SitcomsOnline.com News Blog

NBC announced late last week that production will not continue for new Thursday comedies Bad Judge and A to Z beyond their initial 13 episode orders. So, essentially both series have been canceled with no back nine (episode) pick-up. They will continue production until their 13th episodes are filmed. Both comedies have seen falling ratings each week for its first 5 episodes. Eight episodes will remain to be aired and if all goes well, they will air their finales on Thursday, Jan. 22 (with preempts only on Christmas Day and New Year's Day). NBC has scheduled the season finale of The Biggest Loser from 8-10pm on Jan. 29, before Monday drama The Blacklist makes it move to Thursdays at 9 starting Feb. 5 In Bad Judge, Kate Walsh starred as a judge who enjoys living on the wild side, but is one of the most respected jurists when behind the bench, while A to Z starred Ben Feldman and Cristin Milioti, and chronicled the relationship of a young couple from the first time they meet. Stay with us if NBC makes any decision not to air these episodes, but at least in the near future they are airing them.

PBS and Shine International announced that the second season of ITV's acclaimed British sitcom Vicious will be coming to PBS in Summer 2015, kicking-off a star-studded summer lineup of British programming on the U.S. network. Following a re-commission by UK broadcaster ITV, Vicious will return with Freddie (Sir Ian McKellen) and Stuart (Sir Derek Jacobi) delivering more biting remarks, snide comments and cruel asides. Joined by friends Violet (Frances de la Tour), Ash (Iwan Rheon), Penelope (Marcia Warren), Mason (Philip Voss) and a host of surprising guest characters, the boys embark on another season of humorous mishaps, misunderstandings, hideous break-ups and heart-warming make-ups. The six part series will air first on ITV in the UK, with the PBS transmission following in summer 2015.

Vicious made its U.S. debut in June 2014 to much critical acclaim, with the New York Times calling it "convulsingly funny," the New York Daily News marking it "a breath of fresh television air" and Entertainment Weekly describing it as "bitingly funny."

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! Now that Halloween is over and everybody is in the holiday mood now (if you don't believe it, check your local radio dial, because there is a good chance you'll find at least one station playing non-stop Christmas music), things are also slowing down as far as news developments, but we're here with all that we have, including a pair of recent cancellations at NBC. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

• VEI has made it official: Nash Bridges - The Complete Series will arrive on DVD on November 18.
• Becker - The Final Season is arriving soon from CBS as a MOD title, but no date is given yet.

NOVEMBER 4 HOME MEDIA RELEASES 

• Hot in Cleveland - Season Five (DVD, $29.98): The TV Land original sitcom returns to DVD in this release.
• Sgt. Bilko (The Phil Silvers Show) - The Complete Series (DVD, $129.99): The classic sitcom, which seemed to be abandoned after a 50th anniversary release of a handful of episodes and a season 1 release, is finally completed on DVD, with many of the special features from the previous releases and a few new ones.

Who to Follow: Danny Cooksey (Twitter), "Actor/musician known for such memorable roles as the little white kid on Diff'rent Strokes. The guy with the sweet mullet in Terminator 2 and yes Budnick"

Claim to Fame: Danny Cooksey was born in Oklahoma and on track to be a country music star when he and his mother moved to Los Angeles. Instead, he ended up on Diff'rent Strokes, where he played Sam, or as he refers to it, "the little white kid." He later went on to play Bobby Budnick on the Nickelodeon series Salute Your Shorts. Today, he does more work as a voice actor.

Pick of the Tweets: "This is great My son said mommy? Ha ha"@halfshort: @DannyCooksey this is a pic I drew of you a waaaay long time ago. pic.twitter.com/y39zeQVt5Z"" (April 20, 2014)

A to Z - Thursdays at 9:30PM ET/PT on NBC
Premieres Thursday, October 2, 2014 at 9:30PM ET/PT

by Vincent

A to Z is a romantic comedy that tracks the relationship of Andrew, a whimsical employee for an internet dating site, and Zelda, a no-nonsense lawyer who have an accidental meet-up and wind up falling for each other. He thinks it's chance. He thinks it's fate. After all, he's convinced she's the shimmering girl in the silver dress. Is it true love forever or just a detour in destiny?

