Rules of Engagement (TV series)

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Rules of Engagement
250px
Created by Tom Hertz
Starring Patrick Warburton
Megyn Price
Oliver Hudson
Bianca Kajlich
David Spade
Adhir Kalyan
Opening theme "How Many Ways" by Señor Happy
Composer(s) Bert Selen
George Ritter
Country of origin United States
No. of seasons 7
No. of episodes 100 (list of episodes)
Production
Camera setup Multiple-camera setup
Running time 21 minutes
Production company(s) Game Six Productions
Happy Madison Productions
CBS Paramount Television (2007–09)
CBS Television Studios (2009–13)
Sony Pictures Television
Distributor CBS Television Distribution (non-USA)
Sony Pictures Television (USA)
Release
Original network CBS
Picture format 1080i 16:9 (HDTV)
Audio format Dolby Digital 5.1
Original release February 5, 2007 (2007-02-05) –
May 20, 2013 (2013-05-20)
External links
Website

Rules of Engagement is a sitcom that ran on CBS from February 5, 2007, to May 20, 2013, originally airing as a mid-season replacement. The series was produced by Adam Sandler's Happy Madison Productions in association with CBS Television Studios and Sony Pictures Television (SPT controls the North American rights while CBS controls the international rights).

The show received negative reviews throughout its run.[1][2][3] Despite this, it always earned reasonably good ratings,[2] helping the show last for 100 episodes over seven seasons.

Premise

Two couples and their single friend deal with the complications of dating, commitment and marriage. It looks at different relationships in various stages, starring Patrick Warburton and Megyn Price as a long-married couple, Oliver Hudson and Bianca Kajlich as newly engaged sweethearts, and David Spade and Adhir Kalyan (the latter added in season 3) as their still-single friends. They often gather to enjoy a meal at "The Island Diner".

History

The show was heavily promoted by CBS during Super Bowl XLI[4] and launched the following night, the first of seven episodes in its first season. The pilot episode remains the highest rated episode of the show. The series was renewed for a second season, which began as a mid-season replacement for The New Adventures of Old Christine on Monday, September 24, 2007, with production halted after nine episodes on November 6, 2007, in the wake of a writers' strike. After the strike ended, CBS announced that the show would return April 14, 2008, with a further six episodes.[5]

Seasons three and four were both mid-season entries launched in March 2009 and March 2010.[6][7] On May 18, 2010, it was announced that CBS had renewed Rules of Engagement for a 5th season.[8] It was later announced that this season would start in September, in contrast to its usual midseason start, and received an expanded 24-episode order. (The fifth season was the first and only season to have a full-season order.) The first 15 episodes aired on Monday nights, usually in the 8:30 pm Eastern/7:30 pm Central time slot following How I Met Your Mother. Then on February 24, 2011, the series moved to Thursdays at 8:30 pm Eastern/7:30 pm Central, following The Big Bang Theory, after the cancellation of $h*! My Dad Says.

On May 17, 2011, the series was renewed for a sixth season to begin airing in fall 2011. One day later, CBS announced that Rules of Engagement would move to Saturday nights at 8:00 pm Eastern/7:00 pm Central as part of the network's new Comedytime Saturday block; the first time in six years that an original CBS program would air on that night. It also marked the fourth night on which the series would air, with it previously airing on Mondays, Wednesdays (two airings), and Thursdays.[9] On October 7, 2011, however, it was announced that Rules of Engagement would move back to its 8:30PM EST Thursday timeslot following The Big Bang Theory, replacing new sitcom How to Be a Gentleman which was moved to the new Saturday time slot.[10]

Effective January 12, 2012, CBS removed Rules of Engagement from its Thursday lineup, replacing it with the new sitcom Rob starring Rob Schneider. Rules would return to its Thursday 8:30 PM time slot on March 29, after Rob had finished airing its 8-episode order,[11] resulting in a total of 15 episodes in season 6.

