User Reviews

I loved House Of Payne prior to the reboot. Now, they are over acting, beating around the bush for everything, they have been focused on this Malik situation for 8 episodes. And it's only been 2 days within 8 episodes.

Don't know why this show is still on? It's not funny at all.

I've been reading the user comments and threads on the message board for a week even though I hadn't seen the show yet. I just found the posts amusing.

I finally saw the show last night and unfortunately for Tyler Perry and TBS...these posts have been more amusing than the show. It's just not funny. Not only because the jokes aren't any good but the jokes aren't delivered well either. The actor playing Calvin tries the hardest to sell a joke but even then he oversells it. Not even because of his acting, mainly because the jokes are so bad that if you try to sell it you'll easily oversell it.

Literally everything about this show is weak. The writing, the directing, the acting, the blocking, the camera work, the editing.

Throughout the entire show I noticed how something was getting in the way of the storytelling and the jokes. Even the damn laugh track got in the way. The crowd noise was used inappropriately and sometimes the wrong crowd noise was used. They'd use a "Oooooo" when there should've been laughter.

It's a bad Fresh Prince of Bel Air. That was a show that tackled subject matter that the black community could relate to but didn't do it in a tacky, over-dramatic or sometimes over simplistic way like "Tyler Perry's House of Payne" does. AND it was actually funny because the actors could act and the lead had star power.

There was ONE time during either of last night's episode that an actual joke occurred.

In correcting his wife's word usage, Curtis says, "But them weren't panties. Them were big assed draws!" I didn't laugh but at least it was an actual joke.

The moment after a joke like this occurs is the moment a Bill Cosby or a Will Smith would've taken hold of the scene. They'd run with the joke and make the scene funny and in turn, better. In LaVan Davis' incapable hands, however, the scene fell flat.

Another reason for this was poor writing. Punchlines weren't set up well enough. Silly gags were used to get a cheap laugh. They'd look for a joke in the wrong places.

Explain to me why an anger management coach would look like Richard Simmons. That was a cheap sight gag that didn't make sense...and wasn't funny.

That's not the only way the writing got to me last night. I found one episode to be homophobic. When Curtis sees his nephew's son with a tutu around his neck he runs to pray because he thinks the boy is gay. Heaven forbid someone be gay! Spout out any Bible verses you want, it is what it is. And it was homophobic. That's an awfully polarizing thing to have on a show that, according to the show's defenders, is for the community. Stuff like that only serves to break up our communities.

Seriousness like that last point aside, the show is just plain bad. In every way. I'm trying to figure out why on Earth TBS ordered 100 episodes. That's 5 seasons worth! 5 seasons??

I don't see how they'll be able to justify CJ's staying with them for much longer than a season but they have to because it's the whole premise of the show. It's the reason for it's namesake. I know they tried to address that last night when CJ said, "I can't afford a new place. I have a mortgage on a house I don't even live in."

Ummmm, get a second job? Maybe you should've gotten that insurance?

This isn't a good enough reason for CJ and his kids to live with his uncle for 5 years.

And there isn't a good enough reason for me to watch this terrible show again unless I want to see how a show can be this bad.

Today I found myself in a dilemma. I was sitting at my computer, and House of Payne came on. But the remote was all the way over on the couch. I didn't want to get up, but there was no way I was going to watch House of Payne. Out of the question. So I picked myself up off my comfy computer chair and changed the channel. Why is this relevant? House of Payne is the type of show that can't be ignored, and I don't mean that in a good way. I can't sit here and go about my business when House of Payne is on, because as hard as I try to ignore it, the bad jokes and terrible acting always catch my attention.

There are so many things wrong with this show. I don't even need to get into detail about it, the other reviews do a fine job of that. One of the most laughable aspects of the show is that it is supposed to show African Americans in a positive light. So, the one caucasian character is a fat, bumbling idiot. I've no idea why Bart Hansard has continued to play such a pathetic and degrading character, this show does nothing to promote racial equality, and in fact it sets us back at least 10 years, if not more. Tyler Perry is the Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer of the Television industry, and that's saying a lot. Absolute garbage, and TBS should be shut down for acting like it has any sort of critical acclaim.

