'Labor Pains' Judgement Call: It Wasn't Quite The Bundle Of Joy We'd Hoped For

Thank goodness for the wonders of DVR, because it would have been a shame to miss a fangtastic episode of "True Blood" in favor of Lindsay Lohan's middling romantic comedy "Labor Pains," which premiered last night on ABC Family.

Lindsay stars as Thea, the underachieving secretary of an eccentric book publisher (played by "SNL" alum Chris Parnell). Thea hates her job and the slew of Andy Sachs-esque tasks that come with it (like regularly cleaning dog doo off of her boss' beloved pooch McArthur, for one). When Thea vents her frustrations a little too loudly and is overheard by boss Jerry, he unceremoniously fires her. Late paying the bills and supporting her teenage sister after the death of their parents, Thea is desperate to keep her gig and hatches a scheme to do it: she claims she's pregnant. You can't fire a pregnant lady! Cue the fake baby bump!

Sometime later, boss Jerry unexpectedly takes a few months off to oversee McArthur's physical therapy (ugh, don't even ask), and his younger--not to mention cuter--brother Nick steps in to oversee the family publishing business. Nick's first order of business is to secure a book deal with a preggers author and he taps knocked up Thea to help out since she understands all that stuff (um, right). Thea wins over the author, prompting Nick to promote her to associate editor of the newly created parenting and family division. And guess what? Thea and Nick fall in love. But how will Thea fess up to her faux pregnancy without losing Nick and her sweet promotion? I'm sure you can figure that one out too.

The problem with "Labor Pains" isn't its predictability. Let's be honest, most romantic comedies are pretty predictable. (Well, except maybe this summer's delicious "(500) Days of Summer.") Anyway, what makes this type of movie enjoyable isn't the element of surprise — it's things like witty banter and the sparks that fly between our two star-crossed lovers. But "Labor Pains" is devoid of such touches. With lame Post-It note jokes and a dog barf gag one could see coming a mile away, nothing about this flick made me giggle. And the chemistry between Thea and Nick was barely visible.

Along for this bumpy nine-month ride is Cheryl Hines in the patented co-worker-BFF role that an actress like Judy Greer (see: "13 Going on 30" and "27 Dresses") makes shine. Though I blame poor material rather than Cheryl's acting chops for a less than convincing turn. Also making appearances are "Sex and the City" actor Willie Garson, "Ugly Betty" actress Ana Ortiz as Thea's pregnant neighbor and Janeane Garofalo as a television host.

With its dullsville plot line, lack of laughs and chemistry-free coupling, it's no wonder the stork delivered this flick to cable instead of its intended home at the cineplex.

Did you watch "Labor Pains" lat night? What did you think of the romantic comedy?

Tags Chris Parnell, Labor Pains, Lindsay Lohan