Center of the Universe

The traditional family sitcom may be dead, but that doesn't mean John Goodman isn't afraid to smack the carcass around a couple more times before the funeral. Goodman returns, once again, as a hard-working, middle-class (read: overweight) father surrounded by the usual oddball family members, including his zany parents played by Ed Asner and Olympia Dukakis. (Not even Raymond loves where this is going.) But the played-out premise is only the beginning of the flaws. You'd think combining sitcom vets Goodman and Jean Smart could at least generate some CBS-level giggles, but Smart goes mostly unused as the wife, while Goodman can't shake his Dan Conner persona. Fortunately, Asner's oversexed grandpa and Dukakis's youth-obsessed grandma generate some humor, but relying on two actors who've been around longer than the Big Bang isn't enough of a threat to Wednesday night prime time.