I've watched this show a couple times, and each time I thought the punchline was the show itself, not actually any of the jokes in the show. The show plays like a "MAD-TV" sketch that is a parody of bad sitcoms, but as you watch this further, you realize that what your watching is an actual sitcom meant to be funny on its own merits. Normally, humor of this level is on Nickelodeon or Disney Channel and for children, but I think this show is actually meant for adults and sober ones at that. This show reminds me of "Kenan & Kel" or another show meant for kids with cheesy jokes and lame humor that only children would laugh at. The only way you can tell something is supposed to be funny is when the laugh track plays, otherwise I wouldn't even know this was meant to be a comedy.

I haven't seen any of Tyler Perry's movies, but they've done well at the box office and have gotten pretty good reviews. Has he seen this show? Does he realize they're using his name to promote it? If you enjoy this show, have you ever watched a sitcom before? Those of you who say this is a well-written show, have you ever read anything beyond the "Dick & Jane" books? This show must be seen to be believed. I hesitate to even call it awful, because I haven't gotten to the point where I even comprehend what I've seen yet. If this show is for real, Tyler Perry needs to sit down in quiet room somewhere and contemplate his career and what he hopes to accomplish, because if this is the kind of work he is proud of, he needs to consider a career change.

Words cannot capture just how bad this show really is. It probably sets black culture back 50 years. Horrible writing, impossibly predictable stereotypical characters, and actors that look to be mailing it in make me wonder who at TBS could have possibly thought this was a good idea.

I won't try to summarize any particular plot, since some may view that as a type of validation. Simply put, there is nothing redeeming about this atrocity. Even the laugh track doesn't find this show funny.

TBS advertises the Paynes as "the Huxtables meets the Bunkers." They are neither. They are neither funny nor socially relevant. If I were Bill Cosby, I'd sue TBS for defamation.

Memo to TBS:

(1) Cancel this show IMMEDIATELY; (2) Fire the executive that green-lighted this debacle and ensure that he or she never works in entertainment again; and (3) Destroy all evidence, scripts, recordings, etc. proving that this show existed.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne is a fantastic show! I love how the actors are horrible and have no sense of comedic timing! I love how the writers write awful plots with awful jokes to fill in the 20 minutes the show is on the air! I love how the characters are paper thin, stereotypical, and just flat out annoying! I love how this show is crap! My first paragraph was a thick dose of sarcasm.

I feel sick when I watch this show. For those of you who picked it up, I have stopped with the sarcasm (I'm guessing its the people who don't find House of Payne funny, because any person with a spec of intelligence couldn't find it funny). How in the world Arrested Development got canceled and this didn't is beyond me (although that may be a blessing in disguise).

Everything I said in my first paragraph is what is wrong with the show. It's just a pure, awful program. How it can be "the number one sitcom", as billed by TBS, is beyond me. Is it because more people nowadays watch television? Is it because people fall asleep instantaneously when this show comes on and they can't change their channel? Someone, please, fill me in, because this show is garbage.

Another complaint, and this isn't necessarily about the show, but more about Tyler Perry. Why does everything have to be "Tyler Perry's this" or "Tyler Perry's that". Its very annoying, I don't really care who does it. The only difference is when it's a group or something, like Monty Python or National Lampoon. When a single person does it, its just really arrogant and unimpressive. He's riding the wave of his past successes.

I've never seen Tyler Perry's movies or his plays. I have seen his other show, Meet the Browns, and it is, somehow, worse than this show. But I caught a few minutes of one of his movies (don't remember which one) and I thought it was marginally better than the show. I, personally, think he is ruining television, but that's just my opinion.

It doesn't matter what race I am, I can "get" things, but just in case someone wants to slander me or use this against me, I'm white. Big deal, if something is funny, I'll laugh. I can appreciate "black" comedy. I love Bill Cosby, The Cosby Show, Richard Pryor, Cleavon Little, Gregory Hines, Eddie Murphy, Phil Lamarr, Tim Meadows, Kat Williams, and Dave Chappelle. Tyler Perry could learn a thing or two from those guys.

TBS needs to stick with reruns and stop trying to create and original show. They're all horrible.

