SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

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 Friday, Netflix premiered the third season of One Day at a Time, also known as the best traditional sitcom on television. I've talked a lot about the show over the years, and I'm going to be talking about it again, because the remake of the Norman Lear sitcom is just as warm, inviting, funny and vital in its third season. The show once again tackles some big issues, from sexuality to the #MeToo movement and even to drugs - but does so without ever feeling heavy-handed and while always being warm, approachable, and enjoyable.

There's so much to like about One Day at a Time. Its central family is incredibly lovable, the kind of family you kind of wish you were in yourself after a weekend binge of the series. Part of it is the excellent writing, but another part is the portrayal of the cast. The cast is absolutely attuned to their roles by this point - even the younger members of the ensemble, who have shaken off any early series jitters and now feel completely lived into their roles. The entire show - from the writing to the acting - just feels like an incredibly well-oiled machine at this point. It's also a machine that does a great job bringing tribute to the traditional multi-camera sitcom format, a format that increasingly feels as if it's being lost to the wind (especially with The Big Bang Theory in its twilight, although perhaps The Conners can pick up some of the slack.) One Day at a Time is the only proof you need that the multi-camera sitcom can still be a viable and enriching art form when given the proper care and respect. It uses the format for both its jokes and its drama - just like in the best multi-camera sitcoms, the audience laughter in hilarious moments is just as vital as the moment when things get "real" and you can hear a pindrop.

So please, please, please give One Day at a Time a chance if you haven't already. Although we never really know how Netflix shows are doing, the service seems to have gotten the cancellation bug in the past year, with so many shows receiving the ax or announcing their end. While some of those shows (like Kimmy Schmidt or Orange is the New Black) felt like they were near a natural conclusion, One Day at a Time is the type of show that I want to see run for years and years. It has plenty of life left in it, and the Alvarezes are the kind of family I want to spend so much more time with. The series gets critical acclaim, but doesn't seem to have the general popularity of some of Netflix's other shows such as Stranger Things or 13 Reasons Why. So please - give the show a chance and ensure us plenty of more years of this wonderful sitcom to come, especially if you're a fan of the traditional multi-camera sitcom. In 2019, the format doesn't get any better than this.

Bounce has licensed the broadcast television rights to the popular and NAACP Image Award-winning series Moesha and The Game in a multi-year agreement with CBS Television Distribution. Bounce lands all six seasons (127 episodes) of Moesha and all nine seasons (147 episodes) of The Game and will air the shows back-to-back weeknights with Moesha from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. and The Game between 8:00 - 9:00 p.m. effective immediately starting on Monday (Feb. 18, all times Eastern).

Moesha, one of the first sitcoms to center around an African-American teenage girl, stars R&B superstar Brandy Norwood as Moesha Mitchell, who's juggling school, friendships and romance in the Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. After previously being the female head of the household, Moesha must learn to love and trust her father's new wife while doing her best to be the "glue" that helps hold her family together. Moesha also stars Sheryl Lee Ralph, Countess Vaughn, Shar Jackson, William Allen Young, Marcus T. Paulk, Ray J, Lamont Bentley and Yvette Wilson. The series aired on UPN between from 1996 until 2001.

The Game follows the wives and girlfriends of pro football players and the power plays they use to get their guys the best agents, the best endorsements, the best merchandising deals - even the "in" charity. Tia Mowry stars as Melanie Barnett whose boyfriend, Derwin (Pooch Hall), is the new third-string wide receiver for the San Diego Sabers. As she deals with egos, groupies and image consultants, Melanie is finding out how "the game" is played among the women behind the athletes. Wendy Raquel Robinson, Hosea Chanchez, Coby Bell, and Brittany Daniel round out the cast. The series, created by Mara Brock Akil, was a spin-off of the long-running hit series Girlfriends. It premiered on The CW in 2006 for three seasons and then moved to BET, where it set cable television ratings records.