Friday, September 14, 2018
Fri-Yay: A Look at the Upcoming Sitcom Slate; TV Guide's 1st Annual 100 Best Shows List
by Vincent
It's fall (or at least almost fall), which means a few things: cooler weather, pumpkin spice flavored everything, and...a brand new slate of network sitcoms! Now, that was a much more exciting prospect even 5 or 10 years ago. As cable and streaming services have boomed, it feels increasingly less like there's a real "TV season - even the networks themselves aren't always restricting themselves to the old September to May model, with many promising shows being held for mid-season and airing shorter seasons. Yet, the networks will still trot out a whole bunch of new shows this fall. I'll be taking a closer look at each show over the next few weeks, but I thought I'd take this week's column to give my opinion on the overall slate of sitcoms and what shows I'm particularly keeping an eye on.
Last fall was a pretty weak one for new sitcoms, and frankly, this fall isn't all that much better. You can very clearly see the response to the success of the Roseanne reboot in this fall's sitcom slate, as many of the buzziest prospects on networks are actually revivals - from the revived Murphy Brown to the "re-imagined" version of the Roseanne reboot The Conners to the also "revived" Last Man Standing. Expect these shows to get a lot of buzz regardless of quality - especially since, frankly, the rest of the slate is pretty weak. Still, there's a couple of shows I'll be keeping my own. Fox largely destroyed its comedy block at Upfronts this past spring, but it is premiering new series Rel, starring The Carmichael Show's Lil Rel Howery. Howery was a strong part of Carmichael, so it'll be interesting to see him in a new role. I'll also be keeping an eye on ABC's Single Parents, which gets the post-Modern Family slot and stars SNL alum Taran Killam. That suggests it should at least be watchable if ABC is giving it that plum slot, right? Plus, Killam is a great comedic talent who should bring liveliness to the role regardless of the quality of the rest of the show. I'm also interested in NBC's I Feel Bad, which is produced by Amy Poehler and stars Sarayu Blue in her first TV role. It's interesting to see Poehler giving a chance to a fresh voice, and I'll be keeping an eye out. Finally, Fox will be pairing its revived Last Man Standing with The Cool Kids, a multi-camera sitcom about a retirement home...which sort of shows you the audience they'll be courting for their Friday night comedy block. Oh, and CBS is premiering a drama called God Friended Me, about...a podcast host who becomes friends with God. It certainly has the potential to be the most, uh, interesting show of the fall.
Frankly, if you're someone who believes network sitcoms are losing their relevancy, this slate of sitcoms may not change your mind. But I'm an optimist who believes great shows like The Good Place, Superstore and Brooklyn Nine-Nine are proving the network sitcom can still be excellent, so I'll be hoping these shows defy the odds and step up to the plate.
TV Guide has launched its first-ever 100 Best Shows list. Ahead of the fall TV season, TV Guide's team of editors and pop culture experts have curated the site's first annual ranking of the best shows available to watch right now. TV Guide's 100 Best Shows ranking focuses on highlighting what the editorial team believes to be the most outstanding shows right now. Eligibility is limited to ongoing shows that have at least one more season slated to air.
The top 10 highest-ranked shows include:
The Good Place (NBC)
Atlanta (FX)
Better Call Saul (AMC)
One Day at a Time (Netflix)
Killing Eve (BBC America)
Game of Thrones (HBO)
Stranger Things (Netflix)
Big Little Lies(HBO)
This Is Us (NBC)
Bob's Burgers (FOX)
Out of all the outlets and streaming services, Netflix racked up the most mentions with 20 shows on the list; HBO followed with 10, and FX had seven. Several TV creators stood out among their peers with more than one show on the list, including Michael Schur (The Good Place and Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and Phoebe Waller-Bridge (Fleabag and Killing Eve). TV fans can visit tvguide.com/100BestShows to view the full list, learn more about the featured series, take a personality quiz to recommend their next binge and watch behind-the-scenes footage from the stars of top-ranked shows, including Sterling K. Brown, Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, Brian Tyree Henry, Patrick Fabian and more.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Sunday, February 23
Family Guy - "Live, Laugh, Love" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
When Peter realizes Joe has never found him funny, he is determined to make Joe laugh; Lois chaperones Chris and Meg's school trip, where she strives to reunite the principal with his long-lost love.
Grimsburg - "Molly" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
When Flute forgets to buy Stan a gift for his birthday, he steals an AI doll from the evidence locker; Wynona is forced to confront her ex-boyfriend.
The Great North - "Bots on the Side Adventure" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Ham starts performing at Yet-E-Cheddar's and develops a strange relationship with an animatronic Freddie the Yeti, that puts his relationship with Crispin in jeopardy; the new Tobin boat turns out to have a cursed name.
Krapopolis - "Stavros Live and in Concert" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Tyrannis' favorite singer Stavros is in town, but he also happens to be the favorite singer of Athena and her radical followers; Deliria goes on a little getaway.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of February 17)
Friday, February 21
- Anthony Mackie (Twisted Metal) - Watch Anthony on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Lizzy Caplan (Party Down/The Class/The Pitts) - Lizzy appears on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Tina Fey (Only Murders in the Building/30 Rock) and Amy Poehler (Duncanville/Parks and Recreation) - Tina and Amy are guests on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Keke Palmer (Scream Queens/True Jackson, VP) - Keke appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Jane Fonda (Grace and Frankie) - NBC's Today catches up with Jane sometime between 7-9am.
- Alan Ritchson (Blue Mountain State) - Alan talks about Reacher on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
- Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Valerie appears on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
10/08 - Curb Your Enthusiasm - The Complete Twelfth Season / The Complete Series
10/22 - Veep - The Complete Series (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
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD and Blu-ray Releases / TV Shows on DVD, Blu-ray and Prime Video / DVD Reviews Archive
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