My name Is Earl: Nature's Game Show

This episode of My Name Is Earl began with an uncharacteristic scene in which an angry Randy grabbed Earl's list and demanded that they do what he wanted to do for a change. Randy didn't know what he wanted to do exactly, but that was beside the point. As it turned out, other characters were also feeling stressed out as well. Joy was in a fight with Darnell about street smarts vs. book smarts and Catalina was sick and tired of being walked on, both literally and (because of her stripper job) figuratively. From there, the day just got worse as tornadoes struck down and played havoc with the citizens of Camden.

The title refers to the game of "Finders Keepers" the townsfolk play after getting hit by a twister. The rules of "Nature's Game Show" state that any debris found on the ground is fair game, which led to Joy finding a Bible, Randy finding a rowboat and Catalina finding a gun. As the episode went on, a new tornado would blow these items to another character, round-robin style, so Randy, Joy and Catalina all had the Bible, gun and motorboat for a short time to use how they wanted.

As the sole voice of reason in the town, Darnell explained early on that people tend to attribute deeper meanings to random events during times of crisis. That's the question Earl struggled with in this episode as he wondered why he lost his karma list in the tornado. Was karma trying to teach him a lesson about how it feels to lose something, or was it simply a case of him holding a flimsy piece of paper in a windstorm? When Randy, Joy and Catalina all find the same Holy Bible, they think it's a sign from God, but was that really true?

On the plus side, this episode was intricately plotted, considering the number of important characters involved and all of the overlapping events that occurred. Each set of characters used the Bible, the motorboat and the gun a bit differently, to change the course of events during their day. The most important outcome from this episode was that Randy felt like he also wanted to help people, just like his older brother. So Earl and Randy agreed to take turns. One day, they'll choose something from Earl's list. And if Randy felt he had a mission, they'd tackle it the next day. Sure, it seems like they're doing the exact same thing, but don't tell them that.

However, intricate plot or not, this episode needed more jokes. My Name Is Earl has turned into a flat series of awkward, crazy or silly events that might seem humorous on paper, but in the end, aren't really that funny. Aside from an enjoyable MacGyver parody complete with appropriate instrumental music and a freeze-frame, I found myself watching this episode in silence rather than laughing at it. And that's been the case for some time. Unfortunately, I don't think that's what the producers had in mind.