‘Anger Management’ review: Charlie Sheen takes care of his dad … again

With Martin Sheen now on “Anger Management” as a series regular, it is certainly no surprise that many of the stories are now revolving around the relationship between him and Charlie. What was a little bit nice about this week’s episode, though, was how it turned the tables on what many assume to be the Sheen family dynamics these days.

Remember when Martin was speaking out during Charlie’s infamous “Two and a Half Men” firing-related meltdown about how concerned he was over his son’s health? Well, this week Charlie ended up having to be the concerned and responsible party on the fiction show, as his dad was going out, partying with his friends, and causing all sorts of problems for everyone. This led to Charlie having to scramble in order to fix things, but along the way he made a key realization: the only reason Martin was acting like this was because he was feeling the sting of divorce, and was becoming increasingly lonely by the day.

The “B” story for the week, meanwhile, featured Patrick trying to rely on Lacey for some help when a bully showed up at his work from high school … only for Lacey to hook up with him rather than stand up for him. What a great companion she is! Of course, this does fall in line with the cynical nature of Sheen’s show, and this is what makes this show so easy for many Americans to watch. It doesn’t impose a moral judgment on anyone, and really strives for just a few disposable laughs here and there. Thankfully, at least some of them paid off this week, though we do hope there are different uses coming up for Martin Sheen than him just being the father figure who doubles as a massive pain.

Now that we are several episodes into this season, do you like “Anger Management” more or less when Charlie’s dad is playing a key role? If you want to see some other highlights from this season, you can do so over at the link here.

Photo: FX