Friday, May 11, 2018
Fri-Yay: Fox's Comedy Bloodbath: What Does It Mean?; Fox Orders Second Multi-Camera Sitcom

by Vincent
Yesterday, Fox cancelled nearly its entire slate of comedies, including the quirky, high-concept veteran The Last Man on Earth, once promising Kaitlin Olson launching pad The Mick, and most heartbreakingly, the internet-beloved Brooklyn Nine-Nine. This is in addition to the departing New Girl, which will wrap up its seven-year run next week. The jury is still out on freshman comedies Ghosted and LA to Vegas, but either way, it's clear this marks a big change for Fox.
Fox, as you may remember, is going through a major shake-up as its parent company 20th Century Fox was recently bought by Disney. Fox (the network) is still owned by News Corp and not Disney, but this shake-up does change the course for Fox a bit - they no longer have stake in a production company, which means any scripted series they air will be owned by another company. Many have speculated that this will result in Fox going "broader" and relying primarily on sports and live events for its primetime series. If this slate of cancellations, along with Fox's rumored revival of Last Man Standing, is indicative of the future, those people might just be right.
Still, these cancellations certainly come as a surprise - while all of these shows were low-rated, much of Fox's line-up is, and over the past several years Fox has consistently renewed shows in worse ratings shape than these 3 shows are. Despite the reputation the network had in the 2000s as a "murderer" of fan favorite shows like Arrested Development, Futurama and Firefly, the Fox of the 2010s has been almost the opposite. There is no other network, for example, where a low-rated, high-concept sitcom like The Last Man on Earth could've survived for four seasons, or where shows like New Girl and Brooklyn Nine-Nine could see renewal after renewal despite being low-rated niche hits. And yet, all of that seems to be ending soon. It's a real shame that it had to end so abruptly, as these shows - particularly longer-running Brooklyn Nine-Nine and The Last Man on Earth, had done enough to at least earn a proper farewell, the kind that New Girl is getting this season. These shows had large, passionate fanbases and were inventive, creative shows that clearly had a lot of love put into them. To have them ripped away without warning is cruel and cold. But hey, that's the television business for you. We're living in a post-streaming world and a world of reboots, so there's always the chance a streaming show or even another network will scoop up and save at least one of these shows. But if not, we can at least be thankful for the years of great TV they provided us with.
And sticking with Fox, they have ordered another multi-camera sitcom for 2018-19: Rel. Lil Rel, a prideful, self-made success who lives by the code to "always believe in yourself and great things will come," finds that attitude put to the test when he learns his wife is having an affair with his own barber. He tries to rebuild his life post-divorce as a long-distance single father on the South Side of Chicago who's on a quest for love, respect and a new barber. Inspired by Lil Rel's real life.
The sitcom stars Lil Rel Howery as Lil Rel, Sinbad as Rel's Dad, Jess "Hilarious" Moore as Brittany, and Jordan L. Jones as Nat. The sitcom will be produced by Jerrod Carmichael, Mike Scully, Kevin Barnett, Josh Rabinowitz and Lil Rel Howery. Rel joins multi-camera sitcom The Cool Kids in the only Fox comedy orders so far.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Wednesday, July 9
Shifting Gears - "Gummies" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Riley is horrified when she finds weed gummies in Carter’s pocket, prompting surprising advice from Matt. Meanwhile, Eve inadvertently lands Gabriel and Stitch in hot water after asking them to donate to a charity auction.
Shifting Gears - "Kiss" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Jimmy returns with a new job and a proposition for Riley and the kids to move into his house, Riley is torn between her past and her future. Meanwhile, Matt's feud with Eve flares up once again after she damages his car.
Abbott Elementary - "Volunteers" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Ava announces the school district is sending a group of volunteers to help out at Abbott; however, when they arrive, things don’t go as planned.
Abbott Elementary - "100th Day of School" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
During Abbott’s 100th day of school celebrations, Barbara receives a surprise from her daughter. Melissa, Jacob and Mr. Johnson join forces to conduct a search party.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "The Gang F***s Up Abbott Elementary" (FXX and FX, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Months after the Gang visited, Abbott's Principal Ava walks viewers through some of the unseen footage of the Gang's volunteerism and reveals their true intentions.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "Frank Is in a Coma" (FXX and FX, 9:33PM ET/PT)
The five stages of grief set in for Dee as Frank lies on his deathbed; the Guys plot their new path forward by pitching their business ventures to Philadelphia's elite.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 7)
Wednesday, July 9
- Anthony Anderson (black-ish/Guys with Kids/All About the Andersons) - Anthony guest hosts Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Salma Hayek Pinault (The Sinbad Show) - Watch Salma on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Jean Smart (Hacks/Samantha Who?/Center of the Universe/In-Laws/Style & Substance/Designing Women) - Jean is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Cole Escola (Human Resources/Search Party/Mozart in the Jungle/Difficult People) - Cole appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Richie Moriarty (Ghosts), Betsy Sodaro (Ghosts/Duncanville/Disjointed/Animal Practice) and Punam Patel (Ghosts/Return of the Mac/Kevin from Work) - Richie, Betsy and Punam are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- Tika Sumpter (mixed-ish/Final Space/The Game) - Tika sits down with the Tam Fam to talk about her new children's book I Got It From My Mama a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
- Isabela Merced (100 Things to Do Before High School/Growing Up Fisher) - Isabela chats about her film Superman on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Anna Camp (Perfect Harmony/Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt/The Mindy Project) and Justin Bartha (The New Normal/Teachers) - Anna and Justin discuss their film Nuked on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Simon Helberg (The Big Bang Theory) - Simon talks about Peacock's Poker Face on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
07/22 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
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