When David Letterman decided to help Ray Romano put this show on with World wide Pants Productions, nobody knew if it would be a success. Thanks to the great casting of Peter Boyle, Marie Roberts, Patricia Heaton & Brad Garrett, this became the quietest & most successful family sitcom show produced in recent times.
The writing on this show is very good. There is almost not an episode where you can't help but laugh several times. All the characters are well drawn & easy to identify with. It is just entertaining.
The recent death of Boyle just shows how elusive success is & how short it lasts. I can't really think of a sitcom recently that is done better & more consistently than this one was. The situations were always minor plots, but once you watch this for a while, you know exactly how the characters will fit in.
Romano had never acted prior to this series, but the folks around him made him fit in like he had. Patricia Heaton as Ray's wife has an amazing range as the wife who is constantly bothered by the In-Laws. She also is amazing because she could be flexible enough to be the wife of Raymond, but could also be attractive & vivacious when she needed to be.
Brad Garrett is the real discovery on this show. His dead pan type of humor is right on all the time. The In-Laws were perfect too. Many times I have noticed the kids are like not there. I just think with all the other talent, there were a lot of times the kids just did not have enough room to fit in the house.
This show is out on DVD & still being rerun in many markets. While it is not a must see, if there is nothing else to watch, this show always pleases me to watch. I especially got amused by one show where Raymond & Patricia wrestled in the living room. A lot of husbands wouldn't mind wrestling with her.
The writing on this show is very good. There is almost not an episode where you can't help but laugh several times. All the characters are well drawn & easy to identify with. It is just entertaining.
The recent death of Boyle just shows how elusive success is & how short it lasts. I can't really think of a sitcom recently that is done better & more consistently than this one was. The situations were always minor plots, but once you watch this for a while, you know exactly how the characters will fit in.
Romano had never acted prior to this series, but the folks around him made him fit in like he had. Patricia Heaton as Ray's wife has an amazing range as the wife who is constantly bothered by the In-Laws. She also is amazing because she could be flexible enough to be the wife of Raymond, but could also be attractive & vivacious when she needed to be.
Brad Garrett is the real discovery on this show. His dead pan type of humor is right on all the time. The In-Laws were perfect too. Many times I have noticed the kids are like not there. I just think with all the other talent, there were a lot of times the kids just did not have enough room to fit in the house.
This show is out on DVD & still being rerun in many markets. While it is not a must see, if there is nothing else to watch, this show always pleases me to watch. I especially got amused by one show where Raymond & Patricia wrestled in the living room. A lot of husbands wouldn't mind wrestling with her.