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

Thursday, December 11

Georgie & Mandy's First Marriage - "Bitin’, Spankin’ and a Load of Yankee Psychobabble" (CBS, 8:00PM ET/PT)
Georgie and Mandy get upset when Audrey disciplines CeeCee without their permission.

Ghosts - "The Life and Times of Esther Greene" (CBS, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Now a successful podcaster, Todd Pearlman returns to profile Sam and Isaac’s book, but becomes obsessed with Jay. Meanwhile, Pete tries to get to the bottom of why Alberta changed her name, forcing her to admit a hidden truth.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 8)

Thursday, December 11

Jamie Lee Curtis (The Sticky/Anything But Love/Operation Petticoat) - Catch Jamie Lee on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Rachel Sennott (I Love LA/Call Your Mother) - Rachel appears on Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
Ike Barinholtz (The Studio/The Afterparty/Bless the Harts/The Mindy Project/Eastbound & Down) - Ike stops by Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
Elon Gold (Stacked/In-Laws) - Elon is a guest on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Zooey Deschanel (Physical/New Girl) - Andy Cohen interviews Zooey on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 3:30am on Bravo. She also talks about Merv on Live with Kelly and Mark (check your local listings) and on ABC News Live Prime with Linsey Davis at 7pm.
Lucien Laviscount (Emily in Paris) - Lucien talks about Emily in Paris on ABC's Good Morning America sometime between 7-9am and on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Kyra Sedgwick (Call Your Mother/Brooklyn Nine-Nine) and Kevin Bacon (I Love Dick) - Kyra and Kevin talk about The Best You Can with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
Loretta Devine (Family Reunion/The Carmichael Show) and Lela Rochon (The Wayans Bros.) - Co-host Gayle King sits down with Angela Bassett, Loretta Devine and Lela Rochon, original cast of Waiting to Exhale, on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
Lea Michele (The Mayor) - Lea talks about Broadway's Chess on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am. She also performs in the 10am hour.
Daryl McCormack (Bad Sisters - NBC's Today catches up with Daryl in the 9am hour.
Brooke Shields (Suddenly Susan) - Brooke co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Mila Kunis (Family Guy/That '70s Show) - Mila tells Drew about her role in Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Ashley Park (Emily in Paris) - Emily tells Drew about what to expect in season five of Emily in Paris on The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
Joey McIntyre (Return of the Mac/The McCarthys) - Joey talks about Roku's Jingle Bell Wedding on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Danica McKellar (The Wonder Years) - Danica is a guest on New York Living on WPIX in New York at 10:15am.