Friday, February 21, 2020

Fri-Yay: Single Parents Quietly Becoming ABC's Best Sitcom; BET+ Gets Bigger with 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!

Single Parents

by Vincent

ABC is generally very good at developing sitcoms, but it's been a while since they've had a knock-it-out-of-the-park show. They've hit a level where they can churn out fairly decent sitcoms faster than any other network, but since the era of black-ish and Fresh Off the Boat I haven't fell in love with any of their new offerings the way I did with shows like those or The Middle. However, Single Parents has very quietly been getting better over the course of its run, to the point where I'd now call it quietly one of the best sitcoms on TV.

Single Parents is in its second season, and when it started it was a likable but ho-hum family sitcom. Over the course of its two seasons, though, the show has progressive been getting a little more interesting, exploring topics such as sexuality and family in interesting ways and also becoming funnier and more cutting with its humor. The show is created by former New Girl writer JJ Philbin (daughter of Regis), and you can feel some of that show's likable character humor with an edge creeping into Single Parents slowly but surely. Like many ABC sitcoms of recent years, it's fairly basic in structure but is taking some real creative risks that are causing it to be the type of show you definitely want to keep an eye on. Unfortunately, like many great sitcoms of recent times, the ratings aren't great - so hopefully ABC sees a developing gem and sticks with it.


Bigger

BET+ announced the second season pickup of the Will Packer and Will Packer Media executive produced series, Bigger. The provocative comedy created by Felischa Marye will continue to stream exclusively on BET+. Returning series regulars include Tanisha Long (Layne Roberts), Angell Conwell (Veronica Yates), Rasheda Crockett (Tracey Davis), Chase Anthony (Deon Lewis), and Tristen Winger (Vince Carpenter). The full first season of Bigger is currently available to stream on BET+. Production specifics and the premiere date are forthcoming.

Season one of Bigger follows Layne, a single-black-woman and her close-knit group of 30-somethings as they navigate love, friendships, career ambitions, and the journey to getting BIGGER, together. When a college acquaintance suddenly dies, the group is forced to take a deeper look at their messy lives, while asking themselves - is this it or is there something bigger and better?


Sitcoms Airing Tonight

Sunday, June 4

The Simpsons - "My Life as a Vlog" (Fox, 7:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Through a series of YouTube recommended videos, the story of the rise and fall of the Simpson family vlog is revealed.

Family Guy - "Oscars Guy" (Fox, 7:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
The Griffins perform a retelling of three Oscar-winning stories: "Silence of the Lambs," "American Beauty" and "Forrest Gump."

HouseBroken - "Who's Nocturnal?" (Fox, 9:00PM ET/PT)
After Honey loses a clutch of baby possums she is supposed to be caring for, she and The Gray One set out to find them; Shel and Nibbles try to apprehend a critter that has been pooping on Shel's shell at night; Diablo gets abducted by an owl.

HouseBroken - "Who's Married?" (Fox, 9:30PM ET/PT)
A new playmate upends Honey and Chief's relationship; Tabitha helps Chico find the perfect anniversary gift for Kevin; Nibbles goes searching for her special someone.

Raven's Home - "Lizard Let Lie" (Disney Channel, 8:00PM ET/PT)
On the eve of Raven's big reality show debut, Alice lies to get out of a class speech, and Victor tries to get out of a surprise health inspection.

Complete TV Listings


Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of May 29)

Saturday, June 3

  • Ronald Gladden (Jury Duty) - Ronald can be heard on SiriusXM's Ben +1 at 9am.


New on DVD/Blu-ray (January-June)

Cheers - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) Gimme a Break! - The Complete Series (VEI) Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (VEI) Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series

01/03 - Andy Richter Controls the Universe - The Complete Series (2023 Release)
01/27 - Master of None - Season Three / The Complete Series
02/21 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Nine / The Complete Season Ten
02/28 - Growing Pains - The Complete Series
03/28 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/04 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Fifth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/18 - Blondie - The Complete 1957 Television Series (Blu-ray)
04/25 - Cheers - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
05/23 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Eleven / The Complete Season Twelve
05/23 - Go On - The Complete Series
05/23 - Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (Universal)
05/29 - Gimme a Break! - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/29 - Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/30 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
06/13 - Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series
06/13 - Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series
More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

06/04 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of June 5, 2023)
06/03 - SitcomsOnline Digest: ABC Declares Rating Victories for 22-23 Season; Australian Version of The Office in the Works
06/02 - HBO Renews Somebody Somewhere for a Third Season; Remembering Marlene Clark of Sanford and Son and Other Sitcom Stars We Recently Lost
06/01 - MeTV's Marry Me Block on June 4; TBS Sets Miracle Workers: End Times Premiere Date for July 10
05/31 - Amazon Freevee's Jury Duty Gets Special Release; Stars on Mars Fan Experience
05/30 - 75th Emmy Awards Nominations on July 12; Final Season of HBO's How to with John Wilson
05/29 - Memorial Day 2023 TV Sitcom Marathons
05/28 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of May 29, 2023)
05/27 - SitcomsOnline Digest: CBS Wins 2022-2023 Ratings Game; Netflix Ends Sharing of Passwords
05/26 - Prime Video Renews Priyanka Chopra Series; Sex and the City 25th Anniversary Event in NYC
05/25 - Brady Bunch House on the Market; The Family Stallone Gets 2nd Season
05/24 - Antenna TV's Father Knows Best Father's Day Fest Marathon; Netflix Gets Glamorous This June
05/23 - CBS Summer 2023 Reality Schedule; Apple TV+ Announces Peanuts Programming
05/22 - More Details on Zoey 102; New Lifetime Movie Series Coming July 8
05/21 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of May 22, 2023)
05/20 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Showtime Looking to Bring Back Two Old Favorites; Disney+ Removing Content
05/19 - Futurama Triumphantly Returns July 24; Final Season of Physical Drops August 2; Primo Premieres May 19 on Amazon Freevee
05/18 - The CW Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; Netflix Upfront 2023
05/17 - Warner Bros. Discovery Upfront 2023; Sarah Silverman HBO Special Premieres May 27
05/16 - ABC Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; FX's Summer 2023 Slate
05/15 - FOX Announces 2023-24 Programming Slate; iCarly Season 3 Premieres June 1
05/14 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of May 15, 2023)
05/13 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Night Court Season Finale Brings Back a Familiar Face; Comedy Central Renews Digman! for Second Season
05/12 - NBC Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; Hulu Orders Deli Boys from Onyx Collective
05/11 - CBS Upfront 2023-24: Fall 2023 Schedule; The CW Summer Lineup Has Comedies
05/10 - Minx Returns in July on STARZ; Never Have I Ever Final Episodes Premieres June 8, Trailer Drops
05/09 - The CW Acquires Son of a Critch; FX's The Bear Returns June 22
05/08 - NBC's Hot Wheels Gets Celeb Judges; Zooey Deschanel's Max Series Premieres May 23
05/07 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of May 8, 2023)
05/06 - SitcomsOnline Digest: First Week of Writers' Strike Already Sees Early Casualties; Fox Cancels Call Me Kat
05/05 - BUZZR's Classic TV Moms Week; Fox's Stars on Mars Celebs Announced
05/04 - Dancing with the Stars Returning to ABC in Fall; Conan O'Brien Producing New Podcast Miniseries