Oh, it does feel good to be back. After inexplicably labeling episode 7 a "season finale", ABC decided to air the remaining six episodes of Better Off Ted this Summer in preparation for the improbable but somehow real second season, slated to air midseason 2010. Presumably the show wasn't getting good enough ratings to keep it around in its original slot but it wasn't such a flop that ABC axed it outright. I'd like to think that the roundly positive critical response had something to do with this. So, Better Off Ted is back for six more episodes in the hot months. Let's dive in.

"You're The Boss Of Me" wasn't quite as clever as the best episodes of the Spring, but it was still fairly entertaining. One thing I really like about this show is its willingness to really run with an idea. While there are plenty of tossed-off jokes peppering each episode of Better Off Ted, the cartoonishly extensive threads are what set this show apart.

This time around, the full-tilt went to the medieval fight club that a group of non-executive workers at Veridian hold in the sub-basement of the corporate HQ. With Ted's ex-wife back in town from Botswana, Ted is left without precocious daughter Rose to occupy his evenings. Out of loneliness and frustration, he pressures Phil and Lem to hang out after work, which leads to them introducing Ted to the fight club. Because he's Ted, he's naturally successful at the competitive athletics of the club and soon rises in the ranks, making Phil and Lem look bad.

The best part of this plot (not counting the slavish devotion to period costumes) was the underlying frustration Ted feels for his ex. This delivered some great jokes, like when Ted is on the phone with Rose retorting, “Ice cream for breakfast? No, I don’t let you do that. You know what I let you do? Get vaccinated.” I hope we get to meet Ted's world-saving ex-wife one day and not just have her non-presence be a running joke throughout the show.

In tonight's B-plot, Linda opens up a Pandora's Box of inappropriate office relations when she offers Veronica a ride home from work. Before long the two get to drinking and Veronica starts unloading dark secrets about her life. High on the catharsis of revealing her sordid history, Veronica becomes overbearing, leading to some awkwardness at work. This was a decent enough parallel for Ted's story and it made for a couple good laughs. Nothing outstanding though.

Best Moment: The call-back to Veronica's secret habit of feeding her sister in her sleep so she'll never be as thin as Veronica. Some jokes just need a visual, even a belated one.

Biggest Laugh: Alas, it came right at the beginning. In a late staff meeting, Ted announces that elective brain surgery for a new "everything tastes sweet" nano-chip doesn't test very well, but still beats out diet and exercise among Americans.

Episode Rating: 3.5/5- It was solid, if a bit inconsequential. I guess that's what we're looking for in a show like Better Off Ted anyway. This isn't high art or comic innovation, just an honest half-hour of entertainment every week.