ABC Sitcom Pilot Reviews: The Knights of Prosperity and In Case of Emergency - Premiere January 3rd

Monday, January 01, 2007

ABC Sitcom Pilot Reviews: The Knights of Prosperity and In Case of Emergency - Premiere January 3rd

Happy New Year! We look forward to bringing you the latest news, schedules, reviews and ratings throughout the year. Thanks to Pavan for doing such a wonderful job!

Today we profile and review two new ABC sitcoms that premiere this week. Will they be the solid hits that ABC is looking for? Tune in Wednesday to find out!

The Knights of Prosperity - Wednesdays at 9:00PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres January 3rd at 9:00PM ET/PT

Eugene Gurkin's (Donal Logue) dreams always have exceeded his means. In fact his dead end job on the late, late janitorial shift won't even fund a bottle of premium booze. In a serendipitous moment, he catches an episode of an entertainment news show and his passion is ignited. Soon Eugene excitedly recruits a group of "average joes" into his "gang" - the Knights of Prosperity -- for a heist to finance all of their long-held, heart-felt dreams. The target: Rock icon Mick Jagger's super-luxe Central Park West apartment.

Society might disregard the Knights and give them short shrift, but this group of upstarts refuses to be ignored: Beauty bombshell Esperanza Villalobos (Sofía Vergara), a diner waitress in Queens, is more than just a pretty face. The only female member of the gang, she sees the celebrity heist as an opportunity to control her own fate - something men have normally done for her.

Working as a janitor alongside Eugene on the overnight shift, Francis "Squatch" Squacieri (Lenny Venito) relates to Eugene's desire for more out of life than mopping up after millionaire executives. The one married Knight, his motivation is to provide a better life for his wife and children.

Back home in India, Gourishankar "Gary" Subramaniam (Maz Jobrani) was a superstar lawyer, but here in New York City he drives a cab to make ends meet. Reluctant to join the group at first, Gary has a change in heart when Eugene reminds him that, although he was a winner at home, here he chauffeurs old ladies to Broadway matinees.

Warehouse security guard Rockefeller Butts (Kevin Michael Richardson), a mountainous, cigar-chewing man, has one simple request in order to join the Knights -- cookies.

A college Communications student, ultra-nerdy Louis Plunk (Josh Grisetti) finds himself at rock bottom after being rejected for an internship by the Montel Williams show. A chance ride in Gary's taxi turns into an offer for Louis to serve an "internship" on a movie. When he discovers the truth about his golden opportunity, he still decides to stay.

Working together, this band of affable, new-age Robin Hoods, who have never even shoplifted a candy bar, are soon casing the joint and prepping for their crime. Their scheme is to steal from the rich and give to the poor - namely, themselves. What they don't realize is that there's a much richer target for them... the chance to find hope, self-esteem and self-confidence.

Rob Burnett and Jon Beckerman, producers of "Late Show with David Letterman" and creators of "Ed," are the co-creators and executive producers of "The Knights of Prosperity." David Letterman, Mick Jagger -- who will appear in a cameo -- and Victoria Pearman are also executive producers. Merrill Karpf, Steve Tompkins and Eric Horsted are co-executive producers. "The Knights of Prosperity," a single-camera comedy, is a production of Touchstone Television.

Cast: Donal Logue as Eugene Gurkin, Sofía Vergara as Esperanza Villalobos, Lenny Venito as Francis "Squatch" Squacieri, Maz Jobrani as Gourishankar Gary Subramaniam, Kevin Michael Richardson as Rockefeller Butts and Josh Grisetti as Louis Plunk.

Read our review of the pilot and second episode here.

Discuss the show after you watch it on Wednesday on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

The Knights of Prosperity Photo Gallery

In Case of Emergency - Wednesdays at 9:30PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres January 3rd at 9:30PM ET/PT

There's a question on every job application, every health questionnaire, every insurance form that we’ve all answered a million times -- whom to contact in case of emergency? Most of the time we all know the answer. But there are times in all of our lives when the answer isn’t so obvious.

Harry (Jonathan Silverman), Jason (David Arquette), Sherman (Greg Germann) and Kelly (Kelly Hu) are old friends from high school who find themselves at that stage where they realize that their lives didn’t turn out exactly the way they’d planned. Unhappily divorced greeting card writer Harry goes for a relaxing “massage” only to discover his scantily clad “therapist” is Kelly, their high school valedictorian, who’s had her own fall from grace. Diet Guru Sherman returns home to discover his wife has left him and taken everything he owns; devastated by the loss, he hijacks a bakery truck and binges on all its contents. Faced with imprisonment for his role in a corporate scandal, financial whiz Jason botches his suicide attempt only to shoot himself in the foot literally. Over the course of one crazy evening, a series of calamities reunites this hapless brood at Los Angeles Westside Hospital, where they all find themselves under the care of a reluctant Dr. Joanna (Lori Loughlin). This band of misfits must now start their lives over with the new realization that they’ve only got each other, “In Case of Emergency.”

