Fri-Yay: Superstore Season 4 At the Top of Its Game; Freeform's New Kickoff to Christmas Event

Friday, October 12, 2018

Fri-Yay: Superstore Season 4 At the Top of Its Game; Freeform's New Kickoff to Christmas Event

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

Last week, I talked about one of my favorite sitcoms on network TV, The Good Place. The Good Place's timeslot partner, Superstore, is my other choice for "best sitcom on TV" and, frankly, one of the best shows on TV. In the show's fourth season premiere, it gave a perfect example of why. "Back to School" was one of the absolute best season premieres I've seen in some time. It combined a great Superstore story with current events seamlessly, while progressing the show's story arc. And most importantly, it was packed to the brim with great jokes just as well-crafted as the plot they were a part of. Superstore's Season 4 premiere was the type of episode I would show to someone as an example of what the show is capable of. And unlike The Good Place, Superstore succeeds not by running away from sitcom conventions, but from playing to them and bringing a fresh perspective to them.

In many ways, Superstore is an example of how the traditional sitcom format is still alive and well. It's hard to imagine the show having the same impact in any way that's not a weekly network sitcom. Spending so much time with the Cloud 9 crew is what allows us to relate to their life, and so much of Superstore is about relating to the well-crafted characters, as in many ways, the show intends them to stand in for the rest of America. Sure, plenty of shows covered the #MeToo movement, but only Superstore can bring it to the level of everyday Americans and capture the murky waters that they have to navigate each day, rather than viewing at it from a big, Hollywood level. Superstore isn't the only show that can cover hot topics, but it's truly one of the only shows that cares to cover these topics from the lens of normal, everyday Americans - which in some ways, makes its coverage of these topics feel more valid and more convincing. Also? Superstore is just really funny, with really lovable characters. The premiere ends in a bit of a plot twist that feels so earned and so genuinely thrilling. Ultimately, Superstore is a show that any sitcom fan should be watching - it's a traditional sitcom operating at the absolute top of its game, showing how excellent a sitcom truly can be.

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

As the Halloween season comes to a close, Freeform will continue to be the home for all holiday programming as the brand-new "Kickoff To Christmas" programming event starts on November 1. Adding a month full of holiday fun, the programming event will also include the premiere of the Freeform original film The Truth About Christmas, from MarVista Entertainment, airing Sunday, Nov. 25 from 9:00-11:00 p.m. EST/PST. In the film, Kali Hawk (New Girl) stars as Jillian, a successful political consultant confident in her ability to put a spin on anything, whose next big project is the upcoming mayoral campaign for her boyfriend George (Damon Dayoub, Freeform's Stitchers). On the way to meet George's family for the first time during the holidays, an unusual confrontation with a toy store Santa results in a drastic change in Jillian where she can’t stop herself from wildly spilling the truth. Ali Ghandour (Freeform's Alone Together) co-stars as George's brother Blake, who believes you should always be true to yourself but thinks Jillian just might be losing it. Jillian must find a way to make it stop before her holidays, her job and her relationship are ruined. View the full month's line-up of holiday magic!

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Sunday, December 8

Universal Basic Guys - "Sheet Shock" (Fox, 8:00PM ET/PT)
After feeling slighted by a Navy recruiter, Mark sets out to join an elite unit of the Marines, only to be thwarted by his inability to properly make a bed; David teams up with a veteran, who reveals stories that are stranger than fiction.

The Simpsons - "Convenience Airways" (Fox, 8:30PM ET/PT)
The Simpsons are trapped on a flight with the most unruly passengers in America.

Bob's Burgers - "They Slug Horses, Don't They?" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Tina and Louise get into an argument.

Krapopolis - "Shlub$" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Shlub is sick -- well, one part of Shlub is sick -- so the family uses Hippocampus' new invention to extract and replace the ailing part, but might just need to operate on themselves in order to save him.

The Neighborhood - "Welcome to the Name Drop" (CBS, 10:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Marty and Courtney’s baby name gets spread around because nobody can keep a secret. Meanwhile, Dave is assigned the ever-complicated task of assembling the diaper changing table.

The Conners - "Smoking Penguins and Santa on Santa Action" (The CW, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Dan is disappointed when everyone but Becky forgets about his birthday; Darlene faces another issue; Dan excludes Jackie from the family Christmas Santa photo for mistreating Louise.

The Conners - "Yard Sale, Phone Fail, and a College Betrayal" (The CW, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Louise starts to move into the Conners' home; Dan decides to sell the furniture set he bought for Roseanne when they were first married; Dan soon finds parting with the furniture harder than he thought it would be.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 2)

Friday, December 6

Ralph Macchio (Eight Is Enough) - Watch Ralph on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Ben Stiller (Arrested Development) - Ben is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Rita Moreno (One Day at a Time/Happily Divorced/9 to 5) - Rita appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Emily Osment (Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage/Young Sheldon/Young & Hungry/Hannah Montana), Tien Tran (How I Met Your Father) and Vinny Thomas (Platonic) - Emily, Tien and Vinny are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Hilary Swank (Camp Wilder) - NBC's Today catches up with Hilary in the 10am hour.
The Cast of Sex Lives of College Girls - The Sex Lives of College Girls creator Mindy Kaling is joining Drew on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Then, the case of the show, Pauline Chalamet, Alyah Chanelle Scott, Amrit Kaur, Mia Rodgers and Gracie Lawrence are all chatting about the latest season of the hit show.
Ryan Destiny (grown-ish) and Brian Tyree Henry (HouseBroken/Atlanta) - Ryan and Brian talk about their new film The Fire Inside on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Steve Howey (Reba) - Steve talks about NBC's Happy Place on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Krysten Ritter (Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23) - Krysten discusses her film Sonic 3 on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
Melissa Joan Hart (Baby Daddy/Sabrina the Teenage Witch/Clarissa Explains It All) - Melissa is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:05am.