Lisa Johnson Mandell and Tandy Culpepper dish about two Max Mutchnick and David Kohan comedies, giving a Mid-Century Modern review and a Will & Grace review. Both are fabulous and ground breaking for their times.

2 in 1 — Mid-Century Modern review and Will & Grace review

The streaming service Hulu has dropped a new sitcom, Mid-Century Modern, that more than one pundit has compared to The Golden Girls.

The latter show starred Bea Arthur, Estelle Getty, Rue McClanahan and Betty White as four women of a certain age who lived together in a house in Miami. During its seven-year run, it was in the top ten of the Nielsen ratings for six of those, and the awards it picked up were plenty. In fact, each of its four cast members won Emmys. At one point, TV Guide ranked the series as number four in the best sixty shows of all time.

But how does Mid-Century Modern stack up against The Golden Girls? Well, on this matter Lisa and Tandy’s opinions diverge somewhat.

This Hulu offering was created by Max Mutchnick and David Kohan, the same producing team that gave us the NBC sitcom, Will & Grace, then a groundbreaking series featuring two gay male characters. Since this was network fare, the zingers were of mild fare, though the program aired at 9PM, a time slot considered to be after young children’s bedtimes.

With their latest sitcom ensconced on a streamer, Mutchnick and Kohan figuratively have let loose the hounds of war. The gags are beyond R-rated and prior to the show’s opening scenes, HULU has affixed an MA-17 caution. In the first episode alone, more than a few jokes contain vivid references to, let’s just say sex that’s not exactly missionary position.

The show stars Nathan Lane as a wealthy man who made his fortune selling specialty bras, Matt Bomer plays a dim-witted flight attendant, and Nathan Lee Graham is a former fashion correspondent reduced to working in sales at a high-end women’s wear boutique. They move in together in a grand Mid Mod home in Palm Springs

Oh, and the late Linda Lavin plays the Nathan Lane character’s mother, who owns the house. Lavin died just prior to shooting the final episodes.

Each of their jobs is well-within the range of occupations gay men could work in the earlier days of gay assimilation into society. They are flamboyant characters to boot. Here’s what the entertainment publication trade Variety had to say:

“Though the show does lean into several stereotypes of the LGBTQ+ community, it’s all done in good humor and with a bit of flair.”

A bit of flair is being more than charitable, according to Tandy, who, as a gay man, was not entirely amused by the flamboyant portrayals. He said he prefers the milder, less raunchy spirit of Will & Grace,  which did a little envelope pushing of its own back in the day, and its glittering guest star roster looked like a list of Who’s Who in Hollywood.

Regarding comparisons to The Golden Girls, Tandy thinks it’s difficult to see Mid-Century Modern winning any awards save Lamda or Human Rights Campaign recognition, let alone enjoying a seven-year run.

Lisa, on the other hand, had more of an affinity for Mid-Century Modern, partially big fan of the architecture and style MM refers to, she recognized the classic Palm Spring Mid Mod Dinah Shore house that they’re using for exterior stills.

She’s also intrigued by the subplot of Bomer’s character being an ex-Mormon husband and father, excommunicated from the Church for being gay. Some savvy person in the writer’s room has obviously had experience with this, and has nestled in some very moving moments among the character’s exploits.

Lisa was not a big Golden Girls watcher, but she did see every episode of Will & Grace, and believes that all in all, W&G was perhaps better, but both have merits for their time and genre.

Find Lisa Johnson Mandell and Tandy Culpepper’s takes in their Mid-Century Modern review and a Will & Grace review in their podcast on The Hollywood Beat.