# The New Normal (2012)

> Two Los Angeles men hire a waitress as their surrogate and gradually form an unexpected family with her precocious daughter.

Canonical page: https://ember.film/tv/40026

## Facts

- Seasons: 1
- Episodes: 22
- Episode runtime: 22 min
- Status: Canceled
- Genres: comedy
- Created by: Ryan Murphy, Ali Adler
- Network: NBC
- Cast: Justin Bartha, Andrew Rannells, Georgia King, Bebe Wood, NeNe Leakes, Jayson Blair, Ellen Barkin, Mary Kay Place
- TMDB rating: 6.9/10
- IMDb: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2087571/

## Ember's analysis

- Pacing: brisk
- Intensity: mild
- Complexity: simple
- Violence: none
- Tone: breezy, warm, comedic, hopeful

## What critics say

Audience reception was mixed, with viewers finding the sitcom's warmth and premise charming but its jokes and execution uneven.

## Synopsis

The New Normal (2012-2013) is a US network sitcom created by Ryan Murphy and Ali Adler for NBC. Set in contemporary Los Angeles, it follows successful gay couple Bryan Collins (Andrew Rannells) and David Sawyer (Justin Bartha), who are eager to start a family. Their search for a surrogate leads them to Goldie Clemmons (Georgia King), a waitress who has moved west with her precocious eight-year-old daughter Shania (Bebe Wood) to escape a narrow-minded grandmother. The engine of the show is the awkward, funny negotiation of a surrogacy deal that slowly becomes a shared household, with each episode built from everyday domestic friction, workplace tensions and the clash of very different values under one roof. Ellen Barkin and NeNe Leakes add sharp supporting turns as the characters push against the newcomers. The series runs as a single 22-episode season in a light, warm, breezy register, using broad comedy to explore modern family life. Fans of Modern Family, Will and Grace and The Odd Couple will find resonance in its multi-camera-style domestic humor and its heart about who counts as family. Its single season was canceled before the story could fully develop.

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