I really enjoy this show. I don't know why I see all of these negative comments, but I think it is hilarious. I guess some people just don't get it. Perhaps it's because they can't relate to the show like I can. I watch this show all the time and I love it. The characters are realistic and relatable. I watch this show and see things happen that have happened in my family and I see characters that are very similar to members of my family. I believe this show is a funny and truthful representation of a modern family. I have the entire series on DVD and I watch them whenever I need something to pick me up, which is exactly what the show is intended to do. Some of the problems experienced by the Payne family can teach important lessons about love, family, and life that we all have to face at some point or another.

I love all of Tyler Perry's work and I have all of his plays on DVD and I will buy his movies also. I was waiting on the show and TBS has been acting like this is going to be the show of the year. The show is not good at all. It is so stereotypical and I am black and we need more positive images of black people on TV. Why does the movies and plays always have to have a crackhead mama and a smart mouth daughter? Come on people the show does not have to put our people in that type of element to survive. The kids on the Bernie Mac Show, My Wife and Kids, etc don't have sassy mouth kids that disrespect the adults. I love Tyler but it seems like most of his plays have the same story line and Tyler fans can not lie about that. Most of his plays have a crackhead mama,etc. The actors are good in his plays but on the show they are over doing the punch lines because the punchlines are not funny. I thought I was the only one at my job that thought the show is terrible until all of the black people at job started talking about it and we keep giving it another chance and we will keep watching to check for improvements but we all agree the first four episode were pretty bad. (The COONING and SHUCKING and JIVING is working our nerves. The Cosby Show didn't have people acting like that either.

This is one of the best shows on TV. Even still today in 2014 my family can watch this show repeatedly and laugh out loud at the entertaining and "real-life" episodes. Why so many people hated on this show is unbelievable. This show was great, family oriented and best of all it portrayed African Americans in leading roles as upstanding and successful citizens, instead of stereotypical hoodlums, hoes, and ignorant black people. I wish that Tyler Perry would bring it back. There is not enough positive shows out there for people period not just blacks but everyone, that not only deal with real-life situations, but deal with them in a realistic way. When you watch the show it feels relatable, its not all far fetched and corny. Best of all the African Americans I this show act like African Americans, not all watered down white-people friendly African Americans but that's something that my uncle or father would say or do! Like I said, best show out there and wish it would have went longer.

Back when this show first came out in 2006, the format and characters seemed to be written much better.

After watching the first episode of the latest season(9), it only made me miss the shows early format even more.

The endless and overly drawn out chats between the characters standing or sitting in the exact same spots. Always talking about the exact same subject for far too many minutes.

The lack of charm, wit and well-written personalities from the earlier seasons caused me to stop watching season9 already.

I miss the previous Curtis, the more rapid change of scenery/background. The more frequently changing plots.

Ah well, it's rare for something that comes out so long after the original; 14 years in this case, to be as captivating and great as it was in the beginning.

I am glad for all the people able to enjoy it. Simply sad to say that it only makes me sad.....though I am writing this with a smile:P

I only gave it a one because there was nothing lower to give. I have yet to laugh and watched both episodes. What would inspire a Black man today to create Bafoonery at its Worst. The direction was absolutely horrible. The writing is worst than the directing. The acting is worst than the directing and writing. Why Keke Palmer would ever add her name to this cast is very confusing in my opinion. How do you go from Angela Bassett and Lawrence Fishburne to this crap? Why are the jokes so horrible and out of sync? Things are repeated as if the viewer cares if they heard it the first time. The best part of the show is the little girl. The father looks younger than the son. Bamboozled. I felt Bamboozled when I watched it. TBS actually picked this up? American TV is soon to be extinct if shows like this can get 100 episodes. Please STOP the madness. Trash this show while you can. The people who gave this show 10 stars must be delusional. I have never seen acting so staged and fake. The actors have no real emotion at all. Allen Payne, I truly do not know what to say except for ESCAPe from this deal while you still have your pride. Garbage.

