Fri-Yay: Brooklyn Nine-Nine Ending After 8 Seasons; HBO Max Orders Comedy from Issa Rae

Friday, February 12, 2021

Fri-Yay: Brooklyn Nine-Nine Ending After 8 Seasons; HBO Max Orders Comedy from Issa Rae

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

Well, it's official: Brooklyn Nine-Nine will be ending after its 8th season. In a way, this news isn't surprising, considering NBC seems to be moving in a new direction with its comedy series - Superstore was previously announced as ending, and the two shows had very similar vibes and ratings. Additionally, unlike when Fox abruptly cancelled the show after Season 5, the shows' creators seem to be amically ending the series along with the network, feeling that the show has run its course. Both creatively and commercially, it's an understandable decision. Brooklyn Nine-Nine was still a great show, but it was clear that it was starting to lose some ideas for its main characters, with each character beginning to reach a natural endpoint. And after a solid-rated Season 6, the ratings dropped in Season 7. Plus, after the turmoil of 2020, it's questionable whether or not people still want to laugh at a sitcom about police officers.

Still, Brooklyn Nine-Nine ending means one less network sitcom in a world that's already getting a bit short on them. With both Superstore and Brooklyn Nine-Nine gone soon, the future is a question mark for acclaimed and fan beloved network comedies. Will anything step up to take their place? There are some solid new sitcoms on broadcast TV still, but none really rise to the level that either of those two hit. Mr. Mayor shows promise, but isn't there yet - and will it even be a part of NBC's new regime? Still, I'm interested to see where Brooklyn Nine-Nine takes its characters in its final season. Will it address the policing controversies of 2020? How will things end up for the characters? Hopefully, all of those questions will be answered in the final run of 10 episodes, which has been delayed until the 2021-2022 season (the pandemic means Brooklyn Nine-nine will sit the 2020-2021 TV season out completely.)

Issa Rae

HBO Max has given an eight-episode order to the half-hour comedy series Rap Sh*t (working title) from Issa Rae (HBO's Insecure and A Black Lady Sketch Show), with Syreeta Singleton (Insecure, Central Park) serving as executive producer and showrunner, and hip hop duo Yung Miami and JT of City Girls serving as co-executive producers. Rap Sh*t (wt) follows two estranged high school friends from Miami who reunite to form a rap group. Rap Sh*t (wt) will be executive produced by Issa Rae and Montrel McKay (A Black Lady Sketch Show, Road Trippp) for HOORAE, as well as Jonathan Berry (Insecure) and Dave Becky (Master of None, Russian Dolls) for 3 Arts Entertainment, along with showrunner Syreeta Singleton, with Rae also writing the pilot. Hip hop duo Yung Miami and JT of City Girls serve as co-executive producers, along with Kevin "Coach K" Lee and Pierre "P" Thomas for Quality Control Films and Sara Rastogi for HOORAE. Rae's audio content company Raedio will handle music supervision for the series. Casting is currently underway. Production is scheduled to begin this summer.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, July 9

Shifting Gears - "Gummies" (ABC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Riley is horrified when she finds weed gummies in Carter’s pocket, prompting surprising advice from Matt. Meanwhile, Eve inadvertently lands Gabriel and Stitch in hot water after asking them to donate to a charity auction.

Shifting Gears - "Kiss" (ABC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Jimmy returns with a new job and a proposition for Riley and the kids to move into his house, Riley is torn between her past and her future. Meanwhile, Matt's feud with Eve flares up once again after she damages his car.

Abbott Elementary - "Volunteers" (ABC, 9:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Ava announces the school district is sending a group of volunteers to help out at Abbott; however, when they arrive, things don’t go as planned.

Abbott Elementary - "100th Day of School" (ABC, 9:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
During Abbott’s 100th day of school celebrations, Barbara receives a surprise from her daughter. Melissa, Jacob and Mr. Johnson join forces to conduct a search party.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "The Gang F***s Up Abbott Elementary" (FXX and FX, 9:00PM ET/PT)
Months after the Gang visited, Abbott's Principal Ava walks viewers through some of the unseen footage of the Gang's volunteerism and reveals their true intentions.

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia - "Frank Is in a Coma" (FXX and FX, 9:33PM ET/PT)
The five stages of grief set in for Dee as Frank lies on his deathbed; the Guys plot their new path forward by pitching their business ventures to Philadelphia's elite.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 7)

Wednesday, July 9

Anthony Anderson (black-ish/Guys with Kids/All About the Andersons) - Anthony guest hosts Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Salma Hayek Pinault (The Sinbad Show) - Watch Salma on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
Jean Smart (Hacks/Samantha Who?/Center of the Universe/In-Laws/Style & Substance/Designing Women) - Jean is a guest on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Cole Escola (Human Resources/Search Party/Mozart in the Jungle/Difficult People) - Cole appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Richie Moriarty (Ghosts), Betsy Sodaro (Ghosts/Duncanville/Disjointed/Animal Practice) and Punam Patel (Ghosts/Return of the Mac/Kevin from Work) - Richie, Betsy and Punam are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
Ronny Chieng (Young Rock/Ronny Chieng: International Student) - Ronny hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
Tika Sumpter (mixed-ish/Final Space/The Game) - Tika sits down with the Tam Fam to talk about her new children's book I Got It From My Mama a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Isabela Merced (100 Things to Do Before High School/Growing Up Fisher) - Isabela chats about her film Superman on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Anna Camp (Perfect Harmony/Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt/The Mindy Project) and Justin Bartha (The New Normal/Teachers) - Anna and Justin discuss their film Nuked on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Simon Helberg (The Big Bang Theory) - Simon talks about Peacock's Poker Face on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.