On May 21, 2012, CBS renewed Rules of Engagement for a seventh season of 13 episodes to air mid-season, bringing the total number of produced episodes to 100.[12] Season 7 began airing on Mondays at 8:30, starting February 4, 2013.[13]

On May 10, 2013, Rules of Engagement was cancelled by CBS after seven seasons and 100 episodes.[14] The series finale episode aired on May 20, 2013.

Cast and characters

Main characters

  • Patrick Warburton as Jeff Bingham, a financial manager and husband of Audrey since August 12, 1995.[15] He has a rather dark, dour and sardonic personality and sense of self, particularly when dealing with Russell and Adam, but he is not mean-spirited or cruel, thereby rendering these traits as merely ironic and biting humor. He loves sports (NY Giants, NY Mets, NY Rangers, NY Knicks), shuns anything that might resemble sensitivity and often views his marriage as a competition, refusing to let Audrey "win" the upper hand at anything. He is also very frugal and extremely careful with his money – to the extent where he will buy socks in New Jersey to avoid paying additional tax on them – and tries to discourage Audrey from overspending while planning for their future. He often reminisces about his college days at Syracuse.
  • Megyn Price as Audrey Bingham (née Curtis), formerly from Lincoln, Nebraska, an editor at Indoor Living magazine and the assertive, modern wife of Jeff. She likes to do things on spur of the moment, such as when she buys furniture on the Internet or makes Jeff's shirts into a quilt. She tolerates her husband's insensitivities because she knows he is not malicious and will do whatever it takes to make the situation right once he realizes his mistake. Audrey does not make fun of her friends as much as her friends make fun of each other, but she will frequently save her most-biting criticisms for Russell. She often insists that she is a "people person", but her attempts to prove it usually result in embarrassment, such as having a co-worker lodge a sexual harassment complaint against her. She and Jeff had a baby via a surrogate, Brenda, after Audrey assumed she could never get pregnant, only to discover in the series finale that she is in fact pregnant with Jeff's child.
  • Oliver Hudson as Adam Rhodes, a sensitive and well-intentioned – but extremely naive – co-worker of Russell and Timmy, and Jennifer's fiancée throughout the series until they are married in the series finale. He is a neighbor of Jeff and Audrey, looks up to Jeff, and often acts on Jeff's relationship advice (which is hardened by years of marriage) to attempt to receive more frequent sexual relations with Jennifer. This usually results in making the situation worse for himself. As an example, he once revealed to Jennifer his strategies for avoiding her bad moods, because he was proud that Jeff considered them to be a good idea. Sometimes because of his childlike naivete, people find it hard to explain things to him. He cannot keep secrets and never thinks before he speaks. Adam frequently exhibits feminine or flamboyant behavior and characteristics, which make him the target of many barbs from Jeff and Russell regarding his homosexual tendencies.
  • Bianca Kajlich as Jennifer Rhodes (née Morgan), the charismatic live-in fiancée and eventual wife of Adam, who endures his faults because of his good looks and underlying good nature. She is very self-conscious of his naivete, and will often try to spare him from embarrassment. She also has a need for thrills and can easily manipulate Adam into doing whatever she wants, but often feels guilty about it afterward.
  • David Spade as Russell Dunbar-Patel, a shallow, womanizing single friend of the main characters and boss of Adam and Timmy. Russell has a quick wit, and is an eternal optimist when it comes to women, often ignoring multiple sexual harassment lawsuits leveled against him in the pursuit of sex. He is also an inept manager at his father's real estate and development business, Dunbar Industries. If left to his own devices and forced to fend for himself without assistance (e.g., from Timmy) he would completely destroy his office in minutes. He is often mocked because of his height (especially by Jeff), choice of wardrobe, and his penchant for prostitutes and young women with "daddy" issues. He is also very wealthy as a result of his father's success and frequently uses this to lure women and do whatever he wants. His favorite expression, after incredulous questions about his doing something outrageous, is: "I kinda did". In the series finale, Russell proposes to Timmy and marries him in order to help Timmy avoid deportation.
  • Adhir Kalyan as Timir "Timmy" Dunbar-Patel (recurring Season 3; regular cast from Seasons 4–7), whom Russell hires as his assistant. He is a mild-mannered man with a quick wit, often matching Russell's jabs in their verbal sparring. Although he is fluent in seven languages and holds an MBA from Oxford University, Timmy is often forced to do menial work or to solve Russell's trivial problems. While many of Russell's schemes disgust him, Timmy will often see them through so that he can enjoy Russell's come-uppance. He plays cricket and is also an avid fan of the Boston Bruins. In the series finale, Timmy's work visa expires and he faces deportation. In an uncharacteristic act of selflessness, Russell sets aside his womanizing ways to marry Timmy so he can stay in the country.

