Friday, March 20, 2020
Fri-Yay: Best Sitcom Episodes for Coronavirus Isolation; Antenna TV Weekend Binge Marathons for Tough Times

by Vincent
Well, obviously it's a tough time for all of us right now. Wherever you are, it's likely that you're being affected somehow by COVID-19. For the many who are in isolation or quarantine to "flatten the curve" of Coronavirus, you're probably finding yourself with a whole lot of time to watch sitcoms! I've put together a list of some of my favorite sitcom episodes that have some thematic similarities with COVID-19 that could hit right in these circumstances. I tried not to just focus on bottle or quarantine episodes but instead episodes that tie with the anxieties stemming from this uncertain time.
1. Community - Epidemiology
This episode is maybe the most obvious choice on the list. It's a Halloween episode centered around a mysterious disease that surfaces at Greendale's Halloween party that slowly spreads and spreads despite everyone's effort to quarantine everyone, partly because of questionable decisions made by Dean Pelton, the school's leader. Sound familiar? Granted, it's a lot more fun than it sounds, as it's a loving parody of zombie movies scored by the ABBA soundtrack (and Dean Pelton's voice memos). If you want to laugh about a disease outbreak in a silly way, this is the episode for you.
2. 30 Rock - Larry King
"Larry King" is 30 Rock's take on the 2008 financial collapse, another historical event that is very different than our current predicament but nevertheless does share some similarities. The entire episode has an end-of-the-world vibe as the characters watch the collapse of the Japanese markets that seemingly spell doom for their own financial security, and a lot of the behaviors and quotes reflect on the odd feeling many of us are feeling now, particularly Salma Hayek's "The whole world has gone cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs!" or when Jack's mentor Don Geiss recommends that you "go home to your loved ones and hold them close" instead of taking action. In the end, the panic turns out to be largely false, started by a fearmongering Tracy Jordan. If only we could be so lucky.
3. Parks and Recreation - The Master Plan
The more obvious Parks and Rec choice would be Flu Season, but personally I felt Leslie's pain in "The Master Plan" more these past few days. "The Master Plan" is the first appearance of Ben and Chris as budget slashers who arrive to slash Pawnee's budget, and the episode (as well as the following one, Freddy Spaghetti) follow Leslie's desperate attempts to save her job from government shutdown before accepting the inevitable, that her job would be shut down until further notice. It all works out okay for Leslie, obviously, so these episodes at the tail end of Parks and Rec's second season serve as a good reminder that it's okay to be stressed about an uncertain future, as well as giving us hope that it'll all work itself out.
4. The Simpsons - Hurricane Neddy
While this episode revolves around a hurricane rather than a pandemic, the hysteria that Springfield residents experience before the hurricane hits is awfully familiar with the pre-Corona hysteria that we all experienced about a week ago. Rationing at the Kwik-E-Mart, storming the shelves, and mistaking Lisa and Ralph Wiggum as pieces of fruit are all examples of some of the crazy measures that Springfield residents go through that suddenly don’t seem so crazy.
5. Scrubs - My Quarantine
Well, this one is obvious. This Season 4 episode of Scrubs deals with the SARS epidemic, when JD initiates a quarantine at the hospital after suspecting a patient has the infectious disease. It's a humorous look at quarantine that might provide some levity to your own social distancing.
Antenna TV has a new way to bring a smile to your face and help you get through these tough times. Watch feel-good, binge-worthy TV from the comfort of your own home, all for FREE on Antenna TV. Antenna TV will run themed marathons of classic sitcoms including Family Ties, Three's Company, The Facts of Life, Wings, and Welcome Back, Kotter on Saturday and Sundays from 12 noon to midnight ET starting March 28. The news is a little easier to take with marathons of Murphy Brown on Saturday, March 28 and NewsRadio on Sunday, March 29.
The full schedule of Antenna TV's "Binge TV for Free" is as follows:
Saturday 3/28: Murphy Brown, ATV Goes All News with Murphy Brown
Sunday 3/29: NewsRadio, All News Continues with NewsRadio
Saturday 4/4: Alice, Mel's Diner Remains Open
Sunday 4/5: Archie Bunker’s Place, Archie's Bar Remains Open
Saturday 4/11: Head of the Class, School's Still in Session
Sunday 4/12: Welcome Back, Kotter, School's Still in Session
Saturday 4/18: It's A Living, Above the Top Remains Open
Sunday 4/19: Wings, 30th Anniversary Marathon
Saturday 4/25: The Partridge Family, Spend the Day with Family
Sunday 4/26: Three's Company, Spend the Day with Friends
Saturday 5/2: Becker, The Doctor is Here for You
Sunday 5/3: Coach, ATV Still has Sports with Coach
Saturday 5/9: Family Ties, Spend the Day with Family
Sunday 5/10: The Facts of Life, Mother's Day with Mrs. Garrett
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Tuesday, February 11
St. Denis Medical - "Nobody Even Mentions the Brownies!" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Joyce pushes the staff to upsell patients on hospital procedures, kicking off some fierce competition and a case of mistaken identity; Bruce and Ron try to play plumber for a day.
Night Court - "Ab-ventures in Babysitting" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
An old friend returns and leaves Abby saddled with taking care of a baby during court; the gang tries to stop an influencer from publicly embarrassing the courthouse.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of February 10)
Tuesday, February 11
- Anthony Mackie (Twisted Metal) - Catch Anthony on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Lizzy Caplan (Party Down/The Class/The Pitts) - Lizzy appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Fred Armisen (Los Espookys/Forever/Final Space) - Fred is a guest on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Mikey Madison (Better Things) - Mikey appears on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. She is telling Drew about working on Oscar nominated film Anora, how director Sean Baker molded the role to her and some of her earliest acting influences on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Plus, she's making her baking debut and sharing her chocolate chip cookie recipe with Drew.
- Margaret Cho (All-American Girl) - Margaret is a guest on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Cecily Strong (Schmigadoon!), Rachel Dratch (Grimsburg/Imaginary Mary/30 Rock), Ana Gasteyer (American Auto/People of Earth/Lady Dynamite/Suburgatory), Cheri Oteri (Sit Down, Shut Up) - Cecily, Rachel, Ana, Cheri and Laraine Newman are guests on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 9pm on Bravo.
- John Lithgow (Trial & Error/Twenty Good Years/3rd Rock from the Sun) - John stops by to talk about New York City Ballet's Carnival of the Animals on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Rickey Smiley (The Rickey Smiley Show) - Rickey sits down for a DAYTIME EXCLUSIVE on the unexpected miracle of learning he's the father of twin girls on Tamron Hall, so check your local lisitngs.
- Selma Blair (Anger Management/Kath & Kim/Zoe, Duncan, Jack and Jane) and Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/Café Americain/Sydney/One Day at a Time) - Selma is telling Drew about being a boy mom to a 13-year-old son, dating in her fifties and how she has spoken about her health to help others feel seen on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings. Plus, Selma is sharing one of her favorite simple breakfast dishes with Drew and Valerie Bertinelli.
- Laverne Cox (Clean Slate) - Laverne talks about starring in the new Amazon series Clean Slate on Sherri, 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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