Did you know: The concept for “In Case of Emergency” sprang from the real lives of both Howard J. Morris (creator, executive producer) and Emile Levisetti (executive producer) over a lunch in 2005. Morris, a forty-year old newly divorced single father, had just come from the doctor’s office, where for the first time in his life he had not known whose name to write down as his emergency contact. This resonated with Levisetti, a forty-year old life-long bachelor, who volunteered that he had faced the same uncertainty for the last twenty years. The two marveled over the fact that even though they had completely opposite life experiences to date, they both had reached the same common ground. Morris’ vision was to showcase the comedic, high-stakes emotional lives of four friends who reunite and bond in the same way he had done with Levisetti. Through these four characters, the show also explores some universal truths that come with age -- when things get bad, they can always get worse; and that what doesn’t kill you will certainly bring laughter to your friends.

This unique laugh-out-loud comedy proves that any colossal mistake can be overcome with a lot of help from your friends… and pain killers.

Created by Howard J. Morris, “In Case of Emergency” is a production of Touchstone Television, Bushwacker Productions and Howard J. Morris Productions.

Cast: Jonathan Silverman as Harry Kennison, Kelly Hu as Kelly Lee, David Arquette as Jason Ventress, Greg Germann as Sherman Yablonsky, Lori Loughlin as Dr. Joanna and Jackson Bond as Harry’s young son, Dylan.

Read our review of the pilot and second episode here.

Discuss the show after you watch it on Wednesday on our message board.

Related Links:

ABC.com Official Site

TV.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

In Case of Emergency Photo Gallery

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, August 11

The Neighborhood - "Bienvenidos a Nosotros" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Marty prepares to head back to work but isn’t emotionally prepared to send Daphne to daycare. Meanwhile, Gemma notices an issue with the grade Grover’s receiving in his Spanish class.

The Neighborhood - "Welcome to the e-Neighborhood" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
A new community social app shakes up the neighborhood. Also, Marty and Courtney attend a family class with Daphne and unexpectedly bump into Marty’s high school sweetheart.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of August 11)

Monday, August 11

Nicole Byer (Grand Crew/Loosely Exactly Nicole) - Nicole guest hosts Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Tony Hale (Veep/Arrested Development) - Tony appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Cristin Milioti (The Resort/Made for Love/A to Z/How I Met Your Mother) - Cristin is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. NBC's Today catches up with Cristin in the 9am hour.
George Clooney (Roseanne/The Facts of Life/ E/R (1984-1985) - George appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Alan Ritchson (Blue Mountain State) - Alan is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Seth Rogen (The Studio/Platonic/Undeclared) - Seth stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Rachel Bloom (Reboot) and Jim Rash (Community/Help Me Help You/Thanks/Katie Joplin) - Rachel and Jim are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Alicia Silverstone (American Woman) - Alicia can be heard on the "Morning Mash Up" at 9am on SiriusXM.
Alyson Stoner (Phineas and Ferb/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) - Alyson discusses their new memoir Semi-Well-Adjusted Despite Literally Everything on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Julianne Moore (Sirens) - Julianne talks about Sirens on a repeat of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Ashley Tisdale (Phineas and Ferb/Carol's Second Act/Merry Happy Whatever/Clipped/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) - Ashley talks about Phineas and Ferb on a repeat of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Sarah Jessica Parker (And Just Like That.../Divorce/Sex and the City/Square Pegs), Cynthia Nixon (And Just Like That.../Sex and the City), Kristin Davis (And Just Like That.../Bad Teacher/Sex and the City) and Sarita Choudhury (And Just Like That...) - Sarah, Cynthia, Kristin and Sarita chat with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Oliver Hudson (Splitting Up Together/Rules of Engagement/My Guide to Becoming a Rock Star) - Oliver joins the Drew's news desk to cover the latest hot topics on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Jessica St. Clair (Avenue 5/Playing House/Best Friends Forever/In the Motherhood) - Jessica is sharing her breast cancer experience with Drew and Dr. Suzanne Gilberg-Lenz is talking about breast cancer diagnoses on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.