Friday, February 16, 2018
Fri-Yay: Is the Era of the "Sadcom" Over?; TBS Lands Pilot from Emmy Winner
by Vincent
You've probably heard the term "sadcom" before. From about 2014 through 2017, it was all of the rage in television comedy - shows that were comedies, and often very funny, but dealt with some dark, depressing topics, and at times seemed to be just as sad as they were humorous. These shows didn't sugarcoat their characters' misery, which earned them the title of "sadcom." The most obvious examples are shows like You're the Worst or Bojack Horseman, comedies that deal head-on with the topic of mental illness. But you could say that a huge slew of TV comedies from the past few years fall into this category - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Mom, even wacky shows like Review can fall into this territory. These shows are very funny, but certainly aren't afraid to get dark when they want to.
However, over the past year or so, I've noticed a resurgence of bright, happy shows that still deal with serious topics, but still do their best to impose a sense of warmth and empathy even in their darkest moments. The best examples of this are some of my favorite shows on television, One Day at a Time, The Good Place and Superstore. These three shows may seem incredibly different from one another, but they all share in common the fact that they go to some sad places, but still make it clear that their characters truly love each other and are there for each other, no matter how bad things get - whether it be the tight-knit Alvarez family on One Day at a Time, the "core four" of The Good Place, and the makeshift family of Cloud 9 in Superstore, these are shows about people who care about each other very much, even if they're going through some pretty rough stuff much of the time. Even when these shows get dark, there's still a warm, comforting aura to them - and as much as I love some of the "sadcoms" that have come out over the past five years, sometimes it's nice to be in a world where even when things get bad, everything winds up being okay.
On the heels of her Emmy(R) win for Best Comedy Writing and the launch of her series The Chi, TBS has picked up writer and Master of None star Lena Waithe's project Twenties to pilot. Twenties is a single-camera comedy that follows the adventures of a queer black girl, Hattie, and her two straight best friends, Marie and Nia, who spend most of their days talking shit and chasing their dreams. It's a show about friendship, finding love, and messing everything up along the way. Twenties is created, written, and executive produced by Waithe through her production company Hillman Grad Productions and executive produced by Andrew Coles, her manager, for The Mission Entertainment.
TBS, now the #1 comedy network with 3 of the top 5 new cable comedies to date, continues to attract fresh, award-winning talent with new shows The Last O.G. premiering on April 3rd starring Tracy Morgan and Tiffany Haddish, and Miracle Workers starring Daniel Radcliffe and Steve Buscemi.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Monday, March 31
The Neighborhood - "Welcome to the Signature Service Loyalty Rewards Program" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Malcom receives an unexpected call from USC’s athletic director about a baseball head coach vacancy. Meanwhile, Calvin and Marty start a new signature loyalty rewards program at The Fuse Box.
Poppa's House - "Say Wha?!" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Junior’s fundraising effort for his film takes a dramatic turn when he discovers Poppa’s flea market purchase is worth a fortune. Vivica A. Fox guest stars as “Judge SayWha.”
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 31)
Monday, March 31
- Jennifer Coolidge (2 Broke Girls/Joey) - Watch Jennifer on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Britt Lower (Ghosted/Man Seeking Woman/Big Lake) - Britt appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Nathan Lane (Mid-Century Modern/Only Murders in the Building/Modern Family/Charlie Lawrence/Encore! Encore!/One of the Boys) - Nathan stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Maria Bamford (Lady Dynamite/Benched) - Maria is a guest on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Jay Ellis (Running Point/Insecure/The Game) - Jay talks about Running Point and Freaky Tales on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am and on CBS Mornings Plus in the 9am hour.
- Sara Gilbert (The Conners/Bad Teacher/The Big Bang Theory/The Class/Roseanne) - Sara chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT. She also talks about The Conners on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Michelle Buteau (Survival of the Thickest/Bless the Harts/Enlisted) - Michelle talks about Survival of the Thickest on NBC's Today in the 10am hour and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
- Michael Angarano (Laid/I'm Dying Up Here/Will & Grace) - Michael talks about Sacramento on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
- Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia guest co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Eva Longoria (Only Murders in the Building/Telenovela) - Eva talks about Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Road Trip on Sherri, so check your local listings.
- Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie is joining Drew and Ross to hit the headlines in an all-new Drew's News on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
11/05 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/12 - The King of Queens - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (2024 Release)
11/19 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fourteenth Season
11/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 4 (Blu-ray)
12/03 - Angel (1960-1961) - The Complete Series, Volume 1
12/17 - Seinfeld - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (4K UHD)
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive
Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts