(
(S01E21) Jules Cobb is TV's creepiest mom, but in a good way.

We've known from the beginning of this series how close she is to her son Travis; it's a twisted 'Gilmore Girls' situation, where a young mom is relating to her kid more as a buddy than as a mom. But thrown into the buddy mix is Jules' paralyzing fear that Travis is going to grow up and leave her all alone. So when you see Jules make a sport out of watching her son sleep -- she calls it the "sleepy show" to Laurie and Ellie when they join in -- you're not nearly as creeped out as you should be.

And that, my friends, is why this show has managed to transcend its original premise and succeed.

(S01E18) Is it weird of me to think that the less I see of Courteney Cox in an episode, the more I like it?

Don't get me wrong; since this show has settled into being an ensemble show instead of being just about Jules Cobb, Cox's performance has become more nuanced and realistic. But what's also been happening is that the surrounding characters' stories have become more interesting, while Jules stays the same wine drinkin' fool she's been since day one.

So tonight, when Jules vows to not drink wine for a month, we saw what happens when Jules Cobb turns into Monica Gellar. It wasn't pleasant, but it also wasn't as annoying as it seemed to be portrayed. More on this later.

(S01E15) If you want to see evidence of how much a show can change in its first season, look no further than this week's guest star, Barry Bostwick.

He's been among the Bill Lawrence Players for almost fifteen years now, since he was cast as Mayor Randall Winston on 'Spin City.' As Lawrence has said, that show so completely changed focus during its first season, from a romantic comedy to a workplace/government comedy, that the part of one of its stars, Carla Gugino, was cut halfway through that year.

Last night's episode really brought home the fact that in quick order 'Cougar Town' has become much more than what the show was supposed to be about when it debuted. The world surrounding Jules Cobb has now expanded to the point where we see where Andy works, we know Laurie's last name (Keller? Hope she's not related... ) and see enough mixing of characters to make us want to see more.

(S01E14) Ever watch an episode and think the writers wrote it just to address the gripes of its fans? That's the way I felt while watching this one. It was an episode that had more chuckles than laughs, but it addressed the stories of two characters who have probably gotten the shortest end of the character development stick so far: Ellie and Laurie. So, for that, the episode stood out.

Let's start with Laurie. For most of this first season, we've seen her as nothing more than a West-Central Florida wannabe version of Lindsay Lohan. So it was refreshing to see that she's actually grown a conscience, and is willing to admit to it. It's a good thing, because a caricature-heavy Laurie would be tough to take in the show's already-secured second season.

(S01E13) Wow. Didn't think I'd miss so much in one week. But the episode I had to pass on to Isabelle because of the TCAs was full of character movement; Jules breaks up with Jeff because she doesn't want to be tied down, Laurie and Grayson hook up because of their various relationship issues, and Andy gets a lot of agita from keeping all the group's secrets.

So to see it all play out this week made me a little bit uneasy, but that's a good thing. This show needed some raised stakes among its ensemble, even if we're starting to set up one of those eye-rolling situations where people start to sleep with each other and always end up finding out. Hopefully, this is something that will be examined in dribs and drabs and doesn't dominate the storytelling in the future.

(S01E11) I have to open this review by saying I've never been a big fan of Lisa Kudrow's work. Phoebe, for the most part, was my least favorite character on Friends, and Kudrow always struck me as the kind of actor who plays one role really well, then just plays variations on that role for the rest of his or her career. When you like that signature character, you're fine with it. But when you don't, it just becomes grating.

Any role I've seen Kudrow in just reminds me of Phoebe, and the role she played last night, as mean skin doc Amy Evans, just felt like Phoebe when she was in one of her bad moods. So the overhyped Friends-reunion part of the episode didn't do much for me, for a lot of reasons. But the rest of the episode was just more evidence that this is quickly becoming one of the best ensembles on TV.