Newlyweds Season 1 Episode 1 Review: From a Blind Date to Norway…and Then Happily Ever After?

On Newlyweds Season 1 Episode 1, “Pilot”, we’re introduced to Jeanie and James on their very first blind date, which almost doesn’t happen at all.

They quickly establish that they’re polar opposites, which works very well for both a one night stand and the month-long trip James leaves for next day, teaching in Poland with a strange assistant named Alfred who listens in on his calls.

For weeks, it’s a beautiful romance by phone, but things go off the rails when Jeanie meets James’s ex, Claudia, played by Jamie Lee Curtis. It gets worse when he comes home early to find both of them and Jeanie’s kids in his house.

After a lot of awkwardness, the differences that they once loved seem to break them up. But it takes almost no time before James, who is terrified of heights, shows up at Jeanie’s door, asking her to climb the Alps with him as she’s always wanted.

The name of the show comes into play when they go off to their first mountain climbing class and are moved to an engagement on the spot. They make plans to jet off to Vegas and set up the antics that will play out over the season.

The most important question: do Jeanie and James work together as a couple for a romantic sitcom? Absolutely. It certainly doesn’t hurt that the on-screen plot reflects the sweet true story of the actors playing these parts.

James and Jeanie are of course exaggerated versions of Tim and Téa. It’s kind of the point of the show. How else would we suspend belief long enough to root for these two people with a month-long and long-distance relationship?

I also really like Jeanie’s kids and their dynamics both with their mother and James. At times incredibly supportive and chill and at others acting more like typical teenagers, I can see them all working as a family unit without much drama.

After them, things slip a little. I don’t know whether or not Alfred is meant to be a recurring character, but his bumbling nature and intrusive listening into calls are both a bit too over the top. I hope we find more balance with him soon.

Then there’s Claudia. I hate to say it, because Jamie Lee Curtis is of course hilarious, but I just can’t see a good relationship for a happy couple and one of their exes, no matter the comic potential. It’s stretching that belief just a bit too much.

Still, we’re only one episode in. 30 minutes, especially minus commercials, is not a lot of time to establish nuance—especially not when you need to get your main characters halfway to the altar. So I’m willing to wait and see.

Are we poised for an absurd reflection of Jeanie’s big family: her, James, her kids, his ex, and his former teaching assistant all bouncing around a set together? Honestly, if they can make that work, this could be a show that lasts for years.

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Newlyweds airs Fridays at 8:30/7:30c on NBC.

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