One of the “Two and a Half Men” Is Growing Up

You may not know who Angus T. Jones is. At least, you don’t know that you know who he is. Jones is the “half man” on the show Two and a Half Men. He recently said that he thinks the show is filthy and unfit for human consumption. The show, he says, is in conflict with the things he has been studying in the Bible, and he no longer wants to be a part of it.

I fear that this conversation might spiral into whether or not Two and a Half Men is really so bad. I have seen perhaps two or three episodes— admittedly, they were the older ones with Charlie Sheen—but I think I saw enough to get the gist of it. Sheen played a womanizer (the character is now played by Ashton Kutcher). His brother on the show, played by Jon Cryer, is kind of an impotent male role model of a dad for Jones’s character. From what I saw of it, the show didn’t so much offend me in a righteous indignation sort of way, but rather in a “this just isn’t funny” sort of way. I don’t find womanizing to be funny, and I don’t think that narcissistic, incompetent fathers are funny either. So I tuned out.

My reaction to Jones’s comments is fairly simple; it doesn’t matter to me if people think Two and a Half Men is harmless fun or from the devil. Obviously enough people disagree and are watching because it’s still on air. Now, does Jones overstate his case? Yeah, he’s basically wielding a club where a little more precision might be helpful. But remember, he’s a 19 year old who just woke up and realized that he has been working on a lousy show since he was 10 years old that he now finds morally repugnant. My advice to him would be to take a deep breath, NOT have a Charlie Sheen moment about it, and just turn in his resignation. Then let some time pass, as these things are quickly forgotten, and later, after some reflection and some time away from it, he might be able to make better sense of it.

For everyone else I’d just say: Leave the kid alone. He’s in a rough spot now, and he’s trying to do the right thing. I’m kind of proud of him, really. Right or wrong, it isn’t easy to say what he said, especially considering it is currently his life’s work and he is tossing $300,000 an episode. It’s an adult move, and I applaud his courage.