Last Man Standing Season 7: Change is Inevitable

I recently purchased Last Man Standing, Season 7, through Amazon Video. It was a pleasant way to start the year.

What surprised me were reviews that declared emphatically that Season 7 wasn't as good as other seasons!

Maybe my focus is different but the writing for Season 7 seems fairly decent to me--maybe not all on par with some of my favorites, such as "Renaming Boyd's School". But the themes are as strong as ever: Mike's sense of responsibility that leads to him fathering boys with absent fathers; Ryan and Mike's ability to bound over fatherhood and, amusingly enough, Ryan's new status as a business owner; Kyle's search for identity alongside his gentle sweetness of nature; Vanessa, the amazing Nancy Travis, multi-tasking the universe; Mandy's fashion/business concerns; high school issues with newcomer Jen (Krista Marie Yu); family first.

All this includes some fine comedy and drama moments: Jay Leno's explosion into the office yelling about Mike's meanness; Mike's discussion with Mandy about her business (the episode where McCook really finds her version of Mandy); the sheer brilliance of putting Kyle in HR (he will be the HR guy who runs the company softball team, who mediates disputes before they go too far, who looks out for the employee whose child got sick--and so on).

The season is quieter, even more thoughtful. The disappointed viewers, however, seem to be reacting mostly to the inevitable changes that accompany a renewed show. Granted, Mandy's change from Molly Ephraim to Molly McCook takes some adjustment, especially with the increase in height. Boyd is older--and a different actor (though this is less noticeable)--and the premise of the show--Mike Baxter living among women--is continued with a foreign exchange student since even Millennials eventually leave home.

In all honesty, these changes have impressed me. Home Improvement ended before the boys all completely moved out. But I imagine that Tim Allen and John Pasquin would have taken a similar approach as they have with Last Man Standing: people grow, change, move on, move out, alter their life's plans. Wanting the same cast of characters in the same house all doing exactly the same things as before--well, that's why people like me rewatch seasons. But I still appreciate a sitcom that can embrace mutability:

Families change.