Better with You is an American television sitcom created by Shana Goldberg-Meehan that aired on ABC from September 22, 2010, to May 11, 2011. It stars JoAnna Garcia Swisher, Jennifer Finnigan, Josh Cooke, Jake Lacy, Kurt Fuller, and Debra Jo Rupp.
On May 13, 2011, ABC cancelled the series after one season two days after the series finale aired.
Plot The series revolved around three different relationships that are tightly intertwined in one family, as it follows a couple, Maddie and Ben, who had been dating for nine years and are happy just living together despite not taking the next step, marriage. Maddie's life is thrown for a loop when her younger sister Mia announces that she is pregnant and is about to marry Casey, a guy whom she has only known for seven weeks. To make matters worse, Maddie is stunned that their parents, who have been married for 35 years and have their issues, approve of the union, leaving Maddie and Ben questioning themselves about their own relationship. The story followed their lives and struggles.
Cast JoAnna Garcia Swisher as Mia Putney, Maddie's younger sister and Casey's fiancée Jennifer Finnigan as Madeleine "Maddie" Putney, Mia's older sister and Ben's girlfriend Josh Cooke as Ben Coles, Maddie's boyfriend Jake Lacy as Casey Marion Davenport, Mia's fiancé Kurt Fuller as Joel Putney, Vicky's husband and Maddie and Mia's father Debra Jo Rupp as Vicky Putney, Joel's wife and Maddie and Mia's mother
Production Better with You was previously known as Better Together, Couples, Leapfrog, and then briefly as That Couple. On January 15, 2010, ABC green-lit the pilot, which was written by Friends writer and executive producer Shana Goldberg-Meehan and directed by James Burrows. The show was produced by Bonanza Productions, Silver and Gold Productions, and Warner Bros. Television. Better with You aired on Wednesday at 8:30 after The Middle and before Modern Family.ABC Announces 2010-11 Primetime Schedule , TV by the Numbers, May 18, 2010 On October 26, ABC announced that Better with You was picked up for a full 22-episode season.
Ben Kweller wrote the theme song for the show. Country music singer Reba McEntire made an appearance in episode 8, "Better with Flirting", as wedding planner Lorraine Ashley. Series regular Joanna Garcia Swisher and McEntire both starred in the WB/CW series Reba.
Better with You marked the second time Josh Cooke and Jennifer Finnigan have co-starred on a sitcom, the first being the short-lived 2005 NBC series Committed; it is also the second time that Cooke and Kurt Fuller co-starred in a sitcom, having previously starred in the short-lived 2006 ABC series Big Day.
Episodes All episodes of the show (except "Pilot") start with the word "Better".
International broadcasts Country Network Start date Latin America Warner Channel November 1, 2010 New Zealand TV2 January 19, 2011 Czech RepublicHBO ComedyMarch 1, 2011 Poland Romania Serbia Spain TNT United Kingdom 5* March 9, 2011 France OCS Happy April 20, 2011 Italy Mya, Joi, Canale 5 July 25, 2011 Australia Nine Network September 19, 2011 India Zee CaféOctober 2011 Portugal Fox LifeOctober 2, 2011 Croatia Doma TV March 5, 2012 Iceland Stöð 2 March, 2012 BrazilSBTAugust 14, 2012 Bulgaria bTV April 6, 2013 Israel HOT 3 Philippines 2nd Avenue/(RJTV) Turkey CNBC-E Ireland 3e
Reception Critical reception Better with You received generally positive reviews. It has a Metacritic score of 64 out of 100, based on reviews from 21 critics.
Ratings SeasonEpisodesTimeslot (EDT)Original airingRankViewers(in millions)Network Season premiere Season finale TV Season 1 22 Wednesday 8:30 pm (September 22, 2010 – May 11, 2011) Monday 9:30 pm (April 25, 2011) 2010–2011 #75 6.60 ABC
Awards and nominations Year Presenter Award Result 2011 People's Choice Awards Favorite New TV Comedy
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