Bernie Mac at His Parental Best

Good news, America: Bernie Mac is back.

After last week’s snoozer of a season opener, in which the kids were all but absent, some might have wondered if the sitcom’s rookie success last year was a fluke.

Fear not: In tonight’s episode, “The Bernie Mac Show” returns to the crux of its comedy: the big rascal’s bombastic, original take on parenting.

And none too soon: In his new time slot at 8 p.m. on Fox, Bernie squares off against the season premieres of Damon Wayans’ family-oriented sitcom, “My Wife and Kids,” on ABC and the quirky comedy-drama “Ed” on NBC.

As fans know, “Bernie Mac” chronicles the misadventures of an upscale couple, Bernie and Wanda (Kellita Smith), suddenly thrust into surrogate parenthood for two nieces and a nephew. At the Emmy Awards on Sunday, the series was honored for best comedy writing.

In tonight’s episode, little Bryana (Dee Dee Davis) loses her beloved doll Precious after a day at the beach, so Bernie undertakes a midnight odyssey to retrieve it. Eventually he succeeds, but he tries desperately to wean Bryana from the doll to avoid a replay.

When reasoning fails--and doesn’t it always?--Bernie’s patience wears thin. In a priceless bit, he begs for sympathy from the audience with a subtitled diatribe drowned out by Bryana’s crying. When Bernie decides to take drastic measures, the plot cleverly spoofs several movie classics. Jordan (Jeremy Suarez) secretly agrees to do away with his sister’s doll, banking a favor from Uncle Bernie in “The Godfather” tradition. But let’s just say that Precious proves to be as resilient as a villain in a horror film.

At this rate, “The Bernie Mac Show” may quickly put a scare into its new competition.