Canceled Massachusetts Sitcom’s Silly Fatal Flaw

When Massachusetts and Hollywood get together, it usually works out.

Martin Scorcese's The Departed is a classic. Saturday Night Live had a recurring hit with tough-talking Boston teens Sully and Denise. Don't get us started on the love affair between Ben Affleck and Dunkin'.

Sometimes, the magic isn't there. That was the case with shortlived CBS sitcom The McCarthys. Airing for one season in 2014 and 2015, The McCarthys followed a quirky, tight-knit family oozing Boston pride. They love their Celtics and Bruins and Patriots and Red Sox.

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On the surface, The McCarthys had all the makings of a solid Massachusetts show. Dedham native Brian Gallivan created it as a love letter to his upbringing. It featured the authentic Boston accents of comedian Jimmy Dunn and New Kid on the Block Joey McIntyre.

The brilliant Laurie Metcalf, known for her perfect comedic touch on Roseanne, played the McCarthy matriarch.

CBS canceled the show after 15 episodes.

Numerous factors likely led to The McCarthys' premature Irish wake, not all of them in the creative team's control.

Except one.

In the first episode, Ronny McCarthy (played by Tyler Ritter, charismatic offspring of Three's Company's John Ritter), the gay son who doesn't get sports, announces he got offered a job in another city. Moving will allow him to start fresh and find his way in the world without being smothered by his family. He's excited but the rest of the McCarthys are devastated. Life just won't be the same without Ronny around.

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Where's Ronny going? New York City? Albuquerque? London? Tokyo?

No. Providence. He wants to move to Providence.

As in the city that's only 50 miles south of Boston, a city you can get to in the time it takes to watch two episodes of The McCarthys.

"You're moving to Providence?" the incredulous mother asks. Then, McIntyre chimes in with the unnecessary follow-up: "Rhode Island?!"

It's sweet that the McCarthys are so close they can't bear to be more than a few feet apart, but a quick trip down I-95 won't kill them. There are worse commutes than Boston to Providence. For example, have you tried getting into Providence from the east via I-195 since the westbound side of the Washington Bridge shut down? Heck, some days it takes longer to get from one end of Boston to the other than it does to get from Boston to Providence.

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Look, this will-he, won't-he move plot probably wasn't a huge deal to most people who watched The McCarthys but for folks in southern New England who care about the little details, it's, well, ridiculous. How can we take anything else this family says or does seriously when, in Episode 1, they act like seeing their kid a handful of towns away will require a plane and a prayer?

The McCarthys are spirited and well-meaning but don't come across as Boston's best and brightest, although athletically, there's no contest. One son boasts of his glory days as a Boston Globe All-Star.

Had the show gone on a few more years, I'd like to think the family would have gotten out of Boston for a day or two and realized there's much more in New England to see and do -- no compass, passport or overnight accommodations necessary.

Providence hatred for no good reason? That's no laughing matter.