Robbie with at a bar. Up close and personal, naturally.
In the trial, we get mild gravitas from Judge Ernie Hudson, who tries and fails to keep a normal courtroom. Not in F&B’s world, no sir! After some gratuitous bikini photos, complete with american flag bikini and bunny girls at the chaotic revel at the beach, they attack Cowell’s record. Backfire #1 (we’ll get back to that in a minute). But with some Foreshadowing Fun and Obvious Last Minute Nonsensical Loophole action, complete with Peter wearing a gladiator’s outfit and putting on sunscreen in court, they win, of course. And Peter successfully asks out the lady cop, who is clearly magically seduced by the subconscious memory of Zach Morris.
Just so we don’t forget, we visit competent but underpaid Carmen (Dana Davis) and genius but socially awkward Pindar (Kumail Nanjiani), still around, complaining about the awful state of their home. We have a dramatic backstory of Pindar of his sad days at college. Carmen wants him to confront his college bully, but it turns out that the bully was a nice guy, and Pindar was just jealous of his roommate’s girlfriend? Another twist! It may lead to a plot where they find that girlfriend now. Throwaway plot, but still.
In the “main” plot, we introduce Lawrence Reynolds (Kevin Nealon) as a beverage company executive — if they sign him as client, they’re assured a vote from the other partners. But after a drunken night of debauchery, gets arrested for forcing a helicopter to land illegally. Stalwart and sarcastic Damien (Reed Diamond) initially steps in to take lead, but Peter uses some odd story about a beach resort that the judge recognizes in some way. Don’t worry, it won’t come up later. Or ever, I assume!
They seem to be then hired on to deal with Joan (Melora Walters), the owner of the brewery with a homemade, but the company owns the rights and ownership of it after her father won a brewing contest with it years earlier. They tell her not to bother fighting such a big company — scummy tactics. And these are the heroes, right? They later make fun of Joan’s folksy lawyer relative, but he schools them and forces them to go to trial. Backfire again! Another loophole is brought up (only way to win cases is loopholes) and now the countersuing is not gonna happen. Time for some counter-COUNTER-suing, as scummy Reynolds wants to get that prize money back with interesting, effectively destroying Joan’s small business. F&B take a firm “moral” stance on not counter-suing the restaurant for everything they’re worth. So… not gonna be partners? Wait, misdirect! They are, they did it after all. It was “the right thing to do”… I guess?
What an odd set of protagonists. I suppose if you don’t take it too seriously, that’s for the best. Drama doesn’t really suit this show so well.
Clacked by Jeremy Fogelman 
on Jun 06, 2012 @ 09:07 EST5EDT
