Mad Love

Labine and Greer completely hijack the show, and almost threaten to turn Biggs (you'll remember him from "American Pie") and Chalke ("Scrubs." "Roseanne") into props. A well-made and skillfully executed sitcom. Oh--almost forgot--fun, too.

Chronicling the opposite relationships requires Mad Love to bounce from light romantic comedy to murderously hostile wisecracks and back again, which it accomplishes with considerable deftness. The show's quick wit is matched with a talented cast, particularly Labine.

It would be a stretch to call Mad Love subtle--one running gag is an elevator that stops a few inches short of the floor--but neither does it feel compelled to spell out every nuance, like how Larry and Connie really feel about each other.

I don't know what's mad about this love, but CBS's new rom-com, Mad Love at least has some laughs.

What this comedy has is the charm of its brash comic energy. That it's an energy located mostly in a single character, and not the main one either--officially, anyway-makes little difference.

Of the couples comedies to debut so far this midseason--NBC's "Perfect Couples" in January, Fox's "Traffic Light" last week--CBS's "Mad Love" (8:30 tonight, KDKA-TV) is probably the best. That's not to say it's a great show, but it is the least groan-inducing.

Despite feeling like the concept owes quite a bit to the British series Gavin & Stacey, and a nagging suspicion that the evolution of one couple completely smitten and the other ready to spit on each other will take a long time to come around to four friends and two happy couples, that's not a problem if the jokes are funny. So far, so good.