One Big Happy S01E01 Recap: Pilot

Why have a Modern Family when you can have One Big Happy?

Story by @ErikaAshley

This highly anticipated new sitcom produced by Ellen Degenerous finally debuted this past Tuesday night on NBC. The show features two childhood best friends, Luke and Lizzy, cohabitating in an apartment and living out their long time promise. Luke as the perpetual bachelor and Lizzy the OCD control freak lesbian. The promise that if they both make it to 30 years old without a significant other and child they would have each other’s offspring and raise the child together. Because you know, that’s real life.

The show begins at a pharmacy where Luke and Lizzy stop to pick up some pre-natal vitamins and some new pregnancy tests and offers too much information to the checker about her lesbian trying to conceive plan. Lizzy confirms that Luke is still willing to be the father of her child even though he has commitment issues and he reassures her he’s so ready to be a dad for her child. They get back to their place and Lizzy pees on the pregnancy test and excitedly awaits the results. Again she harps on Luke being ready and he proves to her that he’s all in by giving her two baby gifts he’s hidden for the occasion. Shortly after they check the test it is confirmed that Lizzy is not pregnant to their disappointment. Luke tries to cheer her up by offering to help her with a home DIY project and Lizzy perks up slightly and mentions they can paint an accent wall in the living room. That night the duo head to their local bar to meet with friends and confirm they are not yet pregnant. Their couple friends Roy and Leisha suggest they wait because they strong dislike their own daughter and envy Lizzy and Luke’s child-free life. Luke takes to the bar to get them more drinks and finds a beautiful busty British brunette slinging drinks. She confesses she isn’t the bartender and suggests he hop over the bar and take what he wants. Luke promptly jumps the bar and crashes to the ground but quickly bounces back up. The brunette introduces herself as Prudence and tries to hint that she’s leaving the following day back to England, but Luke pursues her hard and they agree to get drinks. The next morning Lizzy enters her kitchen find Prudence stark naked making coffee. Flustered Lizzy slightly freaks out about Prudence’s nudity and Prudence grabs her in a full buck-naked bear hug telling her she’s the worst uptight lesbian ever.

Later Luke takes Prudence to his family’s bowling alley and introduces her to his co-worker and friend Marcus. Lizzy calls upset that Luke stood her up for their paint-picking date and he tries to shrug her off telling her he has more important things to do before Prudence has to leave back to England. Hurt but accepting she says she understands. Prudence lets Luke in on a secret that she’s in the country illegally and is in fact being deported. He inexplicably tells her he loves her and she quickly responds she thinks she loves him back. The next day Luke and Prudence paint the accent wall bright red for Lizzy instead of the boring gray she chose. Lizzy comes home to see the wall and freaks out. She starts to argue with Luke and Prudence excuses herself to the bedroom to clean up. They take the bickering to the kitchen where Prudence walks through nude yet again. Their friends, Roy and Leisha, come for dinner and end up calling Lizzy out on her jealous behavior. She retorts that she isn’t jealous when Luke and Prudence come in to dinner late. They announce the got married in Vegas and Lizzy has a fit. She then announces that she’s pregnant and Luke couldn’t be happier. He’s so excited to be married and going to be a father but the ladies quickly butt in. Prudence is upset that he failed to mention Lizzy and Luke’s plan to be parents together and he says it didn’t come up. She storms out and he goes after her. Roy and Leisha interject that their parenting plan had holes in it to begin with and Lizzy tells them to shut up.

The next morning Luke comes home drunk and tells Lizzy that Prudence is out of the picture since she’s going back to England. Lizzy admits she reacted poorly and that she was jealous, she knows that she has to share him with other women but that it scares her. She suggest that Luke chase after Prudence like men do in romantic movies but he quickly passes out. Instead Lizzy goes to the airport and finds Prudence in the security check line. She begs her to come back to Luke and confesses she was jealous. Prudence agrees and they return back to the apartment. Luke thanks Lizzy for bringing back his new wife and they all hug. Luke asks, “What now?” and they all answer they have no clue but they’ll somehow make it work. He then says, “I love you,” to which both women respond and then scowl at each other while the screen fades to black.