Major League series

(On TV, June 2020) The key to the Major League franchise is a love of baseball and of the series’ characters, so it’s not a surprise if sequel Major League II falls flat if you’re lukewarm on either of those. Using nearly every writing trick in the book to bring back the same characters and recreate the same situation as the first film (not matter how nonsensical it can be), the film barely bothers to hide its preposterous nature. At least Charlie Sheen and others are mildly amusing in their roles, with Margaret Whitton tearing up scenery as the returning villainous owner. Considering how eagerly it returns to the formula of the first film, Major League II does feel self-congratulatory at times—which grates once the film fails to live up to its own expectations: the jokes fall flat, the repetition is ridiculous (this may be one of the few sequels that feels worse if you’ve recently seen the original) and everything seems neutered and less adventurous thanks to the PG-13 rating. Is Major League II watchable? Well, sure, I guess. Is it rewatchable, though? That depends on whether you’ve seen the first film recently.