Friday, October 20, 2017
Fri-Yay: How Are This Season's Sitcoms Doing?; COZI TV's 3rd Annual Munster-thon
It's time for another edition of Fri-Yay! That means we will take a look back on some sitcom happenings in recent days or weeks or other fun sitcomy stuff. It's a sitcom lover's paradise! Happy Fri-Yay!
by Vincent
A few weeks ago, I outlined the most promising new sitcoms of the season, while acknowledging that it was a bit of a disappointing season for new sitcoms. Since then, there's been a little movement on the sitcom front - shows have premiered, had their ratings measured, and had time to develop a critical consensus. And since then, it's become even more clear: this is an "off" season for network TV sitcoms. The most promising sitcom of the season, quality-wise, is The Mayor, and yet it's also the lowest-rated, falling to a measly 0.8 rating in its most recent airing. CBS's 9JKL and Me, Myself and I ratings also aren't particularly impressive, and quality-wise, neither show has really taken off in a way that would make either one of them particularly promising. In fact, the only two sitcoms this season that seem to be doing well are Will & Grace and Young Sheldon, both of which obviously are coming from previously loved and established successful brands, the original Will & Grace and The Big Bang Theory.
This is especially a bit surprising because the last few years have really been quite good for sitcoms - shows like Superstore, The Good Place, Speechless, The Mick, Great News and Life in Pieces are all worthwhile additions to the network sitcom canon, on various different networks. Truthfully, sitcom quality tends to be a bit of a continuous cycle. Much of the good "talent" (on and off camera) gets used during a "hot streak," so the following year or two tends to be a little lighter. That could be why we saw so much reliance on past brands when networks were putting together their 2017-2018 TV slate: from Will & Grace to Young Sheldon to the upcoming Roseanne relaunch.
So it's not time to be declaring the end of network television yet. After all, there are plenty of truly excellent sophomore and third-year sitcoms at the height of their powers that can be enjoyed. Plus, we have some interesting shows coming up mid-season, such as the much-discussed Roseanne reboot to Glenn Howerton of Always Sunny fame's network TV debut on NBC's AP Bio. The state of the sitcom is still in pretty good hands, even if it's a bit of a weak fall.
by Vincent
A few weeks ago, I outlined the most promising new sitcoms of the season, while acknowledging that it was a bit of a disappointing season for new sitcoms. Since then, there's been a little movement on the sitcom front - shows have premiered, had their ratings measured, and had time to develop a critical consensus. And since then, it's become even more clear: this is an "off" season for network TV sitcoms. The most promising sitcom of the season, quality-wise, is The Mayor, and yet it's also the lowest-rated, falling to a measly 0.8 rating in its most recent airing. CBS's 9JKL and Me, Myself and I ratings also aren't particularly impressive, and quality-wise, neither show has really taken off in a way that would make either one of them particularly promising. In fact, the only two sitcoms this season that seem to be doing well are Will & Grace and Young Sheldon, both of which obviously are coming from previously loved and established successful brands, the original Will & Grace and The Big Bang Theory.
This is especially a bit surprising because the last few years have really been quite good for sitcoms - shows like Superstore, The Good Place, Speechless, The Mick, Great News and Life in Pieces are all worthwhile additions to the network sitcom canon, on various different networks. Truthfully, sitcom quality tends to be a bit of a continuous cycle. Much of the good "talent" (on and off camera) gets used during a "hot streak," so the following year or two tends to be a little lighter. That could be why we saw so much reliance on past brands when networks were putting together their 2017-2018 TV slate: from Will & Grace to Young Sheldon to the upcoming Roseanne relaunch.
So it's not time to be declaring the end of network television yet. After all, there are plenty of truly excellent sophomore and third-year sitcoms at the height of their powers that can be enjoyed. Plus, we have some interesting shows coming up mid-season, such as the much-discussed Roseanne reboot to Glenn Howerton of Always Sunny fame's network TV debut on NBC's AP Bio. The state of the sitcom is still in pretty good hands, even if it's a bit of a weak fall.
