Cougar Town Contemplating New Name

Buried in last week’s Ask Ausiello was a rather startling piece of news: ABC is considering changing the name of the Courteney Cox comedy Cougar Town. While I agree that the name does not reflect the series, I’m surprised that the network is seriously considering a change.

Cougar Town started out as a show focused on Cox’s Jules, “a recently divorced single mother exploring the honest truths about dating and aging in our beauty and youth obsessed culture. While most women in their twenties go through life experiencing the challenges and often humorous pitfalls of meeting men, Jules took on the responsibilities of marriage and raising a son. Now in her forties, she embarks on a journey to self-discovery whilst surrounded by fellow divorcees and singletons eager to live or re-live a time gone by.”

So says the official ABC press release from last summer. And yes, that was the premise in the beginning. Recent divorcee Jules tests the dating waters with younger men, doesn’t want to commit to anyone too quickly, worries about competing with the twenty-something women who are (allegedly) firmer and smoother (as if Courteney Cox is some lumpy, wrinkled woman), etc.

But the show soon morphed into an ensemble comedy, wisely increasing the interaction between the people in Jules’ life, introducing her trainwreck assistant Laurie to her catty BFF Ellie; creating an oddly perfect trio out of ex-husband Bobby, neighbor Andy, and other neighbor/potential more-than-friends Grayson; and even finding a way to put son Travis within the reach of cougar-to-the-max Barb. I remember, after the first two or three episodes, wondering how long audiences would want to spend half an hour with neurotic Jules, not matter how appealing Cox is. Fortunately, that neuroses was soon balanced by the quirky group of friends and family who treat her kitchen like a coffee shop (wait a minute…this is sounding familiar) and stop by every morning, whether she’s awake or not.

So, I agree that Cougar Town is no longer an apt moniker for the show, but should it be renamed? Has a show ever successfully changed titles after airing for a full season? It sounds like a branding nightmare.