Friday, May 21, 2021
Fri-Yay: First Look at the 2021-2022 Sitcom Slate; NBC Books Eighth and Final Season Premiere of Brooklyn Nine-Nine for August 12

by Vincent
This week was Upfronts week for broadcast TV, and it was a particularly notable Upfronts season given the turbulence of the past year. Last season's new shows were limited due to the pandemic, and the few freshman series we had were greatly effected by production delays and shutdowns. This year, we hate a sitcom slate that looks a bit more "normal." Although most comedies have been held for midsession, there are a handful of shows I'm interested in seeing. In fact, I'm looking forward to this upcoming sitcom slate more than any new sitcom slate in recent years. There's quite a few trailers of new series that caught my eye.
Of the new comedy trailers, there's four that really stood out to me: Welcome to Flatch on FOX, Abbott Elementary as well as the The Wonder Years reboot on ABC, and American Auto on NBC. Welcome to Flatch, which stars Aya Cash of You're the Worst, is a new mockumentary series that chronicles the life of a silly small town. It looks from the trailer like a mix of The Office and Schitt's Creek, and likely is trying to capitalize on the streaming-borne popularity of both series. Abbott Elementary looks to be a solidly funny workplace sitcom with a talented cast, and American Auto (created by Superstore creator Justin Spitzer) seems to be the same. The Wonder Years, meanwhile, is a show I am very interested to see rebooted with its comedy-drama mix that should fit nicely with ABC's family lineup. In general, many of these shows seem more interesting than most current network comedies, and more tailored towards young, streaming-hungry audience. Perhaps networks have finally started thinking long term about producing shows that can have long, Office or Schitt's Creek esque streaming lives. It would be a smart direction, and I hope these promising shows can live up to their interesting trailers and premises.
The eighth and final season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine will premiere on NBC on August 12 at 8:00 and 8:30 p.m. ET/PT. It will air back-to-back every Thursday at 8:00–8:30 and 8:30–9:00pm ET/PT through September 16, except for September 9 when they will air the NFL Kickoff.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine follows the exploits of hilarious Det. Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) and his stoically ever-professional Capt. Raymond Holt (Andre Braugher), along with their diverse, lovable colleagues as they police the NYPD's 99th Precinct. In this final season of the series, Jake and the squad must try to balance their personal lives and their professional lives over the course of a very difficult year.
Rounding out the ensemble is Sgt. Amy Santiago (Melissa Fumero), who has a passion for organization and a weakness for dork dancing; Lt. Terry Jeffords (Terry Crews), a mountain of a man whose most powerful muscle is his sweetheart; Jake’s best friend and human puppy dog, Det. Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio), and the incredibly secretive, tough-as-nails Rosa Diaz (Stephanie Beatriz). Also part of the Nine-Nine are veteran officers Det. Scully (Joel McKinnon Miller) and Det. Hitchcock (Dirk Blocker), whose only skill as police officers is their ability to make a passable pot of coffee.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Tuesday, July 1
none scheduled
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 30)
Tuesday, July 1
- Sam Rockwell (F Is for Family) - Catch Sam on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Isabela Merced (100 Things to Do Before High School/Growing Up Fisher) - Isabela is a guest on a repeat of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Mariska Hargitay (Can't Hurry Love) - Mariska appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Billy Eichner (Friends from College/Difficult People/Parks and Recreation), Nico Santos (Superstore) and Pete Holmes (How We Roll/Crashing) - Billy, Nico and Pete are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Annie Murphy (Kevin Can F**k Himself/Schitt's Creek) and Christine Baranski (The Big Bang Theory/Happy Family/Welcome to New York/Cybill) - Annie and Christine talk about Nine Perfect Strangers on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) and Amanda Peet (Brockmire/Togetherness/Bent) - Olivia and Amanda talk about Your Friends & Neighbors on a repeat of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
- Susan Kelechi Watson (Louie) - Susan talks about The Residence on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
- Liza Colón-Zayas (The Bear) - Liza talks about The Bear on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Zoë Kravitz (High Fidelity) - Zoë is joining Drew to talk about her directorial debut Blink Twice. She's spilling on what it was like working with fiancé Channing Tatum and her take on their viral NYC bike photo on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
01/28 - Wait Till Your Father Gets Home - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/04 - The Wayans Bros. - The Complete Series
03/11 - Frasier (2023) - Season Two
04/01 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Third Season
05/13 - The Drew Carey Show - The Complete Series* (missing 4 episodes and some music has been replaced or altered)
06/06 - Shoresy - Season 2
06/17 - Looney Tunes - Collector's Vault - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
07/08 - Bewitched - The Complete Series - 60th Anniversary Special Edition (Blu-ray)
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