SitcomsOnline Digest: Can CMT Afford to Revive Last Man Standing?; NBC Yanks Episode of The Carmichael Show

Saturday, June 17, 2017

SitcomsOnline Digest: Can CMT Afford to Revive Last Man Standing?; NBC Yanks Episode of The Carmichael Show

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This is a very busy week of news, where we have about twice as many headlines as usual, and it is also like our "very special episode" week. It has, bizarrely, been a week full of controversy (oddly much of it having some connection to NBC in some way), with a mistrial in the Bill Cosby (former major NBC star, of course) criminal trial, the pulling of an episode of The Carmichael Show about a mass shooting, and an interview that NBC insists will air tomorrow night no matter what that has been nothing short of a public relations nightmare for the network. But it isn't just NBC involved in controversy this week, as a popular ABC reality series is facing a huge disaster as well. And we promise, there are a few things that aren't so controversial this week as well, though not much. Let's have a little controversy and let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

ABC's Last Man Standing was cancelled last month, and it was said that the studio that produces the series was looking for a new network. Now, it looks like CMT, which already airs reruns of the series, may be interested in new episodes, though some are already calling that a longshot since the series was already deemed to be too expensive for a major broadcast network and would likely be much more out of reach for a smaller cable network. (Hollywood Reporter)
Controversy seems to be the key theme going in entertainment news this week, and there was some of that at NBC as they pulled an episode of The Carmichael Show (which, to be fair, is one of the first sitcoms to decades to make every episode a controversial "very special episode") on Wednesday night involving a mass shooting... and the star of the show is not happy at all. (Deadline)
Netflix has renewed Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt for a fourth season. (Variety)
Compared to ABC's The View, CBS's The Talk has had considerably more stability in their hosts (though there have still been some shifts), but this week Aisha Tyler announced she would be leaving the show at the end of the current season. (Hollywood Reporter)
While we typically don't report the ongoing details of courts cases involving TV actors, we do point out key moments when it is a prominent sitcom star, and today, a mistrial was declared in the Bill Cosby case; however, the prosecution has made it clear that they plan to start over again, so the case is far from over. (Variety)
In even more "controversial" news this week involving NBC (which by now would probably make some think that NBC is an abbreviation for Nothing But Controversy), the network still insists that they'll be airing a Megyn Kelly interview with the highly controversial conspiracy theorist Alex Jones on Sunday night despite an advertiser revolt and at least one affiliate refusing to air it, but the entire saga has gotten even more bizarre as Alex Jones is preemptively trying to discredit the interview and Megyn Kelly ahead of the airing by releasing secretly recorded conversations online. (ABC News)
Just a little bit more controversy for you this week, this time at ABC, as production of the series Bachelor in Paradise (which has been slated to air later this summer) was shut down early over allegations of "serious misconduct" that haven't quite been clearly specified, but is believed to involve sexual assault. (CNNMoney)
If you believe the Nielsen ratings, NBC ditched their 6:30 PM program called NBC Nightly News this week and replaced it with NBC Nitely News, and much of it has to do with rigging numbers to stay on top of ratings against ABC World News Tonight (which has also played this game before itself, as ABC WRLD NEWS TNT). (Deadline)
In what is NOT a controversial story (unless, of course, somebody rigged the online voting), viewers of Antenna TV have chosen their "Top Pop" for their Father's Day marathon, and you can tune in tomorrow to see who it is, or if you want a spoiler, we've got that for you too. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

It was over a decade ago that Sony released the first season of Ned and Stacey, but the second (and final) one never followed. Now, Shout! Factory is bringing the entire series together with Ned and Stacey - The Complete Series, which will be released on September 26.

TUESDAY (JUNE 20) HOME MEDIA RELEASES

Workaholics - The Final (Seventh) Season (DVD, $19.99): The popular Comedy Central series comes to an end with this release, though if you haven't picked up other seasons, you can just get the complete series (also arriving on Tuesday) for the same price as just two seasons of the series.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: David Walton (Twitter), "Hurtling through space on a massive rock"

Claim to Fame: We're getting a little bit of a kick start on some of the stars of the fall sitcoms this week, even though the season doesn't start for another three months and some of these series may not even last three months (though networks have been a little more generous in recent years before hitting the cancel button). David Walton will be appearing in the CBS series 9JKL this fall, but it isn't his first starring role. He starred in the NBC drama Heist (cancelled after 5 episodes). Then, he moved on to starring in NBC comedies such as Perfect Couples (cancelled after 11 episodes), 100 Questions (cancelled after 6 episodes), Bent (cancelled after 6 episodes), and most recently About a Boy (cancelled after 27 episodes). Now, to be fair we're not suggesting that he is the next Ted McGinley (who is actually a decent actor who just had a tendency to get cast on series when they were coming to an end anyway), and perhaps now that he has moved away from NBC (which has been known for not doing particularly well on scripted series for the past decade or so anyway) and over to CBS, he'll have something that works this time. It is worth pointing out that he did have a recurring role on the Fox series New Girl, and that role actually worked out just fine for him, so we're inclined to believe that he will succeed if cast in a quality series.