Major recurring characters

  • Diane Sellers as Doreen, waitress at The Island Diner.
  • Wendi McLendon-Covey as Liz, an unlikeable, annoying, unattractive neighbor and friend of Audrey's who lives directly upstairs from the Binghams; for a brief story arc in Season 6 she was married to Russell, but they later separated. In Season 7, Episode 7, she admitted to Russell that she is a sex addict and that she cheated on him multiple times (with multiple partners) during their brief marriage.
  • Sara Rue as Brenda, Jeff’s lesbian softball teammate who agrees to be a surrogate mother for Audrey and Jeff.
  • Nazneen Contractor as Suneetha, Timmy’s fiancée in an arranged marriage, who becomes an object of Russell’s affections.
  • Susan Yeagley as Tracy, a man-hungry co-worker of Audrey’s.
  • Taryn Southern as Allison, the object of Timmy's affections, which blossoms into an intra-office romance, then ends when she moves away and breaks up with Timmy.
  • Geoff Pierson as Franklin Dunbar, Russell's wealthy, lecherous father.
  • Orlando Jones as Brad, Jeff's gay friend from his gym who eventually makes friends with the rest of the gang.

Episodes

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Main article: List of Rules of Engagement episodes
Season Episodes Originally aired
First aired Last aired
1 7 February 5, 2007 (2007-02-05) March 19, 2007 (2007-03-19)
2 15 September 24, 2007 (2007-09-24) May 19, 2008 (2008-05-19)
3 13 March 2, 2009 (2009-03-02) May 18, 2009 (2009-05-18)
4 13 March 1, 2010 (2010-03-01) May 24, 2010 (2010-05-24)
5 24 September 20, 2010 (2010-09-20) May 19, 2011 (2011-05-19)
6 15 October 20, 2011 (2011-10-20) May 17, 2012 (2012-05-17)
7 13 February 4, 2013 (2013-02-04)[16] May 20, 2013 (2013-05-20)[17]

U.S. ratings

Season Time slot (EST) Number of episodes Premiere Finale TV season Overall rank Viewers
(in millions)
Date Viewers
(in millions)		 Date Viewers
(in millions)
1
Monday 9:30 p.m.
 7
February 5, 2007
 14.83[18]
March 19, 2007
 9.26[19] 2006–07 36th[20] 12.38[20]
2 15
September 24, 2007
 12.23[21]
May 19, 2008
 12.29[22] 2007–08 33rd[23] 10.89[20]
3 13
March 2, 2009
 11.82[24]
May 18, 2009
 12.87[25] 2008–09 23rd[26] 11.37[20]
4
Monday 8:30 p.m.
 13
March 1, 2010
 9.73[27]
May 24, 2010
 8.23[28] 2009–10 50th[29] 7.91[29]
5
Monday 8:30 p.m.
(2010–11)
Thursday 8:30 p.m.
(2011)
 24
September 20, 2010
 8.35[30]
May 19, 2011
 8.80[31] 2010–11 49th[32] 8.77[33]
6
Thursday 8:30 p.m.
 15
October 20, 2011
 11.45[34]
May 17, 2012
 7.17[35] 2011–12 42nd[36] 10.10[29]
7
Monday 8:30 p.m.
 13
February 4, 2013
 9.40[37]
May 20, 2013
 6.25[38] 2012–13 52nd[39] 7.69[39]

Syndication

In June 2011, the series was picked up for syndication by local affiliates, The CW Plus, and WGN America, making its debut on September 10, 2012.[40] On Wednesday, January 2, 2013, the series began airing weekdays on TBS at 2/1c. It has since moved to the early morning hour of 6 A.M. throughout the week.