COZI TV is inviting viewers to tune in for a pre-Halloween special broadcast marathon of the iconic sitcom, The Munsters. The 10-hour marathon will run on Saturday, October 28 beginning at 12 PM and ending at 10 PM (check local listings). This is the third year the popular national multicast network will broadcast the marathon. The marathon will feature the first 19 fan-favorite episodes of season one, along with the special Auto-Tune The Munsters – a musical version of the episode "A Man for Marilyn." The Munsters follows the hilariously spooky Munster family as they try to lead a regular life at 1313 Mockingbird Lane. Featuring Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster, Yvonne De Carlo as Lily Munster and Al Lewis as Grandpa Munster, The Munsters regularly airs Monday to Friday at 7 PM on COZI TV. Episodes in COZI TV's October 28 Munster-thon are:
Munster Masquerade (12:00 PM)
My Fair Munster (12:30 PM)
Walk On The Mild Side (1:00 PM)
Rock-A-Bye Munster (1:30 PM)
Pike's Pique (2:00 PM)
Low Cal Munster (2:30 PM)
Tin Can Man (3:00 PM)
Herman The Great (3:30 PM)
Knock Wood, Here Comes Charlie (4:00 PM)
Autumn Croakus (4:30 PM)
Auto-Tune The Munsters (5:00 PM)
Ride Of Herman Munster (5:30 PM)
The Sleeping Cutie (6:00 PM)
A Family Portrait (6:30 PM)
Grandpa Leaves Home (7:00 PM)
Herman's Rival (7:30 PM)
Grandpa's Call of the Wild (8:00 PM)
All Star Munster (8:30 PM)
If A Martian Answers (9:00 PM)
Eddie's Nickname (9:30 PM)
Sitcoms Airing Tonight
Sunday, September 25
The Simpsons - "Habeas Tortoise" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
After Homer humiliates himself in a town meeting, he looks for acceptance in an internet group hunting for a missing tortoise but finds something much more sinister.
The Great North - "A Knife to Remember Adventure" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Honeybee and Wolf discover an Outback-themed restaurant they can't stop going to; beef confronts his fear of small talk.
Bob's Burgers - "To Bob, or Not to Bob" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Bob, Linda and the kids help Mr. Fischoeder put on a play to get his brother Felix to confess to a theft; Louise is jealous of Tina's hands.
Family Guy - "Oscars Guy" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
The Griffins perform a retelling of three Oscar-winning stories: "Silence of the Lambs," "American Beauty" and "Forrest Gump."
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of September 19)
Friday, September 23
- Quinta Brunson (Abbott Elementary) - Watch Quinta on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Jon Hamm (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt/30 Rock) - Jon appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. He talks about Confess, Fletch on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- Jurnee Smollett (Wanda at Large/On Our Own) - Jurnee is a guest on on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- 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.
- Jeff Goldblum (Search Party) - Jeff is a guest on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
- Niecy Nash (Scream Queens/Getting On/The Soul Man/Do Not Disturb/Reno 911!) - Niecy talks about her role in the ABC series The Rookie: Feds on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
- Ms. Pat (The Ms. Pat Show) - Ms. Pat talks about her journey to comedy superstardom on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
- Billy Eichner (Friends from College/Difficult People/Parks and Recreation) - Billy talks about Bros on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Lauren Graham (M.Y.O.B./Conrad Bloom/Townies/Good Company) - Lauren talks about The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
New on DVD/Blu-ray (May-September)
05/03 - No Activity - Season Three
05/13 - The Donna Reed Show - The Complete Seasons 1-5 (Time Life)
05/31 - Becker - The Complete Series (2022 Release)
06/14 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Eleventh Season
06/14 - Hacks - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
06/14 - Rutherford Falls - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
06/21 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season One / The Complete Season Two
07/19 - The Neighborhood - Season Four
07/19 - Reno 911! - The Hunt for QAnon (Blu-ray) (DVD)
07/26 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Three / The Complete Season Four
08/16 - And Just Like That... - The Complete First Season (Warner Bros. - Canada)
08/16 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Fourth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/06 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Fifth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
09/20 - Kim's Convenience - The Complete Series
09/27 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Five / The Complete Season Six
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