Season eight marks the last season with Charlie Sheen as a costar of Two and a Half Men--so watching this season is bittersweet. Sheen has relaxed into his role as the churlish Charlie so that his comic delivery seems effortless--but what Sheen does is a lot harder than it looks. And the chemistry between him and his costars Jon Cryer (Alan) and the "half man," Angus T. Jones (Jake), is as seamless and sparkly as ever. In a way, season eight is a very good high note for Sheen to go out on, as this season of Two and a Half Men is chock full of good old-fashioned double-entendre laughs. One of the story threads is that Rose (the amazing Melanie Lynskey), once a man-eater on the prowl for Charlie, has decided to get married. Which, naturally, makes Charlie all the more crazy for her. Also still in the picture are Courtney (Jenny McCarthy, who deserves her own sitcom), and Michelle (the sultry Liz Vassey), and plenty of laughs are had as Charlie tries, as always, to juggle his fairly ridiculous love life. Cryer's Alan, meanwhile, plays long-suffering straight man, and the almost-all-grown-up Jake brings his slackertude to full flower and gets more screen time, with very funny results. Important note: Because of offstage events, season eight contains only 16 episodes, as against the usual 22 episodes for a season of half-hour comedy. Still, this season of Two and a Half Men is absolutely essential for anyone who loves this show. --A.T. Hurley