Friday, May 31, 2019
Fri-Yay: NBC Cancels AP Bio Just As It Was Finding Its Stride; Showtime Orders Work in Progress
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by Vincent
Upfronts ended a few weeks ago, but there's still some renewal and cancellations that networks have yet to figure out. One of those was AP Bio, until NBC announced they decided to cancel the series this week. It's a decision that doesn't come with much surprise. AP Bio had a mediocre-rated first season, but NBC decided to give the show a second chance, as they've done before with shows that had slow starts like 30 Rock, Parks and Recreation and Community. While those shows wound up running for years, AP Bio's ratings actually dropped drastically in its second season, so NBC pulling the plug is not a surprise. However, it is a shame. AP Bio wasn't necessarily a great sitcom, but it was a very enjoyable one that was perhaps on the way to finding its greatness.
AP Bio started off seeming like a too-mean spin off of Community, a show that wanted to have a cable comedy-esque streak of dark comedy but didn't have the talent to pull it off. However, over the course of the first and especially into the much improved second season, the series began to find its direction by strengthening the personalities of its students out of stereotypes and pinning down into humor sense. The show, like Community, also found some heart, without feeling too preachy, and was becoming a delightfully absurdist network sitcom that actually made you care about the characters...even though the humor could sometimes be dark or even borderline mean, the show did a much better job of tiptoeing that line in its second season. It will be a shame to see it go, and that it will never take off into the great sitcom it had the potential to be.
Showtime has ordered an eight-episode season of the new half-hour comedy series Work in Progress, created by Abby McEnany and Tim Mason. McEnany stars in the series, expected to premiere later this year. Mason directed the pilot. Lilly Wachowski (The Matrix, Sense8) will co-write the first season and executive produce with McEnany and Mason. Showtime acquired the project after its premiere at this year's Sundance Film Festival, where it was an official selection of the Indie Episodic program. A funny and uniquely human comedy, Work in Progress features McEnany as a 45-year-old self-identified fat, queer dyke from Chicago whose misfortune and despair unexpectedly lead her to a vibrantly transformative relationship. Chicago-based performers Theo Germaine and Karin Anglin co-star alongside Celeste Pechous, with Julia Sweeney (Saturday Night Live, Shrill) appearing in a crucial role as herself.
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
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