In Canada, the series is syndicated on CMT.[41]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Recipient(s) Result
2007 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series Wayne Kennan Nominated
Teen Choice Award Choice TV Actor: Comedy David Spade Nominated
2008 Art Directors Guild Award Excellence in Production Design Bernard Vyzga and Lynn Griffin Nominated
BMI Film and TV Award Best TV Music David Schwartz Won
2009 Evan Frankfort, Bert Selen, and George Ritter Won
Art Directors Guild Award Excellence in Production Design Bernard Vyzga, Joe Pew, and Jerie Kelter Nominated
ASCAP Film and Television Music Award Top Television Series Steve Mazur, Tom Polce, and Derek Schanche Won
2010 Primetime Emmy Award Outstanding Art Direction for a Multi-Camera Series Bernard Vyzga an Jerie Kelter Nominated
2011 Nominated
Outstanding Cinematography for a Multi-Camera Series Wayne Kennan Nominated
2012 BMI Film and TV Award Best TV Music Bert Selen and George Ritter Won
Image Award Outstanding Directing in a Comedy Series Leonard R. Garner, Jr. Won
2013 BMI Film and TV Award Best TV Music Bert Selen and George Ritter Won

DVD releases

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment owns the rights to release DVDs in Region 1. The fifth season of the series was made available beginning February 7, 2012, exclusively as a made-on-demand release from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, in conjunction with amazon.com.[42] Similarly, the sixth season received a MOD release from online retailers, on October 2, 2012.[43] The seventh and final season has not yet been released on DVD and it is unknown whether the series will see completion on DVD. However, the entire series is available to purchase and download from amazon.com and the iTunes Store.

Paramount Pictures, in conjunction with CBS Home Entertainment, will start releasing the series on DVD internationally in 2011. Season One was released in the UK (Region 2 DVD) on April 4, 2011.[44]

DVD name Release date Ep #
The Complete First Season September 4, 2007 7
The Complete Second Season October 14, 2008 15
The Complete Third Season September 14, 2010 13
The Complete Fourth Season January 11, 2011 13
The Complete Fifth Season February 7, 2012 24
The Complete Sixth Season October 2, 2012 13

Note: Following the events of Charlie Sheen’s departure from Two and a Half Men, CBS ordered an additional two episodes for Rules of Engagement’s fifth season, bringing the total number of episodes to 26 from the initial 24 ordered. Despite the episodes, "Scavenger Hunt" and "Cheating," airing during the sixth season, they were originally produced for the fifth season, and are included in the fifth season collection. Therefore, the sixth season’s DVD release features the 13 episodes produced over that time period, versus the 15 that were broadcast by CBS.

