Reba McEntire In ‘Happy’s Place’ Is TV’s Modern-Day ‘Cheers’

NBCUNIVERSAL EVENTS — NBC’s Happy’s Place” — Pictured: Rex Linn, Tokala Black Elk, Pablo Castelblanco, Reba McEntire, Belissa Escobedo, Melissa Peterman on the Universal Studios Lot on Monday, August 4, 2025 — (Photo by: Griffin Nagel/NBCUniversal via Getty Images)

Griffin Nagel/NBCUniversal via Getty Images

Everybody knows your name in Happy’s Place.

Specifically, Reba McEntire as Bobbie McAllister slips into this role with her signature ease — a mix of sharp comic timing, relatable warmth, and just plain laughter. Unlike the harder-edged Bobbie of season one, Reba’s current pursuit of Rex Linn’s gruff (but loveable, of course) Emmett — her real-life love — adds a new dimension to both characters in Happy’s Place. Will they make it after all?

Mirroring season one, the supporting cast in Happy’s Place continues to click in all the right ways, giving the show an effortless ensemble feel that’s increasingly rare in today’s comedy landscape. But the surprising bonus this season is Pablo Castelblanco as Steve. Once a one-dimensional obsessive-compulsive germaphobe, he has evolved into a dynamic presence alongside Emmett. Their interactions — from Steve’s deadpan advice to Emmett’s bewildered earnestness — provide some of the show’s sharpest humor, making Steve feel fully integrated into the ensemble rather than just a quirky side character.

This week’s episode also featured a particularly sweet moment with Melissa Peterman as Gabby, the bartender and Reba’s comedy sidekick, and Belissa Escobedo as Isabella, Bobbie’s paternal half-sister. Escobedo holds her own opposite the built-in chemistry of Reba and Peterman, and the spinoff relationships forming at Happy’s Place are evolving in genuinely fun ways. Hopefully, we’ll see more of Tokala Black Elk as Takoda, who caps off this sextet but has had very little to do since the sitcom began. Let’s learn what his backstory is.

Happy’s Place is becoming a modern-day Cheers — a place where viewers can relax, unwind, and laugh. Too bad NBC hasn’t found the right sitcom to pair it with. Unlike the comfortable, reliable Happy’s Place, the new lead-out Stumble — a single-camera tale of a fired college cheerleading coach starting over at a junior college — feels more like a “fumble.”