Friday, October 01, 2021
Fri-Yay: The Fall 2021 Sitcom Line-up Is Pretty Bare; Bounce Renews Johnson for Season 2
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
by Vincent
Last week officially began the 2021-2022 television season. And if you're like me, you’ve wondered...where are the sitcoms? This fall's line-up is pretty light on sitcoms, with NBC dropping its comedy block entirely (for now - Mr. Mayor, Young Rock and Kenan are all set to return midseason), and Fox sticking with only its animated line-up for now. CBS and ABC will be premiering their sitcom line-ups this fall (ABC already did last week) but it certainly seems like the lightest year for new sitcoms in quite some time. The only new sitcom that has any kind of buzz is ABC's Wonder Years reboot, which did premiere to decent ratings and reviews last week. But overall, it's certainly a light fall for sitcom fans.
Truthfully, it does seem to be getting to the point where sitcoms are becoming less common on broadcast TV and more common on steaming services. NBC seems to be moving much of its comedy content to Peacock, such as AP Bio, and the buzziest new sitcom of the year is Ted Lasso on AppleTV. Is there hope for the broadcast sitcom? The next few years will be very telling.
Bounce, the leading broadcast and multi-platform entertainment network serving African Americans, announced that the hit new original series Johnson will be returning for a second season in 2022. Johnson earned more than two million viewers across its debut in August 2021, setting a Bounce viewership record for a half-hour series. Johnson's first season finale will air this Sunday, Oct. 3, at 8 p.m. ET with a primetime play for the west coast at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT. All episodes are available on Bounce's streaming service Brown Sugar.
Johnson is a dramedy that focuses on life-long best friends, all of whom share the same last name, centering around their intriguing and sometimes complicated journey of love, friendship, heartbreak and personal growth. Told from the Black male perspective, but inclusive of all men, the series looks to shine a new light on hot-button stereotypes and misconceptions. Shot in Atlanta, the show integrates the culture of the city by featuring some of its most popular landmarks into storylines. The series is produced in partnership with Eric C. Rhone and Cedric The Entertainer's A Bird & A Bear Entertainment, Deji LaRay (the show's creator) and Thomas Q. Jones' Midnight Train Productions. Johnson's ensemble cast is led by D.L. Hughley, LaRay (Bosch, Greenleaf), Jones (P. Valley, Luke Cage), Philip Smithey (Switched At Birth, The Rookie) and Derrex Brady (NCIS, First). LaRay and Jones serve as showrunners and executive producers; Rhone, Cedric The Entertainer and Reesha L. Archibald serve as executive producers.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Monday, June 1
The Neighorhood - "Welcome to Baby Proofing" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
While Marty heads to San Diego for a tech convention and Courtney is away for the weekend, Tina’s insistence on babysitting Daphne sparks a baby-proofing fiasco that leaves Calvin and Dave unexpectedly locked inside the bathroom.
The Neighorhood - "Welcome to Walk of Roses" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Calvin receives an unexpected honor that sparks mixed emotions, while Malcolm’s ghostwriting gig takes a wild turn after a viral outburst from his celebrity client.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 1)
Monday, June 1
- Tina Fey (The Four Seasons/Only Murders in the Building/30 Rock) - Watch Tina on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. She also talks about The Four Seasons on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and in the 9am hour..
- Marlon Wayans (Marlon/The Wayans Bros.) - Marlon appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Brett Goldstein (Shrinking/Ted Lasso) - Brett is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Jason Bateman (Arrested Development/The Hogan Family/It's Your Move/Silver Spoons) - Jason talks about HBO's DTF St. Louis and Netflix's Black Rabbit on Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- Olivia Munn (Perfect Couples) - Olivia swings by the studio to talk about Your Friends & Neighbors on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
- Tony Hale (Veep/Arrested Development) - Tony talks about Pixar's Toy Story 5 on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am, on Live with Kelly and Mark (check your local listings), and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Anna Faris (Mom) - Anna talks about Scary Movie on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Katie Lowes (How We Roll) - Katie and Jamie Ray Newman talk about The Hunting Wives on a repeat of Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
- Erika Henningsen (The Four Seasons/Girls5eva) and Kerri Kenney-Silver (The Four Seasons/Maggie/Superstore/Reno 911!/The Ellen Show) - Erika and Kerri talk about The Four Seasons on NBC's Today in the 9am hour.
- Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster/Sabrina the Teenage Witch) - Soleil appears on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Lea Michele (The Mayor) - Lea tells Drew about starring in Chess on Broadway plus she gets a surprise from a favorite restaurant of hers on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
New on DVD and Blu-ray
11/04/25 - Happy's Place - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11/25 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/11/25 - SpongeBob SquarePants - The Complete Fifteenth Season (DVD)
11/11/25 - Two and a Half Men - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/02/25 - Tom and Jerry - The Golden Era Anthology (1940-1958) (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/16/25 - Lippy the Lion and Hardy Har Har - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
12/16/25 - Wally Gator - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
01/20/26 - The Woody Woodpecker and Friends Golden Age Collection (Blu-ray)
01/27/26 - The New Fred and Barney Show - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
02/11/26 - Tom and Jerry - The Complete CinemaScope Collection (Blu-ray)
03/24/26 - Looney Tunes Collector's Vault - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
04/11/26 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Fourth Season (DVD)
04/21/26 - Famous Studios Champion Collection (Blu-ray) (DVD)
05/19/26 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series - 75th Anniversary Edition (DVD)
05/19/26 - Looney Tunes Cartoons - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) (DVD)
07/14/26 - The Office - The Complete Series - Superfan Extended Episodes (Blu-ray)
07/28/26 - I Love Lucy - The Complete Series - 75th Anniversary Edition (Blu-ray)
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