What is wrong with mainstream America? Who watches this lame material? This embarrasses me. This guy has never been funny in his LIFE. What simpletons think this is funny???? His comedy is an insult to our intelligence not to mention condescending to black folks... Why, oh why does he feel compelled to "self tag" everything he writes too???? What is that all about??? Would anyone with any sense of self confidence self esteem or A SLIVER OF HUMILITY need to do that??? By the way, I wouldn't want anyone to know I had anything to do with this stuff... And who does he have non-flattering pictures of that keep signing him to T.V. and movie contracts? The overall rating for this series is a "1"????? And all the African Americans that praise this guy, be careful..Is this the best the black community has to offer? No it isn't. No way. This guy dumbs down all who watch this stuff. I cant help he came from humble beginnings..so did I.. but that doesn't mean I can write movies??? Unorignal, Unfunny, Unflattering and did I mention Unfunny??? Mind Boggling..but then, maybe he's just so simple that he's over my head....

I just wanna know how a show becomes the #1 comedy on cable in the country, however, i turn to another channel and state of grace has become the number 1 drama on cable in history??? who makes that stuff up? honestly? that's pure rubbish right there.

I caught myself watching the show a couple of times ONLY because i thought it was family guy for their two hour block. This show stinks bad..i don't even know if African American people actually watch this show? Tyler Perry is a talented guy but his movies stink and this show along with that new one he came up with is crap...if TBS apparently knows comedy then they would drop the show and pick up something better!! Maybe reruns of Two and a half men or something which is a lot funnier than this garbage.

Somehow Uncle Curtis has gone from a funny foil to a chauvinist s.o.b. His character isn't funny anymore. Just outdated. The Calvin/Miranda storyline is strong. The CJ/Janine dynamic is good. Malik and Jazmine have good comedy together. Everyone around him is being given better material. This is a very disappointing depiction of a character who deserves better.

This is so bad that it's not funny. How this garbage gets made let alone w/supposedly intelligent people that watch this crap. I will admit that I've only seen a couple episodes but even still all I can say is WOW! Terrible, Terrible, Terrible is the sum of this crap-o-la. What i'd really like to know is who watches this and what is wrong with them! This is worse than anything on television on right now. I don't know if it's because it's a black show (I'm not) or what, but it is a pathetic piece of film. I don't care what color you are, there can't be any logical reason why this is watched!! I am not kidding that someday this will be called the worst show ever made. Whatever you do just watch 1 episode and see just how bad this garbage is. In fact this is probably a great series to show people the exact way that a TV show should not be made. The acting is pathetic, the so-called scripts are non-existent, and the jokes are just not jokes. Please god don't watch this, and most of all get over the whole Tyler Perry phase already. He isn't talented...at all! I think he knows how to market himself well, but that is about it. Has he made anything good yet? um, NO!!! Embarrassing for everyone part of this up-chuck of a series!

For one, to call this show "just another sitcom" is inaccurate. This show is just as much drama as comedy. The drama is centered around addressing and resolving issues that often times plague African American society, and they do that without trying to draw you into the politics and pride that dominates most soap opera and reality show relationships.

The comedy of the show is very simple but since when does comedy have to be complex? Comedy has always had many different flavors. This is elementary comedy, but that doesn't mean that its just knock knock jokes and fart jokes. That is to say, the funny lies in the personalities and personal silliness of the characters. If you've never had a silly uncle or a silly dad then you might not "get" it and you might think its boring. But to insinuate that this show is racist just because the comedy is largely centered on "buffoonery" is to negate the elementary value of this staple of comedy, as it transcends all cultures and ages.

The show isn't just about the Paynes acting silly, its also about promoting very strong family values and it achieves it with very likable characters and family dynamics that a lot of America finds very relate- able. I'm not even of the same ethnicity of the main characters of the show, but all the characters remind me of someone in my family. That is probably not the case for a lot of people so I get that its totally OK to not like the show, but it is rather foolish to write it off as cheap racist comedy just because it has black people acting silly. Anyone of any culture can act silly, its not a negative reflection on any culture.

I like comedy from The Big Bang Theory, Everybody Loves Raymond, The Office, and this show all just the same, while recognizing and accepting that they all achieve the laughter in different ways.

In the end, if you're secure about your intelligence, like Christian values, are OK with your sitcom switching to the occasional gravely serious moments, and appreciate personalities with a strong Southern flare, you're gonna like this show.

My only real complaint is how almost all the white characters are written to be absent-minded, vain and overly-naive... that part seems kinda racist to be honest, but towards white people, not black people.

