Carefree bachelor Charlie Harper (Charlie Sheen)'s life is turned upside down when his divorced brother Alan (Jon Cryer) move in with him and nephew Jake (Angus T. Jones) stays with them on weekends. After returning from a meal trying in which he failed to reconcile with his wife, Judith (Marin Hinkle), Alan finds Charlie to be an irresponsible caretaker for Jake after Charlie allows him play poker, so he takes Jake to move in with his mother, Evelyn (Holland Taylor) instead. But when Alan learns that Jake likes Charlie more, he decides to move back in with him and stay there. Meanwhile, one of Charlie's one-night stands named Rose (Melanie Lynskey) is stalking him. Alan lets her into the house thinking that she is Charlie's housekeeper and she glues all his cabinets shut.
Blythe Danner was originally cast to play Evelyn Harper, but was replaced by Holland Taylor when she started suggesting changes to the screenplay.
Around the 13 minute mark, when Charlie says "I think he's considering it now, mom", you can see a white and red dress where Evelyn is supposed to stand. This is from the unaired pilot where Danner played Evelyn. In the new pilot with Taylor in this role she is wearing a blue dress.
The original unaired pilot was called "Most Chicks Won't Eat Veal", which was spoken by Charlie to Alan, when Alan is explaining to him that Judith thinks she is gay.
Jennifer Bini Taylor played Suzanne in this episode, the girl who flirted with Charlie at the supermarket. She would appear as different characters during the series, most notably in the recurring role of Chelsea.
When Charlie first speaks with Alan's wife, he calls her "Judy" instead of Judith.
When Charlie is talking to his nephew on the patio outside, the beer bottle spins several times, as is indicated by the label being in different positions. However, no one touches the bottle after it is put down.
In Latin America, the translating voice for Holland Taylor is the same that translated her in the movie George of the Jungle.
The German episode title is "Stur, zwanghaft und unflexibel", meaning "Stubborn, Compulsive, and Inflexible". The French title is "Tonton Charlie", meaning "Uncle Charlie". The Italian title is "Tutti da Charlie", meaning "Everyone with Charlie". The Spanish title is "Piloto".
This episode was nominated for an Artios Award for Best Casting for TV, Comedy Pilot.
In Latin America, the translating voice for Angus T. Jones is the same that translated him in George of the Jungle 2.
Guests stars Eddie Gorodetsky and Don Foster are frequent writers for the show.
This episode's end titles has Chuck Lorre's Vanity Card #108.
Charlie Sheen and Jon Cryer starred in the movie Hot Shots.
Jake: Your mom is my grandma. Charlie: Yup. Jake: Grandma says you're a bitter disappointment.
Charlie: You know your uncle Charlie wrote that song. Jake: No lie. Charlie: Kid, if I was going to lie to you, I would have said I wrote "Stairway to Heaven". Not the Maple Loops song.
Charlie: What are you smiling about? Jake: You don't have any food. Charlie: Yeah, but I'm not the one who's hungry. Who's smiling now, shorty?
Jake: If drinking makes you feel bad, why do you drink? Charlie: Nobody likes a smart ass, kid. Jake: You have to put a dollar in the swear jar. You said "ass." Charlie: Tell you what. Here's a twenty. That ought to cover me until lunch.