NBC 'Earl' destined to be year's breakout show

Each week, the title character goes about righting the wrongs of his past.
By TERRY MORROW
SCRIPPS HOWARD NEWS SERVICE
NBC is well-known for its recent prime-time blunders, but "My Name is Earl" (debuting 9 p.m. Tuesday) isn't one of them.
This is certainly the year's breakout show, distinctive in its look and delivery. "Earl" owes much of its manner to the cult hit "Raising Arizona," with its quirky skewer of Middle America's underbelly.
It's a water-cooler comedy, the kind that will compel you to repeat phrases and retell situations the day after each episode airs. Like any sturdy comedy, "Earl" isn't about the jokes. It's about the people and the humor that's organic to them.
Jason Lee plays the title character, a shady redneck who wins $100,000 and decides that he needs to make amends for past evil deeds. So each week, Earl will go about to right the wrongs of his past.
Joining him in this quest is his slacker brother (Ethan Suplee), who can always be found in his underwear sleeping on the nearest couch, and dimwitted motel maid Catalina (Nadine Velazquez).
Barely lifting a finger in support is Darnell (Eddie Steeples), who runs the bar that Earl frequents, and Earl's self-involved ex-wife, Joy (Jamie Pressly, who has found a signature role here).
Scruffy philosopher
Like Nicolas Cage's H.I. McDonnough (from "Arizona"), Earl is a trailer park philosopher, a scruffy sort whose rough-hewn appearance hides a generous heart. You want to pull for Earl even when Earl doesn't pull for himself because you know he's one of the good guys.
In the opener, Earl decides to help a geek he tormented in high school. Once he finds out the guy lives a quiet life, Earl hires "a daytime hooker" (played superbly by Dale Dickey) to spice up the guy's life.
What Earl discovers is that the guy is living under the radar by choice.
If "Earl" has any flaws, it's the unnecessary premise. Earl's mission to make amends could be the show's undoing by shifting the focus away from the wonderful cast to a bevy of unneeded guest stars. Let's hope the writers never go that far, but the door is, unfortunately, open to it.
"Earl" would be just fine as a weekly look into the lives of these people, how they get by and how they learn from their mistakes.
On second thought, maybe NBC could screw this up.