Fri-Yay: American Auto Is Possible Worthy Successor to Superstore; Raven's Home Returns for 5th Season in March

Friday, February 11, 2022

Fri-Yay: American Auto Is Possible Worthy Successor to Superstore; Raven's Home Returns for 5th Season in March

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

A few weeks ago, I highlighted a series I was really enjoying a lot, Abbott Elementary. In my opinion, Abbott Elementary is easily the best new sitcom. But frankly, it's been a really good year for network sitcoms. And American Auto is another example of this seasons surprisingly great batch of new network comedies.

American Auto comes from Justin Spitzer, who was the showrunner of Superstore. It has a great cast, including Ana Gasteyer, a hilarious TV comedic veteran. And the joke writing is sharp, fresh and funny - and frankly, a bit more biting than many other network comedies of recent times. If you haven't checked it out yet, I highly recommend it. The ratings have been fairly low, unlike the solid breakouts of Abbott Elementary and Ghosts, and I'd love to see it continue to grow and evolve. In some bit of news, Tom Bergeron is guest starring on the show very soon - stay tuned!

Raven's Home

Raven's Home, the long-running hit comedy series starring and executive produced by Raven-Symoné, will return for its fifth season on Friday, March 11, at 8:00 p.m. EST/PST on Disney Channel and DisneyNOW. A spinoff of the iconic Disney Channel comedy That's So Raven (2003-2007), Raven's Home follows the hilarious adventures driven by somewhat psychic Raven Baxter (Raven-Symoné) and her son Booker (Issac Ryan Brown), who has inherited his mom's gift to catch glimpses of the future. In season five of Raven's Home, Raven and Booker move back to San Francisco to help take care of her dad after a mild heart attack. Now Raven finds herself parenting her parent, raising her young cousin, and settling into life in her old hometown. Meanwhile, Booker is "the new kid" at Raven's old high school and has to keep his visions a secret from a new group of friends.

Joining the cast for season five are Rondell Sheridan, who reprises his role as Raven's easygoing and loveable dad, Victor, from That's So Raven; Mykal-Michelle Harris (ABC's mixed-ish) as Raven's young cousin, Alice; Felix Avitia (Disney's Gamers Guide to Pretty Much Everything) as Neil, Victor's neighbor and Booker's high school classmate; and musician and singer Emmy Liu-Wang (Andrean Players' Annie) as Ivy, a young neighbor who babysits Alice. Adrienne Bailon-Houghton (The Real), who portrayed Raven's arch-nemesis Alana in That's So Raven, will return in a recurring role as a grown-up version of the character, who is now the principal at Bayside High. Also joining in a recurring role is Marissa Reyes (Spirit Halloween) as Cami, a popular and ambitious girl with a rebellious streak.

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Wednesday, January 15

Shifting Gears - "Accommodations" (ABC, 8:20PM ET/PT)
Matt joins Riley at Carter’s high school open house, where he’s unsettled to learn about the “accommodations” made for his grandson’s anxiety. Meanwhile, Riley reconnects with Caitlin, a former classmate, and sets her up with Gabriel.

Abbott Elementary - "Testing" (ABC, 8:50PM ET/PT)
Janine must rethink her lesson plans after her class performs poorly on a practice test, while Jacob struggles to engage a disinterested student. The district sends a new custodian to train under Mr. Johnson.

Poppa's House - "Podcast" (CBS, 10:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)

Junior enlists Nina’s help to film a documentary of Poppa’s iconic career, but the direction of the film takes a detour when the radio station begins using AI promos with Poppa’s and Ivy’s voices.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of January 13)

Wednesday, January 15

Tim Allen (Shifting Gears/Last Man Standing/Home Improvement) - Watch Tim on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Nicole Byer (Grand Crew/Loosely Exactly Nicole) - Nicole appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Adam Scott (Ghosted/Veep/Parks and Recreation/Party Down) - Adam appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS. He also talks about Severance on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Ben Stiller (Arrested Development) - Ben is a guest on Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC. He also talks about Severance on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Pauline Chalamet (The Sex Lives of College Girls) - Pauline stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Denis Leary (Going Dutch/No Good Deed/Sex & Drugs & Rock & Roll/The Job) - NBC's Today catches up with Denis in the 10am hour. He chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Keke Palmer (Scream Queens/True Jackson, VP) - Keke talks about One of Them Days on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am. She also co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Kaitlin Olson (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia/The Mick) - Kaitlin talks about High Potential on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Gabriel Basso (The Big C) - Gabriel talks about The Night Agent on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am.
Britt Lower (Ghosted/Man Seeking Woman/Big Lake) - NBC's Today catches up with Britt in the 9am hour.
Mark-Paul Gosselaar (Saved by the Bell/Nobodies/Truth Be Told/Saved by the Bell: The College Years) - NBC's Today catches up with Mark-Paul in the 10am hour.
Andrew Rannells (Girls/The New Normal) - NBC's Today catches up with Andrew in the 10am hour.
Jennifer Lopez (South Central) - Jennifer talks about her film Unstoppable on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Jim Gaffigan (The Jim Gaffigan Show/My Boys/The Ellen Show/Welcome to New York) - Jim talks about his Hulu comedy special Jim Gaffigan: The Skinny on a repeat Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Jay Pharoah (White Famous/Champaign ILL) - Jay talks about his new virtual reality series Soapstone Comedy Presents on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Anthony Anderson (black-ish/Guys with Kids/All About the Andersons) - Anthony discusses his Fox special The Real Full Monty on a repeat of Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Da'Vinchi (grown-ish) - Da'Vinchi is a guest on New York Livng on WPIX in New York at 10:30am.