TV Review : ABC’s ‘The Boys’: A Curious Hybrid of a Family Sitcom

The most distinguishing trait of the new ABC comedy series “Me and the Boys” is its grammar.

Here is African American Steve Tower, a Dallas video store owner with three sons, expressing his lighthearted skepticism about the vision of God: “It ain’t written nowhere dat God ain’t all the time just bumpin’ in all the stuff.”

It’s not that some Americans don’t speak this way, only that most who do in prime-time entertainment programs happen to be black--a stereotype if there ever was one.

While likable enough, the upper middle-class Tower household is also a curious hybrid, consisting of the street-talking Tower (stand-up comic Steve Harvey), his three relatively well-spoken sons, ages 10 to 16, and his refined mother-in-law, Mary (Madge Sinclair). These characters are introduced in a premiere that is mildly funny at best, as William (Wayne Collins) and Artis (Chaz Lamar Shepherd) get in trouble with their caring, education-promoting, disciplinarian dad over attending a horror movie.

“I figure if I give ‘em enough trouble (at home), they won’t have to go out lookin’ for none,” Steve says.

At his best, Harvey is faintly reminiscent of Richard Pryor. At his worst, he appears stiffly out of sync in this environment, even though “Me and the Boys” at times is more of an extended monologue than a sitcom.

* “Me and the Boys” premieres at 8:30 tonight on ABC (Channels 7, 3, 10 and 42).