'Mad About You': Second half of Spectrum show's revival will raise stakes for Buchmans as serious issues crop up
For critics, the first half of Spectrum's revival of 'Mad About You' was "unnecessary". However, fans of the 90s show loved it. For many, the issues were that 'Mad About You' seemed like the same old show and the issues, which the Buchmans dealt with seemed quite trivial.
We were also reintroduced to Mabel Buchman as she left for college — just five blocks away at the New York University — and though the first couple of episodes featured her heavily, we saw less of her as the revival went on. Some liked Mabel, some did not — but the Buchmans' daughter was the only updated bit about the revival.
At the end of Episode 6, in a very meta moment, Jamie breaks the fourth wall and announces things are going to get bumpy when the revival comes back with new episodes in December, as a confused Paul looks on.
This could address critics' concern that the revival lacked any deeper meaning and from the premise of the coming episodes, we can see that Jamie may be right.
In the seventh episode, that is, the first episode of Part 2, viewers will see Jamie and Paul trying to get their affairs in order after a close friend passes away, leading them to consider their own mortality. A dark episode for a sitcom, sure, but it could open up new levels for the revival.
Meanwhile, the revival had also seemingly rewritten what the original series finale had told viewers in 1999: that Paul and Jamie had briefly split up. But, in one of the upcoming episodes, we will see that Paul and Jamie will indeed have issues, going so far as to attend a marriage boot camp.
We might also see the Buchmans consider relocating from their house, which has been as much a character on the show, with even jokes about it getting bigger each year. When a wealthy buyer comes to the Buchmans, the couple will ruminate on whether they give up an integral part of their lives.
Part 2 of the 'Mad About You' revival will be released on Spectrum's On-Demand Platform on December 18.