Friday, January 07, 2022
Fri-Yay: ABC's Abbott Elementary Is a Solid and Promising New Sitcom; Fast Foodies Brings More Comedic Guests for Season 2

by Vincent
This week, ABC premiered Abbott Elementary, one of the more anticipated comedies of the year for me. I watched the premiere last night after the show's pretty extensive marketing campaign (and solid ratings so far for the preview episode in December and even higher this week for its premiere), and I thought it was a really promising new comedy with an interesting premise. While it's far from perfect, it was refreshing to see a workplace comedy surrounded around a school, something we haven't seen depicted as often as some other workplaces like offices, TV shows or police forces.
Abbott Elementary is a "mockumentary," in the vein of The Office, Modern Family and Parks and Rec. It's a sitcom format that was huge in the late 2000s and early 2010s, but hasn't gotten as much play lately, so it's an interesting stylistic choice, and one that does play for a lot of laughs. The characters are also funny, although it will be interesting to see them graduate beyond roles such as "desperate white ally" or "incompetent principal." All in all, Abbott Elementary is a very promising new show and I'm really excited to see where it goes next.
truTV is bringing new mouthwatering delights for the second season of the hit cooking reality series, Fast Foodies, returning on Thursday, January 27 to truTV at 10PM. The 12-episode season brings a raucous slew of fresh celebrity guests with fast food cravings. New guests in the deliciously fun cooking competition series include Jillian Bell (22 Jump Street), Keith and Kenneth Lucas (Just for Laughs), Adam Pally (Happy Endings),”), Jon Gabrus (Game Over, Man!) Horatio Sanz (Saturday Night Live) and returning fan-favorite foodie Joel McHale (Community). Previously announced guests included Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family), NBA legend Baron Davis, Nikki Glaser (FBOY ISLAND), Chris Jericho (AEW), Reggie Watts (The Late Late Show with James Corden), Natasha Leggero (The Honeymoon Stand Up Special), Bobby Moynihan (Saturday Night Live) and more.
In Fast Foodies, Top Chef winners Kristen Kish, Jeremy Ford and Iron Chef winner Justin Sutherland compete to perfectly recreate and then skillfully reimagine a celebrity guest’s favorite fast-food dish. These culinary masters come prepared to showcase their love of pop culture, fast-food legends and their expert skills to win the "Chompionship Trophy." The inaugural season reached over 20 million viewers across linear and digital platform to date and featured Joel McHale, James Van Der Beek (Don't Trust the B in Apartment 23), Andy Richter (Conan), Amanda Seales (Insecure), Ron Funches (Top Secret Videos), Charlotte McKinney (Fantasy Island), Kevin Heffernan & Steve Lemme (Tacoma FD), Fortune Feimster (Sweet & Salty), GaTa (Dave), and Bobby Lee (Splitting Up Together).
Sitcoms Airing Tonight
Tuesday, March 21
Night Court - "Dan v. Dating" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
With Abby's encouragement, Dan attempts to venture back into the dating world, but reigniting his love life proves more complicated than anticipated; Gurgs and Olivia search for a new office and find something they weren't expecting.
American Auto - "Celebrity" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
When Payne loses their spokesperson, Katherine and the team go to great lengths to woo a new celebrity -- Andy Richter -- only to have second thoughts.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of March 20)
Tuesday, March 21
- Julie Bowen (Modern Family/Ed) - Catch Julie on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Jamie Demetriou (The Afterparty/Miracle Workers) - Jamie is a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
- Jennifer Aniston (Friends/Muddling Through/Ferris Bueller/Molloy) - Jennifer appears on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Jane Fonda (Grace and Frankie) and Lily Tomlin (Grace and Frankie/Malibu Country) - Jane and Lily are guests on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Judd Hirsch (Taxi/Dear John/Superior Donuts) - Judd appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Brendan Hunt (Ted Lasso) - Brendan will be on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
- Nicole Byer (Grand Crew/Loosely Exactly Nicole) - Nicole is a guest on The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
- Al Franken (LateLine) - Al guest hosts Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- Alan Ruck (Spin City/Muscle/Going Places) - Alan is a guest on Comedy Central's The Daily Show at 11pm.
- Bryton James (Family Matters) - Bryton appears on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
- Zach Braff (Scrubs/Alex, Inc.) - Zach is a guest on LIVE! with Kelly and Ryan, so check your listings.
- Miranda Cosgrove (iCarly/Crowded/Drake & Josh) - Miranda appears on The Kelly Clarkson Show, so check your local listings.
- Rob Riggle (Rob Riggle's Ski Master Academy/Golan the Insatiable/Gary Unmarried) - Rob will be on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
- Toheeb Jimoh (Ted Lasso) - Toheeb talks about Ted Lasso on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Yvette Nicole Brown (Act Your Age/The Odd Couple/Community/The Big House) - Yvette guest co-hosts Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Jameela Jamil (The Good Place) - NBC's Today catches up with Jameela in the 9am hour.
New on DVD/Blu-ray (November-March)
11/08 - Frasier - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
11/08 - Young Rock - Season Two (Blu-ray) (DVD)
11/15 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Seven / The Complete Season Eight
11/22 - That '70s Show - The Complete Series (Mill Creek)
11/29 - Ghosts - Season One (Blu-ray) (DVD)
12/06 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - 70th Anniversary Ultimate Christmas Collection
12/13 - And Just Like That... - The Complete First Season
12/13 - Hogan's Heroes - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
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)
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