International broadcasters

Country Network Series Premiere Timeslot
 Australia Network Ten
Eleven
TV1		 February 13, 2008
May 15, 2012
2010		 Sunday 7:00 PM
Tuesday 8:00 PM
Wednesdays 7:30 PM
 Austria ORF eins
Puls 4		 May 21, 2012
December 19, 2012		 Monday – Friday, 12:05 PM
Wednesday – Friday, 10:55 AM
 Belgium 2BE Monday – Friday
 Bosnia and Herzegovina RTRS, Comedy Central Extra
 Brazil Sony
 Bulgaria Fox Life Wednesday 21:00 PM
 Canada City February 5, 2007 Thursday 8:30 PM
 Croatia Fox Life,
RTL 2.
Comedy Central Extra		 —
Monday – Friday 11:30 PM, 2 Episodes
—
 Cyprus FOX Greece October 12, 2012 Monday – Friday, 11:00 PM
 Denmark TV2 Fridays, 02:00 PM
 Estonia Fox Life Weekdays, 05:05 PM (replay) and 07.55 AM, 09.30 AM
 France M6 April 1, 2011 Monday – Friday 10:15 AM
 Germany kabel eins
Fox Channel
Comedy Central		 November 12, 2009
January 2, 2012
November 12, 2012		 between seasons
Monday – Friday, 11:00 PM
Monday – Friday, 11:05 PM
 Greece FOX Greece October 12, 2012 Monday – Friday, 11:00 PM
 Hungary Viasat3 12 May 2010 Weekdays, 07:25 (replay) and 07.55 PM
 India Big CBS Love
Comedy Central		 Monday – Thursday, 8.00 PM
Monday – Thursday, 11:00 PM
 Ireland RTÉ Two Saturdays, 00:30
 Israel Xtra HOT
HOT family/yes stars Base		 2007
January 4, 2009		 Unknown
Sundays, 8:15 PM, 11:45 PM
 Italy Comedy Central, Italia 1 June 21, 2009 Saturdays & Sundays, 1:00 PM
Latin America (orthographic projection).svg Latin America Sony Entertainment Television1 Mondays, 10:30 PM
 Latvia SET Weekdays, 05.35 PM (replay) 07.30 PM, 03.00 AM and 06.15 AM
 Macedonia Fox Life
 Montenegro VIJESTI TV 2012 Monday – Friday
 Netherlands Veronica Monday – Friday, 7:30 PM
 New Zealand FOUR Sundays, 7:00PM
 Norway TV 2 bliss Off,
 Pakistan Star World Monday-Friday, 7:30 PM
 Peru Sony Entertainment Television Mondays, 12.00 AM
 Poland Polsat, Comedy Central Polska January 6, 2008 Fridays, 9:00 PM
 Portugal AXN White Mondays, 10:25pm (Mainland and Madeira)/9:25pm (in Azores)
 Romania Comedy Central Extra Monday – Friday, 7:40 PM
 Russia Sony Entertainment Television 2009 Weekdays
 Serbia Fox Life, Comedy Central Extra July 7, 2009 Weekends
 Slovenia POP TV 2008 Weekends
 South Africa SABC 3 Mondays, 9:40 PM
 Spain Paramount Comedy, FDF Thursdays, 11:15 PM
 Sweden Kanal 5 Tuesdays, 10:00 PM
  Switzerland SF zwei September 9, 2011 Tuesday – Friday, 7:30 PM
 Taiwan Star World Weekdays, 07:35 PM
 Thailand True Series Tuesdays, 9:00 PM
 United Kingdom Comedy Central
E4		 Weekdays, 12:30 PM and 3:30 PM (Re-runs)
Tuesdays 9:00 PM (Season 7), Weekdays 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM (Re-runs)
 United States CBS (orig. network)
Broadcast syndication (reruns)
WGN America (reruns)
TBS		 February 5, 2007
September 10, 2012
September 10, 2012
January 2, 2013		 Mondays 8:30 PM
Various
Sunday-Friday 12:00 AM and Wednesdays 10:00 PM
Weekdays 6:00 AM, 11:00 AM
1 Rights in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, and Venezuela.

Polish version

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Main article: Reguły Gry

Polish channel TVN started filming its own version of the show, called Reguły Gry (literally meaning Rules of the Game in Polish). It premiered on 16 February 2012 on TVN sister channel TVN 7 as its first original production.[45][46][47]

References

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  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  6. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Mark Cendrowski (director) & Mike Haukom (writer) (2012-03-29). "Scavenger Hunt", Rules of Engagement. episode 8. season 6. CBS.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  22. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  23. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  24. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  25. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  26. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  27. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  30. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  31. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  34. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  35. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  36. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ 39.0 39.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  40. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  41. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  42. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  45. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  46. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  47. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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