Hangin' with Mr. Cooper

This variation on Three’s Company — guy and two gals share an apartment — is lifted into the category of Just Barely Watchable due to the skills of its stars. As the guy, stand-up comic Mark Curry isn’t the silly satyr that John Ritter was on Company; he’s a clever verbal cutup, a solid, naturalistic actor, and, with his soft pudding face and long, spider-limbed body, he goes against the grain of conventional sitcom leading men. As for his costars, A Different World‘s Dawnn Lewis is the no-nonsense member of this trio, delivering her straight lines with dry humor, while Holly Robinson (21 Jump Street) is required to compete with her own body, showcased in a succession of tiny, slinky outfits designed to provoke Curry’s comic lust. Robinson responds to him with the amusing drop-dead sarcasm he deserves.

Curry plays Mr. Cooper, a substitute teacher plagued by wisecracking students (they’re all bland brats). It’s only when the three stars bounce off each other — flirting, jiving, and putting each other on — that Hangin’ With Mr. Cooper is worth hanging around for. C