Fri-Yay: Sitcoms in the Year 2019; Things Get Better Again on FX with Season 3 of Comedy

Friday, January 04, 2019

Fri-Yay: Sitcoms in the Year 2019; Things Get Better Again on FX with Season 3 of Comedy

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

Now that another calendar year is upon us, what can we expect from sitcoms in the year of 2019? 2018 was a year where a lot of sitcoms continued to surprise me. I'd expect shows like Superstore, The Good Place, Bojack Horseman and One Day at a Time will continue to impress with their 2019 batch of episodes. But what are some other, less covered shows that could take off in 2019, and what else is going on in the world of sitcoms?

Personally, I'm interested to see how things shape up on these sitcoms coming to an end: You're the Worst, Broad City, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. All of these shows are poised to reach their conclusions this season, and I'm really sad to see them go but also feel that it might be the right time for many of them to wrap up, and am interested to see just how they wrap things off. All of these shows will certainly be very missed in the sitcom landscape.

And how about new shows, or shows that haven't quite taken off yet? I'll be keeping an eye on Comedy Central's Corporate, a riotously funny show that I hope doesn't go the way of recent Comedy Central projects. I'm also interested in AP Bio on NBC. I wasn't a big fan of the first season, but I saw potential for greatness, and now that it's getting another shot, I'm interested to see if it can build on its potential in its second season. Elsewhere, I'm interested to see if Netflix has any more interesting comedies in the pipeline. It feels as if sitcoms have taken a bit of a backseat on that platform, and I'd love to see some more great, original comedies come out of the streaming service.

2019 will surely bring some surprises, as well, just as 2018 did with shows like Corporate. Still, I feel 2018 was somewhat of a quiet year for sitcoms (and even for TV in general) - let's hope 2019 brings them back with a vengeance.

Better Things

Better Things, the acclaimed and award-winning comedy series directed by, produced by and starring Pamela Adlon, will return to FX for its third season on Thursday, February 28 at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Better Things is the story of Sam Fox (Pamela Adlon), a single mother and working actor with no filter, raising her three daughters, Max (Mikey Madison), Frankie (Hannah Alligood) and Duke (Olivia Edward) in Los Angeles. She also looks after her mother, Phil (Celia Imrie), an English expat with questionable faculties who lives across the street. Whether she's struggling to keep her daughters close or trying to push one of them out of the nest, Sam approaches every challenge with fierce love, raw honesty and humor. At the end of the day, Sam's just trying to earn a living, navigate her daughters' changing lives, survive her family, have fun with a friend or two, and also - just maybe - squeeze in some private time.

Season three will welcome several new faces as guests: Sharon Stone, Matthew Broderick, Doug Jones, Glynn Turman, Judy Reyes, Cree Summer, Charlie Robinson, Janina Gavankar and Marsha Thomason to name a few. Additionally, recurring players Diedrich Bader, Greg Cromer, Rebecca Metz, Kevin Pollak and Alysia Reiner will return this season, inhabiting their familiar roles. Adlon, who directs all 12 episodes of the third season, also serves as writer, executive producer and showrunner. Better Things is produced by FX Productions. In its first season, Better Things was one of seven entertainment programs to be honored with a Peabody Award. Additionally, in the first and second seasons, Pamela Adlon was nominated for an Emmy(R) Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series. She was also nominated for a Golden Globe(R) Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy in season two.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Tuesday, April 1

St. Denis Medical - "Anything to Push Zaluva" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Ron's teasing makes Joyce question whether her friendship with a pharmaceutical rep is genuine; Alex has trouble letting Serena take on a new task; Matt finds a mentor in Bruce.

Night Court - "Hot to Trot" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Abby's friendship with her ex-boyfriend's mother leads to romantic complications; when Julianne's wealthy aunt passes away, the gang vies for a piece of her inheritance.

Tyler Perry's House of Payne - "Love At First Swipe" (BET, 9:00PM ET/PT)
C.J. and Janine receive marital advice from an unlikely source; Peanut seeks help with his newfound online lover.

Tyler Perry's Assisted Living - "Failure 2 Launch" (BET, 9:30PM ET/PT)
Assisted Living is the new situation comedy by Tyler Perry about three generations who must make a new start in the rural backwoods of Georgia.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 31)

Tuesday, April 1

Adam Scott (Ghosted/Veep/Parks and Recreation/Party Down) - Catch Adam on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick) - Kevin is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Amanda Peet (Brockmire/Togetherness/Bent) - Amanda appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Paul Rudd (The Shrink Next Door/Living with Yourself/Wild Oats) - Paul stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Ike Barinholtz (The Studio/The Afterparty/Bless the Harts/The Mindy Project/Eastbound & Down) - Ike appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He will also be on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Vinny Thomas (Platonic), Paul F. Tompkins (The Great North/BoJack Horseman/DAG) and Aparna Nancherla (The Great North/Lopez vs Lopez/Corporate) - Vinny, Paul and Aparna are guests on After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Chase Sui Wonders (The Studio/Bupkis) and Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Chase and Kathryn are guests on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9:30pm on Bravo.
Will Ferrell (The Office) and Jennifer Coolidge (2 Broke Girls/Joey) - E! News has interviews with Will and Jennifer at 11pm on E!.
Román Zaragoza (Ghosts) - Román talks about Ghosts on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Jenny Slate (The Great North/Big Mouth/Married/Bob's Burgers) - Jenny talks about Dying for Sex on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Michael Angarano (Laid/I'm Dying Up Here/Will & Grace) and Michael Cera (Life & Beth/Arrested Development/I Was a Sixth Grade Alien) - Michael and Michael talk about Sacramento with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia guest co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Hannah Einbinder (Hacks) - Hannah talks about Hacks on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Tasha Smith (Survival of the Thickest/Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse/The Tom Show/Boston Common) and Tone Bell (Survival of the Thickest/Fam/Disjointed/Truth Be Told/Bad Judge/Whitney) - Tasha and Tone talk about the new season of Netflix’s Survival of the Thickest on Sherri, so check your local listings.
Kathryn Hahn (The Studio/Tiny Beautiful Things/Central Park/Happyish/Transparent/Free Agents) - Kathryn is dishing on her new comedy series The Studio on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Wilmer Valderrama (That '70s Show) - Wilmer and Freddy Rodriguez chat about their podcast Dos Amigos on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Brenda Song (Running Point/Dollface/Dads/The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody) - Brenda talks about Netflix's Running Point on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Paul Walter Hauser (The Afterparty) - Paul is a guest on PIX11 Morning News on WPIX in New York at 9:40am.