''Bless This Mess'' is an American
single-camera
In filmmaking, television production and video production, the single-camera setup or single-camera mode of production (also known as portable single crew, portable single camera or single-cam) is a method in which all of the various shots and c ...
sitcom
A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...
created by
Lake Bell and
Elizabeth Meriwether that aired from April 16, 2019, to May 5, 2020, on
ABC. It stars
Dax Shepard, Bell, JT Neal,
Pam Grier, and
Ed Begley Jr. In May 2019, ABC renewed the series for a second season, which premiered on September 24, 2019.
In May 2020, the series was canceled after two seasons.
Premise
Young couple Mike and Rio leave their home in
New York and move to a farm in the fictional town of Bucksnort,
Nebraska
Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...
, that Mike inherited from his great-aunt. They find it badly neglected and occupied by a senile old man named Rudy Longfellow. Deciding to stay, they restore and try to run the farm and find themselves adapting to the strange, tightly knit community of colorful eccentrics with mixed results.
Cast
Main
*
Dax Shepard as Michael "Mike" Levine-Young,
a former music journalist from
New York. He is married to Rio.
*
Lake Bell as Rio Levine-Young,
a former therapist and Mike's wife
* JT Neal as Jacob Bowman,
Mike and Rio's neighbors' son
*
Pam Grier as Constance Terry,
the owner of the store, "Connie's", and the local sheriff
*
Ed Begley Jr. as Rudy Longfellow,
who lives in the Levine-Youngs' barn
*
David Koechner as Beau Bowman (season 2, recurring season 1), a local rancher who tries to buy the Levine-Youngs' farm but later befriends them. He is Kay's husband and Jacob's father.
*
Lennon Parham as Kay Bowman (season 2, recurring season 1), neighbor of Rio and Mike. She is Jacob's mother and Beau's wife.
*
Langston Kerman as Brandon Terry (season 2), Constance's son
Recurring
*
Susie Essman as Donna Levine, Rio's mother
*
Jim O'Heir as Kent, the town veterinarian
*
Nancy Lenehan as Deb, Kent's wife and a postal carrier
*Lisa Linke as Clara, Rio's socially awkward friend
*Belle Adams as Janine, Jacob's intensely rebellious girlfriend
*
Geoffrey Owens as Pastor Paul
Guest
*
Marla Gibbs
Marla Gibbs (born Margaret Theresa Bradley; June 14, 1931) is an American actress, singer, comedian, writer, and television producer whose career spans seven decades. She is known for her role as George Jefferson's maid, Florence Johnston, on th ...
as Belle, Constance's elderly and demanding mother
*
Jessica St. Clair as Stacey Grisham, Kay's sister
*
Edward James Olmos
Edward James Olmos (born February 24, 1947) is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Detective List of Blade Runner (franchise) characters#Gaff, Gaff in ''Blade Runner'' (1982) and its sequel ''Blade Runner 2049'' (2017), Lieuten ...
as Randy, Theresa's new husband
*
Rita Moreno as Theresa, Rudy's ex-wife
*
Nicole Richie as Sierra, Rio's wealthy socialite friend from New York
*
Martin Mull as Martin Young, Mike's father
*
Christine Estabrook as Maryanne Young, Mike's mother
*
Ryan Hansen as Matt Young, Mike's brother
Episodes
Series overview
Season 1 (2019)
Season 2 (2019–20)
Production
Development
On October 10, 2017, it was announced that
Fox had given ''Bless This Mess'' for the
put pilot commitment. Fox officially ordered the series to pilot in February 2018. The pilot was written by
Lake Bell and
Elizabeth Meriwether, who executive produced alongside Erin O'Malley,
Jake Kasdan
Jacob Kasdan (born October 28, 1974) is an American filmmaker and actor. He is best known for directing ''Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story'' (2007), ''Bad Teacher'' (2011), ''Sex Tape (film), Sex Tape'' (2014), ''Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle'' (2 ...
, Melvin Mar and Katherine Pope. Production companies involved with the pilot included Elizabeth Meriwether Pictures, Lake Bell Prod. and
20th Century Fox Television
20th Television, Inc. (formerly known as TCF Television Productions, Inc., 20th Century-Fox Television and 20th Century Fox Television) is the television studio arm of 20th Century Studios, owned by Disney Television Studios, a division of the Di ...
. After the pilot was completed, Fox declined to pick up the project; however, ABC ordered it to series on December 11, 2018.
A day after that, it was announced that the series would premiere in the mid-season of 2019 and air on Tuesdays at 9:30 P.M. The series debuted on April 16, 2019.
On May 10, 2019, ABC renewed the series for a second season
and premiered on September 24, 2019.
On November 7, 2019, the series for a second season received a back order of six episodes. On May 21, 2020, ABC canceled the series after two seasons.
Casting
In March 2018, it was announced that
Dax Shepard and
Ed Begley Jr. had been cast in the pilot's lead roles.
Alongside the pilot's order announcement, in June 2018, it was reported that
Pam Grier, JT Neal, and Christina Offley had joined the cast. On September 16, 2019, it was announced that
David Koechner,
Lennon Parham, and
Langston Kerman are promoted to series regular, starting with the second season.
Reception
Critical response
On
review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews and ratings of products and services, such as films, books, video games, music, software, hardware, or cars. This system then stores the reviews to be used for supporting a website where user ...
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
, the series holds an approval rating of 82% based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 6/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Well-written and endearingly down-home, ''Bless This Mess'' greatest gift is the joy of seeing its hilarious and like-able ensemble all in one place." On
Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
, it has a weighted average score of 60 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".
Ratings
Season 1
Season 2
See also
*''
Green Acres''
References
External links
*
*{{IMDb title
2010s American single-camera sitcoms
2019 American television series debuts
2020s American single-camera sitcoms
2020 American television series endings
American English-language television shows
Television series by 20th Century Fox Television
Television series by ABC Studios
Television shows set in Nebraska
American Broadcasting Company sitcoms