TV REVIEW : Comedy in a Vacuum

Howie Mandel’s new summer series, “Howie” (premiering tonight at 8 on CBS Channels 2 and 8), couldn’t possibly be any sillier. And, no, that isn’t a recommendation. The show--a mixture of stand-up comedy and skits--doesn’t seem aimed even slightly at anyone whose age stretches too far into double digits, yet the mostly grown-up live audience at Anaheim’s Celebrity Theatre is seen laughing uproariously, so go figure.

The premiere episode begins with a taped segment of Mandel rushing his mom through the city streets to the show, wherein she trots into a tree, trips over a dog and gets hit by a car, smilingly bouncing back every time. “Howie” is a show powered by the same kind of witless enthusiasm, springing from one inconsequentially goofy gag to the next, without regard for pacing, context or whatever accident just happened.

Two writers besides Mandel are credited for this benign mess, though the opener looks to have been almost entirely improvised. Once on stage, the comic picks on a child in the front row caught picking his nose, spends minutes answering rabid fans calling out his name or holding up signs, and trades a modicum of banter with bandleader and ex-E Street saxman Clarence Clemons.

It isn’t uphill from there to the skits, which seem almost equally unscripted. Affecting his best little-boy voice, Mandel plays a toddler waiting for the tooth fairy, interrupted by a surprise visit from Gilbert Gottfried (whose annoyance actually comes as a slight relief here) as his kvetching mother. And in a self-consciously Lettermanesque video, he visits a real hair salon and abuses the heads of actual older men.

“Howie” is comedy in a complete vacuum--not just separate from topical events but apart even from any kind of minor social observation. While hardly talentless, Mandel has found the fine line between childlikeness and childishness and plopped himself squarely on the latter side, misfiring at each baby step of the way.

On the plus side: There are only four episodes scheduled.