Grannies Gone Wild #123

Zach has watched "Grannies Gone Wild" four times so far in his lifetime. Watch the episode HERE. You can also read every single Grannies Gone Wild entry HERE.

I haven't binged a TV show since I watched One Day back in January 2024, in a pretty dark time in my life. A friend told me they had recently binged the show Nobody Wants This. It has a Jewish theme, about a rabbi (Adam Brody) and a non-Jew (Kristen Bell) who start dating, and how it's a problem she's not Jewish, and he's up for a big job but he can't be marrying a non-Jew, and so on. It's a storyline I'm familiar with because I've lived it—I've dated non-Jews in my past and had these conversations.

So I binged the show. I finished it in two days. The problem? The show sucks.

The humor is tired. It makes Jews look terrible. It's just so basic. There are some funny moments, but overall, it's cringe. I can't stand it.

I feel similarly about Reba. It's cringe. The jokes are tired. I can't imagine making it through the entire show. It would probably be even worse. Both shows even have a Jewish theme! Barbara Jean was Tevye!

Thankfully, Nobody Wants This and Reba, specifically GGW, have one more thing in common: Stephen Tobolowsky. The judge plays Rabbi Cohen in Nobody Wants This, the senior rabbi who will soon be retiring. Adam Brody's character will take his job. 

Now, of course, this is a 20-years older Stephen Tobolowsky. I didn't recognize him at first. But when I saw his name in the credits, my heart warmed up. 

He is very funny in this show, too. He makes the most of what he's given, which isn't much. He comments on trying to get back to his playing weight and "laying off the sweets." He tells his protege that if he wants to marry a Jew, he can marry his daughter, "the hot one," who looks just like him. He saves the show! Just like in Reba!

Am I being dramatic about Stephen Tobolowsky's impact on the show I just binged? Maybe! Who cares!

There's nothing like watching "Grannies Gone Wild" for a fourth time in my life immediately after binging a show for the first time in more than a year. It adds a certain palate to it, a taste. Van's jokes are funnier. I'm more wild, myself. I enjoy life more. I taste of its sweet pap. And I like it. I crave the peanut butter sandwich, and I crave the thrill of the courtroom. I dream of jury duty. And I dream of Stephen Tobolowsky, Rabbi Cohen and the judge all in one, rocking me to sleep.