SitcomsOnline Digest: Unauthorized Full House Story for Lifetime; Seinfeld Goes to Hulu; Unclear Future for CSI

Saturday, May 02, 2015

SitcomsOnline Digest: Unauthorized Full House Story for Lifetime; Seinfeld Goes to Hulu; Unclear Future for CSI

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! Full House continues to be news thanks to a behind-the-scenes drama being made for Lifetime and some actual mini-drama involving the Olsen twins, Seinfeld has a new online home, and we're approaching that time of the year where we find out once and for all which shows will stay and which will go... and it isn't looking particularly good for one previously unstoppable procedural franchise on CBS. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

Lifetime is trying to get in on the Full House mania right now by doing an unofficial movie about the drama behind-the-scenes, much like their Unauthorized Saved by the Bell Story. (Deadline)
We mentioned a while back that Sony was trying to find an online home for Seinfeld, and this week, it seems that Hulu got those rights, in a $160 million deal valued around $875,000 per episode. (Variety)
CSI has been one of the defining series for CBS since it debuted in October 2000, but with a declining audience and increasing cost of production, most believe that the series is about to be put to rest forever. The question is whether it will get a proper ending with a short (as short as six episode) season next year, or was the season finale that aired in February have been the last episode ever? (Deadline)
When the NBC series Aquarius debuts later this month, the network is going to try a new approach for a broadcast network sitcom by making all 13 episodes available for immediate binge viewing on video on demand, before the remaining episodes even air on NBC. (Variety)
The entire world knew about the Full House reboot, Fuller House, except for the Olsen twins apparently. But John Stamos isn't buying that. (ABC News)
Actress Suzanne Crough, best known for her role on The Partridge Family, died this week at age 52. (NY Times)
Antenna TV is planning to celebrate Mother's Day with a 40 episode One Day at a Time marathon. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHT

While some series have remained completely unreleased on DVD, The Abbott and Costello Show is about to be released on DVD for a third time on June 9, with The Abbott and Costello Show - The Ultimate Collection.
Mill Creek has another Sony re-release, with Archie Bunker's Place - Season One on July 7.

RECENT REVIEWS ON SITCOMSONLINE.COM

Growing Pains - The Complete Fourth Season: Our DVD reviews "come out of a coma" after a long hiatus with this review of the recent Warner Archive release featuring the season of Growing Pains that brought the birth of a Seaver, a new stepfather for Jason, a new girlfriend (and fiance?) for Mike, and a serious life moment for Carol. The episodes only set looks fine for the most part, although there are some defects on the menu navigation on the first disc.

MAY 5 HOME MEDIA RELEASES

Cheers - The Complete Series (DVD, $117.99): CBS puts all eleven seasons of the classic series together in one set for the first time ever.
The Fugitive - The Complete Series (DVD, $79.99): CBS re-releases the complete series of this show, without the bonus disc included in the previous complete series release.
Parenthood - Season 6 (DVD, $39.98): The final season of the NBC drama comes together in this final DVD release of the series; Parenthood - The Complete Series (DVD, $119.98) also available.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Zachery Ty Bryan (Twitter)

Claim to Fame: While Zachery Ty Bryan started out in some advertising spots when he was younger, he came into his best known role when he was only 10 years old, playing oldest son Brad Taylor on the hit ABC sitcom Home Improvement. Following that series, he has mostly done a lot of guest starring roles, on series such as Boston Public, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Veronica Mars, Cold Case, and Burn Notice. These days, he is dabbling in behind-the-scenes work in production. And, if you read his Twitter feed, you'll see that all of that love for soccer that he had on the series wasn't just made-for-TV, it is something that is a real thing in his life. That isn't his only sports connection: his second cousin is former NFL quarterback Brady Quinn.

Pick of the Tweets: "Home Improvement Swag -- #ThrowbackThursday http://instagram.com/p/ZX_6FJzhk2/" (May 16, 2013)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Wednesday, April 1

The Goldbergs - "Island Time" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Erica, Barry, Geoff and the JTP go on a spring break trip and things are not what they expect. Meanwhile, Adam questions if college is for him when his test scores are not as good as he was hoping for.

Schooled - "Lainey's Mom" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
With some encouragement from Coach Mellor, Lainey reunites with her mother. While inspired by the film “Good Will Hunting,” Wilma adds a new, unorthodox addition to the robotics club.

Modern Family - "I'm Going to Miss This" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Mitchell is having a hard time letting go of his old life and Gloria steps in to help him say goodbye. Meanwhile, Haley, Luke and Alex decide to throw a party at the Dunphy house when Claire and Phil leave for a trip, and Dylan’s mom takes the twins for the night.

American Housewife - "The Battle for Second Breakfast" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Katie begins to feel like the third wheel when the topic at second breakfast starts revolving solely around Angela and Doris’ new relationships. Meanwhile, Greg struggles with Anna-Kat’s newfound independence.

Dave - "Talent Shows" (FXX, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Dave is in Philly for his first concert ever, and the gang stays with his parents; after reuniting with his overnight camp friends, Dave ponders his artistic roots.

In The Cut - "Barbershop Through the Years" (Bounce TV, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When the city announces it will demolish Jay's business to make way for a new freeway, everyone must come together to convince an appraiser that the barbershop is a historical landmark.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 30)

Wednesday, April 1

Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family) and Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family/The Class) - Watch Eric and Jesse on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12:05am on ABC.
Ryan Reynolds (Two Guys and a Pizza Place) - Ryan is a guest on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Anna Faris (Mom) - Anna appears on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Terry Crews (Brooklyn Nine-Nine/Are We There Yet?/Everybody Hates Chris) - Terry is a guest on A Little Late with Lilly Singh at 1:35am on NBC. He will also be on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Nico Santos (Superstore) - Nico talks about Superstore on People Now at 1pm.
Issa Rae (Insecure) - Issa talks about The Lovebirds on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Adam Pally (Indebted/Making History/The Mindy Project/Happy Endings) - Adam talks about Indebted on a repeat of Access Daily, so check your local listings.
Carly Hughes (American Housewife) - Carly talks about American Housewife on a repeat of Home & Family on Hallmark Channel at 10am ET/PT.