The highest-rated episode ofTwo and a Half Menon IMDb proves that it was never really Alan’s show or even Charlie’s show — Jake was the true main character of the classic sitcom.Two and a Half Men’s top-rated episode on IMDbis season 2, episode 23, “Squab, Squab, Squab, Squab, Squab,” with 8.7 out of 10. This is the same score awarded to such classic movies asThe Matrix,Goodfellas, andOne Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.

“Squab, Squab, Squab, Squab, Squab” sees Charlie and Alan reluctantly sending Jake for a sleepover athis grandmother Evelyn’s house. While Charlie and Alan are worrying that they’ve thrown their kid into the lion’s den where their childhoods were destroyed, Evelyn is getting much more than she bargained for from her new houseguest. The episode works purely because of how hilarious Jake is. His immaturity and stubbornness make Evelyn’s night a living hell. It highlights whyTwo and a Half Menreally worked, and how important Jake was to the show’s success.

A promotional shot of Charlie Sheen, Angus T. Jones, and Jon Cryer for Two and a Half Men

Jake-Centered Episodes Were Usually Two And A Half Men’s Best

The Crude Double Entendres Were Made Even Funnier By Jake’s Confusion

A lot ofthe bestTwo and a Half Menepisodeswere focused on Jake.So much of the series was about raunch and depravity and promiscuity; it was always hilarious to contrast that with Jake’s childhood innocence. Charlie, Alan, and Evelyn’s crude double entendres were always funny, butwhat made them even funnier was Jake’s confusion when they would go over his head. “Squab, Squab, Squab, Squab, Squab” is just one of many brilliant Jake-centric episodes ofTwo and a Half Men.

Two And A Half Men’s Highest-Rated Episodes Perfectly Explain What Went Wrong With The 12-Season Sitcom

There isn’t a single Ashton Kutcher episode in Two and a Half Men’s top 10 on IMDb, proving the show should’ve ended after Charlie Sheen left.

Season 3, episode 22, “Just Once with Aunt Sophie,” is a great episode about Charlie and Alan trying to prepare Jake for his first boy-girl party. Season 5, episode 1, “Large Birds, Spiders, and Mom,” is a great episode about Charlie and Alan trying to prepare Jake to start high school. Overall,Two and a Half Menwas at its best when it was about Jake, and how Charlie and Alan were such terrible role models for him— that was the real catch of the show.

Charlie and Alan talking to Jake as he reads in Two and a Half Men.

Jake’s Character Was The Reason Two And A Half Men Worked

Having Jake Around Facilitated Charlie’s Growth As A Character

What madeTwo and a Half Menso funny was the juxtaposition of Charlie’s depraved antics with an innocent, wide-eyed kid in the house. And Jake’s role in the show didn’t just serve the comedic engine; he also gave the show its dramatic backbone and its underlying sentimentality.Having Jake around is what softened Charlie’s edgesand turned him from a carefree bachelor into a caring family man. Jake madeTwo and a Half Menmore than just a bedroom farce.

Two and a Half Men

Cast

Two and a Half Men follows the Harper family: Charlie (Charlie Sheen), a womanizing, hedonistic jingle writer who enjoys his lazy lifestyle from the comfort of his large beach house; Alan (Jon Cryer), Charlie’s neurotic, far less successful brother; and Jake (Angus T. Jones), Alan’s impressionable son. When Alan’s marriage falls apart, he moves in with Charlie, much to the older brother’s dismay. After bonding with his nephew, Charlie reluctantly embraces Alan’s presence, paving the way for one of television’s most dysfunctional family environments.

Two and a half men tv series poster