Cast Details:

Ben Feldman as Andrew
Cristin Milioti as Zelda
Henry Zebrowski as Stu
Leonora Crichlow as Stephie
Katey Sagal as The Narrator

Ben Feldman (Andrew) is best known for his role as Michael Ginsberg on AMC's Mad Men. He also appeared regularly as Fred on Lifetime's Drop Dead Diva. His other television work includes appearances on The Mindy Project, Silicon Valley, and CSI.

Cristin Milioti (Zelda) is best known as Tracy McConnel, or "The Mother," on How I Met Your Mother. She is also well-known for her role in the popular Broadway musical Once. Her other work includes appearances on The Good Wife, 30 Rock, and Nurse Jackie.

Henry Zebrowski (Stu) has appeared on several TV shows, including Blue Bloods, Royal Pains, and Law & Order: SVU. Most recently, he had a small role in the film The Wolf of Wall Street.

Leonora Crishlow (Stephie) has appeared in a handful of TV shows, including Doctor Who, Being Human, and Back in the Game.

Katey Sagal (The Narrator) is well-known for her TV work, including long-running roles as Peggy Bundy on Married...with Children and as Leela on Futurama. She currently stars as Gemma Teller Morrow on FX's Sons of Anarchy and was on the popular sitcom 8 Simple Rules, opposite the late John Ritter.

Pilot Plot:

"A is for Acquaintances" (Thursday, Oct. 2 at 9:30PM ET/PT)

When a computer glitch sends Zelda on a total mismatch, she's asked to come in for an interview at the internet dating site where Andrew works, and this is where it all begins. Andrew and Zelda meet for the first time and despite their differences, sparks fly. She thinks it's chance. He thinks it's fate and is convinced she's the shimmering girl in the silver dress he saw several years earlier.

Analysis:

Romantic comedy seems to be a big trend in sitcom pilots this fall. Between this show, Marry Me (also on NBC), and ABC's Selfie and Manhattan Love Story, the networks seem to be obsessed with the idea of a TV series that documents two unlikely people falling in love. Strangely, there doesn’t seem to be any real catalyst for this trend – I guess maybe you could attribute it to the success of How I Met Your Mother, which was really mostly an ensemble comedy but had a strong romantic comedy pipeline running through it, or perhaps even the far more modest success of a show like The Mindy Project. And yet, both of those shows demonstrate just how difficult it is to truly nail a romantic comedy. How I Met Your Mother was an incredibly popular series, sure, but after the very divisive series finale, few would argue it really nailed the rom-com elements of its premise.

The Mindy Project has struggled both critically and commercially through-out its run (though critics seem to be more on its side lately), and it's been a while since we've had a rom-com film that managed to captivate the masses in the way something like When Harry Met Sally or Breakfast at Tiffany's did. Still, there's something uniquely satisfying about a romantic comedy when it's done right, and A to Z is attempting to be TV's answer to that pop culture niche. Does it succeed? Well, it gets some things right, particularly its two lead actors. Ben Feldman and Cristin Milioti are terrific actors in their own right, but their chemistry together is undeniably electric, and it made me more invested in their courtship than I ever expected myself to be. The two sell their respective characters and their attraction to each other to the point where a lot of the faults of the writing tend to melt away, and their skills almost makes this worth watching alone. Unfortunately, the rest of A to Z is fairly inconsistent. One of the most common trappings romantic comedy as a genre has is that it has an overbearing sense of plot momentum - the story needs to get to certain places at certain times, which often leads its characters to act in ways that are not recognizably human. The best examples of the form find ways to rise above this – the excellent You're the Worst on FX (which gets my vote as the best entry in the apparent rom-com race) made its lead characters extremely flawed individuals, allowing their often outlandish behavior make sense in the context of their characters. A to Z is, unfortunately, not on that level – its characters often feel like confused messes of quirks that add up to vaguely stereotypical archetypes rather than fully-realized characters. This fault can be found at an even larger level with the very weak supporting cast, none of which seem to have a clear purpose on the show just yet. Of course, this is just a pilot, and these characters will hopefully develop over time, but right now it feels like the actors are far above the level the show is operating at.

