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Brad uses his skills, plus help from the gang, to prop up Chuckles and Huggs after the gym's loopy owner, Terry tells him it may be closing. Meanwhile, Penny and Max try to break the habit of texting the men in their lives (Pete/the new guy Max is dating). They turn to NocheTussin, a black market cough medicine, to help them sleep when they'd normally be texting

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Max meets a cute girl who is a season tickets holder for the Bulls, leaving him no choice but to pretend to be straight, of course! Meanwhile, Alex is tired of everyone dismissing her as the dimwitted blonde, so she becomes well read to prove them wrong. However her newfound knowledge completely throws the whole group dynamic off and no one likes it.

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Happy Endings Boss Teases Weddings & Break-Ups, Reacts to 'Odd' Save the Show Promo

Something ah-mah-zing is happening tonight at 8/7c on ABC: Happy Endings finally returns with new episodes!

But does the series’ recent two-month break and a move to dreaded Friday night spell doom for the ratings-challenged cult comedy?

“ABC truly loves the show and they tell us that all the time, and I completely believe them,” maintains executive producer David Caspe. However, television is a business, so “they have a lot of things to consider.” Still, he points out that “they obviously could have just canceled us and they haven’t. So I think it’s a testament that they’re trying to figure out a way to make it work.”

The network is even airing a “Save Happying Endings” promo, which may be a first for a bubble show.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/-lLjLPRYwKA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

“You got to hand it to them,” says Caspe. “That’s the most press that a promo has ever gotten that I’ve seen in my lifetime. … It’s quite effective. It might seem a little odd, but it’s kind of working.”

You know what else is effective in getting folks to tune in? The following scoop on this season’s remaining episodes, courtesy of the EP:

BABYNAPPING | Megan Mullally and Michael McKean return as Penny’s mom and Dave’s dad, respectively, and they’re still happily in love. In fact, “they’re actually thinking about adopting a baby, which throws Penny and Dave into a crazy tailspin that ends with them attempting to kidnap a baby.”

ANDY RICHTER TAKES BROADWAY | Well, maybe not so much takes Broadway as takes a Broadway legend’s rain gear. The Conan funny man plays Penny’s dad, who’s “been estranged from her ever since he left her as a baby with her mom to go pursue his Broadway dreams. But the closest he ever got to doing anything major on Broadway was accidentally stealing Stephen Sondheim’s umbrella at the door to Studio 54 because he thought it was a give-an-umbrella-take-an-umbrella situation.”

LOVE AND HEARTBREAK | Alex and Dave “are in a good place, and they have a very major revelation in the finale,” while Penny and Pete’s engagement may be on the rocks as “the Year of Penny starts anew.” As for whether there will be more hints of feelings between pals Dave and Penny, “that you’ll just have to watch and see.”

IT’S ALL TALK | Ever wanted to get out all your feelings about your friends behind their backs? That’s what Alex and Jane do when RuPaul guest stars as their “longtime hairstylist who they talk s–t to constantly.” But their secret trash talk is uncovered when Max gets a haircut there and “gets that s–t talking out there, which triggers a gigantic fight between Alex and Jane.”

EVEN MORE GUEST STARS | Mark Paul Gosselaar is back in an attempt to ruin his former roomie Max’s life; David Alan Grier (In Living Color) plays Brad’s dreamer boss, who needs his employee’s business acumen to save the gym; and Stephanie March (Law & Order: Special Victims Unit) arrives as the third Kerkovich sister, who’s getting married to her own Brad, played by James Lesure (Las Vegas), in the season finale. When the eldest sis is around, “Jane becomes Alex, but Alex stays the baby,” and her nuptials send Jane “into a tailspin.”

NIGHTTIME TEXTING | “Penny introduces Max to a very special, unique way to regain the power in a relationship. Max has just started dating a guy and, as everybody can relate to, Max over-texts the guy.” So Penny decides to let her friend in on her secret: “An outlawed, off-brand Mexican version of NyQuil. Basically, take that at 4 pm and go to bed early because nighttime is the hardest time not to text. This is a real thing based on something my sister did when she was single. … Obviously, it goes terribly wrong.” The romance with the texting guy doesn’t work out, but there are “some good Max plots with guys that he meets coming up.”

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ABC’s Happy Endings christened its new time slot with demo numbers that were below its most recent Tuesday broadcasts and well shy of what Tim Allen and Reba McEntire were doing in Friday’s opening hour.

The transplanted sitcom’s first episode drew 3 million total viewers and a 0.9 rating with the coveted 18-49 crowd, while its second installment at 8:30 pm dipped to 2.4 mil/0.7.

For comparison’s sake, Happy Endings averaged 3 mil with a 1.3/1.2 two months ago on a Tuesday, while the Last Man Standing and Malibu Country season finales one week ago averaged north of 7 million and a 1.5.

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