The Odd Couple (2015 TV series)
The Odd Couple is an American multi-camera sitcom television series that aired on CBS from February 19, 2015, to January 30, 2017. It is the seventh screen production based on the 1965 play written by Neil Simon, following the 1968 film, the original 1970s television series, a 1975 Saturday morning cartoon, a 1982 reboot of the 1970 series, "The Odd Couple: Together Again" (a TV film reunion of the 1970 series) and "The Odd Couple II" (a 1998 sequel to the 1968 film). This show stars Matthew Perry (who also developed and executive  produced the series) as the slovenly Oscar Madison and Thomas Lennon as the obsessively-tidy Felix Unger. Perry and Lennon had previously worked together on the film "17 Again". The show was announced in December 2013 and was picked up by CBS as a midseason offering for the 2014–15 season. On May 16, 2016, CBS renewed the show for a third season of 13 episodes, which premiered on October 17, 2016, and concluded on January 30, 2017. The series was formally canceled on May 15, 2017, after three seasons. Plot. Felix Unger and Oscar Madison meet at college in the  late 1980s, and fate puts them together as roommates: while Felix is extremely neurotic and fussy in contrast to the slovenly and easy-going Oscar, they both become friends quickly. They eventually marry two women very different from themselves (Felix gets hitched to the calm but feisty Ashley, and Oscar settles down with the insecure Gaby). Years later, Felix, now a neat-freak news writer and photographer, is kicked out by Ashley after twenty years of marriage (having spent eight of them in marriage counseling, with Felix going alone for the last two years) and moves in with Oscar, now  a sports talk show host, whose ex-wife Gaby has left him because he was a thoughtless slob. Felix and Oscar attempt to date Casey and Emily, two sisters who are roommates in the same building, and who both have recently exited their own unhealthy relationships. Felix is pretty insecure as he still has feelings for Ashley, which contrasts with Oscar who claims to be better off away from his ex. However, Oscar later confesses to Felix that he is not over Gaby. Oscar holds poker games regularly, with two of the players being Teddy, his agent, and Roy, one  of his best friends. Production. Development and filming. Matthew Perry is a fan of "The Odd Couple", particularly the 1968 film version, which served as the main source of inspiration for the revived series. Perry had been pitching the idea to the networks since the late 2000s, expecting the show for 2010. However, executives passed on it, and Perry turned into another production, NBC's "Go On" which was canceled after one season. Thereafter, Perry began concentrating on his pet project once again, being finally picked up by CBS in late 2013. Perry and Danny Jacobson began developing the updated  take on Neil Simon's classic as a multi-camera comedy at the network. Perry and Jacobson are co-writing the CBS Television Studios-based half-hour, with Perry attached to play the Oscar role. Carl Beverly and Sarah Timberman of Timberman-Beverly Productions and Eric Tannenbaum and Kim Tannenbaum of The Tannenbaum Co. will also serve as executive producers on the project, which has a penalty attached. On February 25, 2014, CBS ordered a pilot co-written by Perry and Joe Keenan. On May 9, 2014, CBS ordered the pilot to series for a 13-episode season scheduled for  a mid-season premiere. On May 11, 2015, the series was renewed for a second season of 13 episodes which premiered on April 7, 2016 and concluded on May 23, 2016. On October 31, 2016, CBS announced that the fourth episode of the third season would pay tribute to the late Garry Marshall, creator of the original TV version in 1970. Marshall previously guest starred in the second season of the current series as Oscar's father, Walter. The series' third season concluded on January 30, 2017 with no additional episodes ordered. On April 10, 2017, Matthew Perry tweeted, "My  face on the Odd Couple stage door has been painted over with green paint. I think it's safe to assume that we have been cancelled. #subtle". On May 15, 2017, CBS officially canceled the show after three seasons. Casting. On February 28, 2014, Sarah Baker who previously worked with Perry on "Go On" was cast for a role for the pilot playing Oscar's assistant. On March 13, 2014, Thomas Lennon was cast opposite Perry as Felix. "The Michael J. Fox Show" star Wendell Pierce was cast as Teddy, a buddy partner for Oscar for the pilot on March  14, 2014. Georgia King was cast as a female lead on March 17, 2014. Lindsay Sloane was cast for the pilot on March 21, 2014. Following the series order, both Baker and King dropped out and subsequently the network was recasting the roles as of May 13, 2014. On August 8, 2014, it was announced that Yvette Nicole Brown was cast to succeed Baker as Oscar's assistant Dani – though the role had been downgraded to recurring to allow for her role on the upcoming season of "Community". However shortly after announcing on August 30, 2014 that she was leaving  Community due to a family emergency, she was upgraded to a series regular role on October 6, 2014. On September 10, 2015, it was announced that Teri Hatcher was cast as a recurring character named Charlotte, who's a new love interest for Oscar. Broadcast. The series debuted simultaneously in Canada on CTV. In Australia, Network Ten acquired the rights to air the series and premiered it at 7:30 pm on March 23, 2015. In Israel, the satellite television provider yes acquired the rights to air the series. Home media. The first season of "The Odd Couple" was released on  DVD on April 5, 2016. The second and third seasons were individually released on October 24, 2018, via Amazon. Reception. Critical reception. "The Odd Couple" has received mixed reviews from critics. On Metacritic, season one has a score of 42 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". On Rotten Tomatoes, the season 1 received 24% "rotten" ratings with consensus, "Stars Matthew Perry and Thomas Lennon make a fine Oscar and Felix, but "The Odd Couple"'s flat jokes and canned laughter are pretty old hat." Controversy. The third episode of the second season, "From Here  to Maturity", was criticized by many Bosniak communities in Europe and North America. In the episode, Felix (Thomas Lennon) asks Emily (Lindsay Sloane) on a date by saying, "Let's go visit that new Serbian restaurant, The Taste of Srebrenica." The line seemed to reference the 1995 Srebrenica massacre, in which 8,000 young Bosniak men and boys were systematically rounded up and killed by the Bosnian Serb Army. In an open letter, Eldin Elezovic, president of the Congress of North American Bosniaks stated that the Congress felt "very disturbed and disappointed" by the joke. He further said the show's  line was analogous to saying something as horrendous as 'Let's go visit that new German restaurant, The taste of Auschwitz'." Almir Seckanovic of Faktor said the joke was "the most primitive way" to insult Srebrenica victims; Branka Antic Stauber, who runs a non-governmental organization that works with Bosniak women who were raped during the war, called the joke "inhumane"; and the Ontario-based research organization The Institute of Research of Genocide Canada, called the joke a "terrible humiliation of the victims of Srebrenica". On May 10, 2016, the show's executive producer, Bob Daily, apologized for the line , saying, "We were unaware of any connection to the terrible tragedy in Srebrenica. We would never intentionally disrespect or make light of such an event and sincerely apologize to anyone we may have offended."