The Show Was Good For The First 10 Seasons 2006-2012 Buh when the Reboot Came in 2020 I Didn't even Make It Through the First 3 Episodes Cause The Reboot of the show was very unnecessarily So For the first 10 Seasons gets a 8/10 When the show got rebooted gets a 3/10 Cause it gets a 3 cause the first 10 seasons was better than. The Pretty Bad Reboot.

Seriously, I have read these reviews and YES OK its not roll on the floor side splitting comedy but it is a good, clean show, that usually carries a message to it. But it seems to me that unless a show is riddled with profanity or has unrequired nudity or sex scenes it is not accepted. All of Tyler Perry's work carries a message. Maybe we need more shows that do not revolve around sex, drugs, profanity.

If these sort of clean shows are not for you then don't watch it. There is certainly no need to trash the show. I saw one review asking that this show be canceled immediately. SERIOUSLY!! there are shows that are just full of sex no storyline, just lots of nudity, and these shows are shown on time slots kids can watch it and yet I don't see them asking for THOSE shows to be discontinued.

If you have seen the plays then you would get this. Tyler writes with REAL emotions so hopefully it translates to what you see on the screen. OK so the acting is a bit eh. But that is due to mostly unknowns playing these roles. Everyone has to start somewhere. I don't know about you, but I do not want to see the SAME 5 black actors playing these roles. Hollywood plays it safe when casting Black projects using the already limited black actor casting pool as it is. The actors in this show are a nice departure from seeing Gabrielle Union, Vivica Fox and company. So have an open mind, appreciate that Tyler is giving folks a chance in showcasing a different side of the Black American Family Sitcom. Not everyone can be Cliff and Claire. It's 2006 so it is OK. Right? Oh and bravo to showing in selected markets. Tyler Perry's plays are famous but not everyone gets "it". SO why not go where your loyal audience is? If he had the marketing team aware of that then fine.

I have to change the channel on both The House of Payne AND Meet the Browns.(canned laughter) Not every line needs "canned laughter" to make me laugh. (canned laughter) In fact out of all the attempts to finish just one show (canned laughter)... I only laughed at one line.(canned laughter) I love Tyler Perry and his accomplishments and how he got to where he is but...seriously these two shows are not comedy and ruin TBS (canned laughter). I think these two shows have too much ridiculous overacting (canned laughter) and too much fake audience laughing EVERY time ANYONE says anything.(canned laughter) It is so bad that I can't even sleep when it is on because of the constant terrible fake laughter. (canned laughter) Canned laughter should be used used "gently" in many shows and I get it. But to make every line said with the same exact recorded laughter makes a funny line NOT funny. (canned laughter) The shows may be about real situations but the editing is as bad as it gets. Tyler Perry is one brilliant writer/actor/producer but he needs to "can" the crew that makes them television ready. (canned laughter) I only gave it a one because zero was not an option.(canned laughter)...annoying isn't it?(canned laughter)

The actors did not jell at all together, there were no cohesiveness in their personalities. It was if each character was trying to make a name for themselves as the leader or the funniest one on the show. No one stood out as the glue that held the show together to make it funny. Everyone stood out independent of each other, they did not compliment each other at all. The script was far from being funny, therefore the characters were not funny. Even though some may have been seasoned actors/actresses unless they blend like flavored seasoning to make food taste good, the outcome will taste bad. Ditch the current writers, borrow some from Madea. I think the actors can act but the writers just wrote poor lines for them to use. I recommend some team building for the cast. Tell the cast to go away somewhere together and get to know one another and blend in and jell. If you choose not to remove the current staff of writers, then they to need to do the same go away and blend.

This show is absolutely appalling. First of all, it is not funny. At all. Not in the least bit. The actors are awful and... it's just not funny. I did not laugh once during both episodes. It was like watching a train wreck. It's horrible to look at but impossible to turn away from. The story line is way too heavy for a sitcom. The house burning down in the first episode and finding out the wife is a crack head in the second??? Whoa. Too much. Tyler Perry's movies and plays are hilarious... but this? Abysmal. It's like he tried to make one of his plays into a sitcom with no Madea. Bad combination. It just didn't work. A word of advice to Mr. Perry: Stick with what you do best... making us laugh so hard we cry, not just making us cry.