Proving bliss is overrated

FORGET tragicomic -- “ ‘Til Death” is pure tragedy.

On the show, Brad Garrett, formerly of “Everybody Loves Raymond,” and Joely Fisher are Eddie and Joy Stark, a couple 20-plus years into a marriage that appears to have been sapped of passion, energy and mutual happiness. They sit at the dinner table, discussing Eddie’s medical ailments. They bicker over whether to take a vacation. They both forget their anniversary. And, worse, frisky newlyweds -- Eddie Kaye Thomas and Kat Foster as Jeff and Steph Woodcock -- have just moved in next door, bringing with them a nonstop vision of the life Eddie and Joy no longer have, or maybe never did. All signs point south.

Yet somehow, “ ‘Til Death” (Fox, Thursday, 8 p.m.) might also be the funniest traditional sitcom on the air today. It’s not as insouciant as “My Name Is Earl” or as eccentric as “The Office,” but in the realm of household-dysfunction-played-for-laughs -- a genre still mysteriously clinging to life -- “ ‘Til Death” is a model of perseverance, and proof that not every ounce of originality has been wrung out of the form.

The show was created by husband-and-wife team Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa, who were executive producers for several years on “The King of Queens” and are also responsible for ABC’s hour-by-hour wedding comedy “Big Day.” Their twist here is an obvious one -- don’t bother to make the male lead likable -- a tactic that hasn’t worked so well since “Married With Children.” Unlike Al Bundy, though, Garrett’s Eddie doesn’t appear particularly justified in his loathsomeness. And unlike Al’s Peg, his wife, Joy, is thoughtful and caring, to say nothing of good-spirited, even if she occasionally takes a swipe at her man.

“You’re a very healthy person,” she told Eddie in one recent episode in which he was fretting over his health. “Look at all the new places you’ve sprouted hair.”

It’s funny, but it doesn’t sting, because Eddie understands that he’s gruesome and enjoys lording it over people for his own amusement. He’s a coarse mess and willfully so. At work he wears poorly structured blazers; at home, he’s rarely out of pajamas and his bathrobe.

At the beginning of this week’s episode, Joy puts some fruit into a bowl on the kitchen counter. Without missing a beat, Eddie deadpans, “I look forward to throwing that out in four days.”

Occasionally, a rash of affection does break out between the two, but even the couple’s tender moments are the product of antipathy. In one recent episode, Eddie learns that Joy has been secretly doing things for herself -- theater, French classes -- while he’s been off loitering, watching TV in his friend’s garage, though telling Joy he’s been at “band practice.”

Confronting their shared dishonesty, Eddie wonders why they each can’t be happy for the other to pursue individual interests.

“I love you,” replies Joy, “but somehow the thought of you having too much fun just doesn’t feel right to me. I feel like I’m getting screwed somehow.”

And so this is what passes for love.

“ ‘Til Death” was widely panned when it debuted this fall, and it suffered in the ratings. Nevertheless, Fox has ordered more episodes, leading to some encouraging signs. Garrett appears to be getting looser as the weeks progress, and the show’s universe is expanding slowly but promisingly.

In the holiday episode, forthcoming in two weeks, Eddie and Joy’s daughter comes home from college for a visit. When the show returns from holiday hiatus, Anthony Anderson will return as one of Eddie’s friends and the owner of the rec room their group of friends retreat to for the aforementioned “band practice.” Later in the season, the excellent -- and excellently saucy -- Margaret Cho is to guest star as Anderson’s wife. As a woman capable of dishing it out even harder than she takes it, she’s a true alpha, filling the screen effortlessly. She might even give Eddie a run for his smugness.