Romantically Challenged

Development and production

In January 2009, ABC announced a put pilot commitment with Ricky Blitt for a new comedy initially titled Threesome. The pilot centered on a single 30-something man caught between his lazy best friend roommate and his single-mother girlfriend. Eric Christian Olsen was cast first as Shawn, followed by Alyssa Milano as his girlfriend Rebecca. Kyle Bornheimer and Kelly Stables joined in mid-March as Shawn's roommate Perry and Lisa, Rebecca's best friend.

By the end of March, ABC renamed the project Single With Baggage, then Romantically Challenged in May. In August 2009, Lisa was redefined as Rebecca's sister. That same month, ABC scheduled a midseason 2010 run of 13 episodes, later reduced to seven. Producers recast Shawn, replacing Olsen with Josh Lawson.

Filming began in January 2010 under director James Burrows on the old Seinfeld stage. The premiere was delayed from April 12 to April 19 to accommodate a two-hour Dancing with the Stars episode.

Reception

Early reviews were mixed, with a Metacritic score of 44 based on 15 reviews. An Entertainment Weekly critic found the opening episodes "at times relatably funny" but noted odd dialogue such as "Who is that mansicle?" USA Today praised Milano's performance while calling the show "terrible" and questioning why a network would waste her on a series with "virtually no chance of survival." The pilot drew 10.7 million viewers, considered average ratings, especially given its lead-in from Dancing with the Stars, which had 20.8 million. The four aired episodes averaged 9.57 million viewers per episode, ranking 35th in total viewers and 59th in Adults 18–49 rating and share.