Pick of the Tweets: "Don't be fooled. @iamgreenfield rubs my leg as soon as the camera pans up. Every time.… (pic)" (May 3, 2016)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Thursday, April 2

Young Sheldon - "A House Sale and Serious Woman Stuff" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Sheldon learns the house next door is for sale, he takes it upon himself to find the perfect neighbors. Also, Missy is torn when she’s forced to pitch against her boyfriend at the baseball game.

Man with a Plan - "The V-Word" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When Andi’s doctor advises her to stop taking birth control pills, Adam and Andi disagree on an alternate option.

Mom - "Texas Pete and a Parking Lot Carnival" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Bonnie worries about her therapist, Trevor (Rainn Wilson), when his life hits a serious rough patch. Also, Christy comes to Marjorie’s aid when she has trouble adjusting to a new job.

Broke - "Pilot" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Jaime Camil and Pauley Perrette star in a new comedy about a single suburban mother, struggling to make ends meet, who finds her estranged sister and her sister’s outrageously wealthy husband in need of a place to live after the couple’s money dries up.

Last Man Standing - "Keep the Change" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Mike and Vanessa invite Jen's father to her graduation, Jen struggles with accepting his "plus one" -- his girlfriend Fiona; the Outdoor Man crew debates over which word was said in a viral audio recording that's been tearing the internet apart.

Last Man Standing - "Mysterious Ways" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Vanessa is secretly obsessed with Jen's new video game.

Superstore - "Customer Safari" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Amy joins Jonah for lunch with his parents and brother, but she's caught off guard by their family dynamic. Dina worries about being fun and spontaneous when her new boyfriend surprises her at work. Meanwhile, Garrett and the other employees create a game around the store's weird customers, with a suspicious Glenn hot on their tails.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine - "Admiral Peralta" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Jake and his father deal with unsettled family business. Amy and Rosa work a high-profile case. Terry wants to join the NYPD band.

Will & Grace - "Bi-Plane" (NBC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Will and Grace decide to intervene when they discover Grace’s niece (guest start Billie Lourd) is dating a bisexual man (guest star Peter Graham). Jack gets permission from his husband, Estefan (guest star Brian Jordan Alvarez), to sleep with his celebrity hall pass, guest star Ryan Phillippe. Karen struggles to adapt when her assistant, Friday (guest star Vanessa Bayer), books them on an economy flight.

Indebted - "Everybody's Talking About Neighbors" (NBC, 9:30PM ET/PT)
After realizing Debbie and Stew are forcing the neighbors to socialize, Dave and Rebecca try to convince them to keep to themselves, insisting neighbors should just be neighbors.

Better Things - "New Orleans" (FX, 10:00PM ET/PT)
Sam goes to a wedding.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 30)

Thursday, April 2

Jennifer Aniston (Friends/Muddling Through/Ferris Bueller/Molloy) - Catch Jennifer Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 12:05am on ABC.
Amy Poehler (Bless the Harts/Parks and Recreation) - Amy is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Cedric the Entertainer (The Neighborhood/The Last O.G./The Soul Man/The Steve Harvey Show) - Cedric appears on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
Rob Huebel (Medical Police/Transparent/Burning Love) - Rob is a guest on A Little Late with Lilly Singh at 1:35am on NBC.
Sean Hayes (Will & Grace/The Millers/Sean Saves the World) - Sean stops by Conan at 11pm on TBS.
Kyle Richards (Down to Earth) - Kyle is a guest on Watch What Happens: Live at 11pm on Bravo.
Jaime Camil (Broke) and Pauley Perrette (Broke) - Jaime and Pauley talk about Broke on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT. Jaime will also be on People Now at 1pm.
Mario Cantone (Sex and the City) - Mario appears on a repeat of The Wendy Williams Show, so check your local listings.
Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly/Samantha Who?) - Melissa is a guest on a repeat of The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Tisha Campbell (Outmatched/Dr. Ken/Rita Rocks/My Wife and Kids/Martin) - Tisha talks about Outmatched on a repeat of Access Daily, so check your local listings.
Marsai Martin (black-ish) - Marsai appears on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.