The Random Years is an American sitcom created by Michael Lisbe and Nate Reger that aired for four episodes on the United Paramount Network (UPN) in March 2002.

Storylines focus on the characters' jobs and romantic relationships, often including their neighbor Casey Parker (Natalia Cigliuti) and their building superintendent Steve (Winston J. Rochas).

Friedle was initially cast in Off Centre, a sitcom for The WB Television Network, but appeared in The Random Years after being replaced by Eddie Kaye Thomas in the former.

The Random Years follows three childhood friends—Alex Barnes (Will Friedle), Wiseman (Joshua Ackerman), and Todd Mitchell (Sean Murray)—as they attempt to navigate life after graduating college.

[9] On their website, the United Paramount Network (UPN) promoted the characters as forming "an oddball kind of family" and the series as about "somewhere between high school and the rest of your life".

[1][11] In a Variety article, Phil Gallo believed the episodes were aimed at a primarily male audience,[12] and People's Terry Kelleher associated the series with a "frat-house atmosphere".

[5] Show creators Michael Lisbe and Nate Reger based The Random Years on their experiences living in New York City after graduating from college.

[12] Prior to the show's production, Will Friedle was scheduled to star in Off Centre, a sitcom for The WB Television Network, before being replaced by Eddie Kaye Thomas.

"[14] In January 2002, studio executive Les Moonves presented The Random Years as part of a panel of shows scheduled for the upcoming spring and summer.

[13] In the Los Angeles Times, Scott Sandell considered The Random Years to be derivative of Seinfeld, and thought both focused on the minutiae of daily life.

[6] David Kronke of the Los Angeles Daily News and Phil Gallo praised the show's premise, writing there was potential in exploring post-college life, but both reviewers were critical of the execution.

[28] The Tampa Bay Times's Eric Deggans panned the series as having "a serious case of sitcomitis", writing that the character types and the humor's focus on sex and dating were formulaic.

[29] Dismissing the show as a "pedestrian comedy", Allan Johnson for the Chicago Tribune questioned its purpose while criticizing the producers for not handling the matter in either an insightful or a funny manner.

[4] In the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Ken Parish Perkins wrote that The Random Years was too generic to attract an audience and said it would only appeal to those who "get a kick out of watching ships sink".

[31] While reviewing its series premiere, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer's John Levesque said The Random Years would "soon find its place among the other Friends pretenders in the great dustbin of shows lacking that magical combination of smart writing and lucky casting".

[27] Newsday's Noel Holston praised Murray for conveying "effortless slacker charm", and wrote that he elevated the Antiques Roadshow strip poker scene to be the first episode's only highlight.