Playing House is back! While that's totes kewl in and of itself—fans and critics campaigned hard for USA to bring back the comedy from Lennon Parham and Jessica St. Clair—what makes this news even greater is the show hasn't missed a beat. Your girls are back and better than ever.
The show picks up a few months after the birth of baby Charlotte and Maggie (Parham) and Emma (St. Clair) are well into the swing of mommyhood. The first two episodes hilariously take on dating as a new mom—with guest stars Darius Rucker, HGTV's Property Brothers, Mad Men's Rich Sommer and Kyle Bornheimer—and establishes some new status quos for the supporting characters including Lindsay Sloane's wonderfully weird Bird Bones and Emmy nominee Keegan-Michael Key's Mark.
Playing House was always pretty tight, but a few times last season the secondary stories were a little sloppy and missed the mark. But if the first two episodes are any indication, this year the A and B stories are stronger. There's more of an edge to the show—they're not dropping F-bombs left and right—but there's a certain confidence that Parham and St. Clair now have in their writing and performances.
Parham and St. Clair, real-life best friends, previously collaborated on Best Friends Forever, a short-lived (and well-received) NBC comedy. Now years into their professional and personal relationship, their comedy is on point and their chemistry is crackling. What's so fun about Playing House is you can see Parham and St. Clair, the two leads and co-creators really having fun with each other, whether it's a scripted line or a joke they decided to try on the fly. Viewers feel in on the joke. Their friendship seems to pop out of the TV and extend to the viewer at home. Without the two of them, Playing House wouldn't work.
There's something for everybody in the first two episodes: moms, dads, dudes, ladies, dogs, sauce aficionados, Hootie and the Blowfish fans, fans of large bananas, etc. Why don't you take a break from bleak dramas and laugh a little? That not enough? Why don't you click play on the video above—sent by the ladies to yours truly—and you'll really see that charm pop and know why viewers are best pals with Parham and St. Clair.
Playing House season two premieres Tuesday, Aug. 4, at 10 p.m. on USA.
(E! and USA are both part of the NBCUniversal family.)