Fri-Yay: Where Will The Good Place Go Next?; Everything's Gonna Be Okay at Freeform

Friday, December 14, 2018

Fri-Yay: Where Will The Good Place Go Next?; Everything's Gonna Be Okay at Freeform

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

I know I've talked about The Good Place a lot on this column, but it's the most exciting sitcom - or actually, TV show in general - right now, so I often have a lot of thoughts about it. This column will contain spoilers for last week's Good Place, so if you aren't caught up you might want to stop reading.

Last week, The Good Place seemed to begin to process of doing what I've wanted it to do since the first season - question the ethics of the show's afterlife, where the criteria to get into The Good Place seems nearly impossible. The episode reveals that no one has made it into the good place in 500 years. Now, it's entirely possible the show will walk this back, but it seems to me that the show is finally posting the moral questions it's been hinting at for so long. And what better place to do that than the actual good place? Yep - the show is supposedly in the actual good place at the end of the most recent episode. It's been three years coming, but it seems to finally be happening.

This is a really exciting direction for the show, especially given that parts of this season have felt a little slow, at least by the show's standards. The show spent the large bulk of Season 3 on Earth, which allowed for some interesting character work, but lacked the inventive fun of the first two seasons. Now, though, we seem to be fully back in the afterlife, and the show is once again toying with format, plot, and experimentation the way it did in its first two seasons. As we come to the end of its third season, I can't wait to see where The Good Place goes next.

Josh Tomas

Freeform has picked up Everything's Gonna Be Okay to series with a 10-episode order. From Please Like Me creator, writer and comedian Josh Thomas, and produced by Avalon Television and Freeform, the half-hour comedy introduces Nicholas (Josh Thomas), a neurotic 25-year-old still living at home with his single dad and two teenage half-sisters, one of which has autism. He is not particularly helpful in raising his siblings, but when their dad becomes terminally ill, the girls have to cope with not only a devastating loss but also the realization that Nicholas is the one who will have to hold it all together.

Thomas created the concept, wrote and stars in the pilot and will serve as showrunner with David Martin, Jon Thoday, and Richard Allen-Turner serving as executive producers for Avalon Television. Stephanie Swedlove and Kevin Whyte also serve as executive producers. The series will star Josh Thomas, Kayla Cromer, Maeve Press and Adam Faison.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Thursday, November 26

Young Sheldon - "Pasadena" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Sheldon visits CalTech for the very first time. Also, Georgie is furious when Mary listens in on a phone call with his girlfriend, and Meemaw tries to cheer up a jealous Missy.

B Positive - "Pilot" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Drew, a recently divorced father, discovers he needs a kidney and finds his donor in the last person he ever would’ve imagined.

Young Sheldon - "A Parasol and a Hell of an Arm" (CBS, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
A church carnival leads Missy to try out for the baseball team. Also, Meemaw struggles after her breakup with Dr. Sturgis.

B Positive - "Die Alysis" (CBS, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Drew’s condition worsens, he needs to make sure Gina is still serious about donating her kidney and winds up making her an offer she can’t refuse.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of November 23)

Thursday, November 26

Alison Brie (GLOW/Community) - Catch Alison on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Jerry Seinfeld (Seinfeld) - Jerry appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Brenda Song (Dollface/Dads/The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) and Esther Povitsky (Dollface/Alone Together) - Brenda and Esther are guests on a repeat of A Little Late with Lilly Singh at 1:35am on NBC.
Sam Richardson (Champaign ILL/Detroiters/Veep) - Sam appears on a repeat of Conan Without Borders: Ghana at 11pm on TBS.
Billy Crystal (The Comedians/Soap) - Billy chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Kim Cattrall (Sex and the City) - Kim appears on a repeat of LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
Tig Notaro (One Mississippi) - Tig is a guest on a repeat of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check your local listings.
Cynthia Nixon (Sex and the City) - Cynthia appears on a repeat of The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
Patti LaBelle (Out All Night) - Patti is a guest on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Jason George (Eve/Off Centre) - Jason chats at the kitchen table on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
Holly Robinson Peete (American Housewife/Love, Inc./Like Family/For Your Love/Hangin' with Mr. Cooper) - Holly talks about The Christmas Doctor on ABC's GMA3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Ben Feldman (Superstore/A to Z/Living with Fran) - Ben appears on a repeat of Access Daily, so check your local listings.
Jenny McCarthy (Two and a Half Men/The Bad Girl's Guide/Jenny) - Jenny is a guest on a repeat of The Wendy Williams Show, so check your local listings.
Tommy Davidson (Between Brothers) - Tommy appears on a repeat of The Doctors, so check your local listings.
Goldie Hawn (Good Morning World) - Goldie and Kurt Russell are guests on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Marlo Thomas (That Girl) - NBC's Today has Thanks + Giving: Meet 3 Patients Celebrating Off Chemo with Marlo sometime between 7-9am.