I don’t expect a lot from my TV shows. Make me laugh, develop interesting characters and successfully navigate the minefield of well-worn topics as best you can. We know sitcoms can only break so much ground so at least try and find an interesting new take on the typical storylines.

This week’s episode of the Matthew Perry vehicle “Mr. Sunshine” not only failed to do that, but it blatantly ripped off several shows. I have had mixed feelings about the show, which replaced “Cougar Town,” one of my favorites, in ABC’s Wednesday comedy lineup. They went over a line last night.

The main plot covered how Ben, the arena manager played by Perry, could not command the respect of his staff because he didn’t know anyone’s name. After realizing he had to overcome this problem, he had someone come up with index cards with everyone’s name and face. Then he assigned goofy (and insulting) mnemonic devices to help him remember the names.

Well, Scrubs had a whole episode built around how J.D. didn’t have the respect of his co-workers because he made up silly nicknames for people to cover his inability to remember names. After betting The Janitor he could learn the names, J.D. rattled off some awfully funny ways which helped him get all the names right (except for The Janitor, of course).

The use of insulting mnemonics comes from “The Office” where Michael used them when he went on his speaking tour of other Dunder-Mifflin branches to try and teach them the secret to Scranton’s success.

If that wasn’t enough, the subplot of the air conditioning in arena (the workers wouldn’t fix it until Ben learned their names) directly ripped off from the “Friends” episodes in Barbados when the humidity kept making Monica’s hair get bigger and bigger.

Allison Janney – who has actually been a bright spot in the first few episodes – suffered from the malady this time, but brought no humor to the table since most people watching probably remembered where the gag came from.

Like I said, I don’t have high expectations, but this show is not some bunch of plucky newcomers trying to find their footing. Eric Gilliland, the writer of this episode, has an extensive resume including work on “The Wonder Years” and “Roseanne.”

I expect a veteran of the field to not simply lift plots from other shows and pass them off as something we should accept. We have many options now. If I wanted to see a guy learning people’s names or someone’s hair getting frizzy beyond their control, I’d just pop in a DVD and watch the first version of those stories.