Monday, September 04, 2006
FOX Sitcom Pilot Reviews: 'Til Death and Happy Hour - Premiere September 7th
We are proud to present reviews of the new fall sitcom pilots for the second consecutive season. There will be 8 new sitcoms premiering in September and October. There looks to be a number of promising sitcoms this fall, such as The Class, 30 Rock, The Knights of Prosperity, and Help Me Help You. Hopefully we'll see a number of big hits, as we've hit a bit of a dry spell in recent years. It would also be nice if some of last season's new sitcom hits (How I Met Your Mother, My Name Is Earl, The New Adventures of Old Christine) don't suffer any sophomore slumps. Look for our other pilot reviews in the upcoming weeks, as we get closer to their premiere dates. We'll also bring you reviews of the mid-season sitcoms, when they are announced at a later date.
'Til Death - Thursdays at 8:00PM ET/PT on FOX
Premieres September 7th at 8:00PM ET/PT
'TIL DEATH is a comedy about middle-aged EDDIE (Brad Garrett, "Everybody Loves Raymond") and JOY STAMM (Joely Fisher, "Desperate Housewives"), who are on day 8,743 of their marriage and have the battle scars to prove it. Their new next-door neighbors are young newlyweds STEPH (Kat Foster, "Law & Order") and JEFF WOODCOCK (Eddie Kaye Thomas, "Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle") - idealistic, passionate, adorable and married for all of 12 days. It's a show about new marriage versus old marriage, about keeping the romance alive - or at least staying together so you have someone to drive you to the hospital for your operations. Eddie is a cynical realist who considers himself an expert on most topics. A high school history teacher, he's learned well the lessons of history and applies the basic principles to his marriage: all fights are about power, land and resources - and women love to kill fun. A veteran of the marriage wars, Eddie freely gives his advice to the younger, idealistic Jeff, who's the new Vice Principal at Eddie's school. Of course, Eddie's little secret all along is that he loves Joy more than anything. And however brash and sardonic Joy herself appears, she loves Eddie right back.
Cast: Brad Garrett as Eddie Stamm, Joely Fisher as Joy Stamm, Eddie Kaye Thomas as Jeff Woodcock, Kat Foster as Steph Woodcock
Read our review of the pilot episode here.
Discuss the show after you watch it on Thursday on our message board.
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Happy Hour - Thursdays at 8:30PM ET/PT on FOX
Premieres September 7th at 8:30PM ET/PT
Straight arrow HENRY BECKMAN (John Sloan, "The OH in Ohio") had it all: a great job, a perfect girlfriend and a sweet apartment. He was a big fish in the small pond of Amsterdam, Missouri. And then he let HEATHER (Brooke D'Orsay, "King's Ransom") talk him into moving to Chicago to work in her family business, where it all went wrong. In the space of one morning, Henry gets dumped by Heather, learns he can no longer work for Heather's uncle, and gets kicked out of their apartment. It's in this vulnerable state that he meets his new roommate, a vain, flashy, loveable rogue named LARRY CONE (Lex Medlin, "Still Standing"). Larry is a modern-day Dean Martin who is looking for a new protg to teach the wisdom of staying single and enjoying the good life. Larry's last roommate and best friend, BRAD (Nat Faxon, "Joey"), has gotten engaged to the shrew TINA (Jamie Denbo, "Must Love Dogs"), a cold and controlling fiance who's immune to Larry's considerable charm. Under Larry's tutelage, Henry begins to rebuild his life and goes to work for Larry's childhood friend AMANDA (Beth Lacke, "The Rest of Your Life"), a beautiful mess who's unsuccessfully trying to emulate her perfect ideal of womanhood, Kelly Ripa. Will Henry manage to hold onto his traditional values and remain a hopeless romantic? Or will Larry indeed "build a better Brad"?
Cast: John Sloan as Henry Beckman, Lex Medlin as Larry Cone, Nat Faxon as Brad Cooper, Jamie Denbo as Tina DiFabio, Beth Lacke as Beth Pennington, Brooke D’Orsay as Heather Hanson
Read our review of the pilot episode here.
Discuss the show after you watch it on Thursday on our message board.
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Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Tuesday, September 15
Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Killa" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Staffing issues and new residents collide with family drama when Sandra's love life comes under scrutiny and her boyfriend may not be who he claims to be.
The Ms. Pat Show - "Wild Goose Chase" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT)
During a family yard sale, Ashley misplaces Lloyd's ashes and his final letter; Pat and Terry barter with a young girl to recover a very personal VHS tape.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 14)
Tuesday, September 15
- Alan Cumming (Schmigadoon!) - Catch Alan on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. He also talks about The Traitors on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Jimmie Walker (Good Times/At Ease/Bustin' Loose) - Jimmie is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
- Rosie O'Donnell (SMILF/Stand by Your Man/Gimme a Break!) - Rosie appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Chelsea Frei (The Paper/The Moodys) - Andy Cohen interviews Chelsea on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 1:30am on Bravo. NBC's Today catches up with her in the 9am hour.
- Joel McHale (Animal Control/The Great Indoors/Community) - Joel drops by to talk Animal Control on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Neil Patrick Harris (How I Met Your Mother/Star Raving Mad/Doogie Howser, M.D.) - Neil is joining Drew to chat all about his new movie Sunny Dancer on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Tisha Campbell (Act Your Age/Uncoupled/Outmatched/Dr. Ken/Rita Rocks/My Wife and Kids/Martin) - Tisha and her son Xen talk about The A Word: A Mother's Journey Through Autism and Love on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/20/26 - The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Golden Age Collection (Blu-ray)
01/27/26 - The New Fred and Barney Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/11/26 - Tom and Jerry - The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)
03/24/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
04/11/26 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Fourth Season (DVD)
04/21/26 - Famous Studios Champion Collection (Blu-ray) (DVD)
05/19/26 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series - 75th Anniversary Edition (DVD)
05/19/26 - Looney Tunes Cartoons - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
06/16/26 - Difficult People - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
06/30/26 - Dastardly and Muttley in Their Flying Machines - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
07/14/26 - The Office - The Complete Series - Superfan Extended Episodes (Blu-ray)
07/28/26 - The Bill Dana Show - The Complete Series (DVD)
07/28/26 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series - 75th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray)
07/28/26 - The Paper - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
08/25/26 - Perfect Strangers - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/08/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 3 (Blu-ray)
09/22/26 - Bridget Loves Bernie - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
09/29/26 - The Quick Draw McGraw Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
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