Overall, though, the comedy is barely up to the standards of the old UPN sitcoms from back in the day, and the attempts at social commentary fail across the board.
[Tyler Perry's] narrative aimlessness, and languorous pacing, set, incongruously, against a laugh track, suggest a shaky command of his larger purpose.
[Tyler] Perry's best work comes when he's willing to render his morality tales with a dash of absurdity. So why, when he's working in the most conventional comedic format of all, is he afraid to make people laugh?
[Tyler] Perry has lots of fans, but even his alter-ego Madea couldn't infuse enough life into the mediocre House of Payne to make it stand out from the crowd. House
Unfortunately, he's [Tyler Perry] not shying away from the kinds of situations and characters that in the years since the Bunkers left that house in Queens, N.Y., have become cliches.