Conclusion:

A to Z is an inconsistent show that's a little too impressed with itself and is more concerned with being "cute" than creating good, memorable characters. That said, the show has some undeniable strength in its two lead actors, and there's parts of this pilot that suggest a show that could eventually serve them well. If the show can simply strengthen its lead characters a bit more and define them beyond basic stereotypes, and if it can figure out just what the hell to do with its supporting cast, this could eventually become a show to look out for. Right now, it feels like a show with a lot of potential that isn’t quite being realized yet.

Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 3/5
Funniness: 2.5/5
Overall: 3/5

Discuss the show after you watch it on Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014 at 9:30PM ET/PT on our message board.

Related Links:

NBC.com Official Site

TV.com

epguides.com

Internet Movie Database

Wikipedia

A to Z Photo Gallery

Preview:

TV Land has ordered 10-episode first seasons of two new single-camera comedies, Impastor and Teachers. Both series will premiere on TV Land in 2015. Impastor, a single-camera comedy from Christopher Vane, stars Michael Rosenbaum, Sara Rue (Less Than Perfect), Aimee Garcia (George Lopez), Mircea Monroe, Mike Kosinski, and David Rasche (Ugly Betty). The series revolves around Buddy Dobbs (Rosenbaum), a gambling, pot-smoking slacker on the run from a loan shark, who steals a man’s identity and ends up posing as the new gay pastor in a small, tight-knit town. Though he’s tempted to immediately run off with the pastor’s money, Buddy has a change of heart when he realizes that the people there, including his prim church assistant Dora (Rue), actually like this new and semi-improved alter ego...and he kind of likes them back. Other officials at Buddy’s new church include Alexa Cummings (Monroe), the gorgeous treasurer that has Buddy rethinking his whole con; Russell Kerry (Kosinski), the young secretary who's very excited to have a gay pastor; and Alden Schmidt (Rasche), the church president and the only person who seems to be just a little suspicious of Buddy. As Buddy deals with his new life, his bartender ex-girlfriend Leanne (Garcia), has to deal with the huge mess he left behind.

Teachers revolves around six elementary school teachers who are trying to mold the minds and lives of America's youth, even though they don't really seem to have their own lives together at all. From refusing to read fairytales because "sometimes Prince Charming wants to date other people" to hitting on the resident "hot dad," these teachers are certainly changing the world, one student at a time. The series stars improv group The Katydids - Caitlin Barlow, Katy Colloton, Cate Freedman, Kate Lambert, Katie O'Brien and Katie Thomas – who also wrote and starred in the web hit that the TV series is based on. In addition to writing for and starring in Teachers, they will also serve as executive producers alongside Alison Brie (Community) and showrunners Ian Roberts and Jay Martel (Key and Peele).

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! This week, we've got news about what may be next for Craig Ferguson, a Wonder Years music update (including which songs are missing), and news of more Mill Creek releases. Let's get started!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

• Every week, it seems that we have more news about the release of The Wonder Years - The Complete Series, and this week is no exception, as the studio gave a complete listing of all of the original music that will be included... an astonishing 96% of the original music can be found. And for those who wonder what's missing, a fan of the series on the website Home Theater Forum made a list of songs that appeared in the series that are not on the list provided by StarVista. While we suspect some of the "missing" songs may be oversights (such as public domain songs that StarVista didn't bother to include on their list), it is worth noting that music is notably missing from The Doors, Richie Havens, and Blood, Sweat & Tears.
• Mill Creek is re-releasing more Sony DVD sets on October 21, with Married... With Children - Seasons 5 and 6 and Square Pegs - The Complete Series.
• Universal will be re-releasing the classic series Quantum Leap as a complete series on November 4, with Quantum Leap - The Complete Series.

AUGUST 19 HOME MEDIA RELEASES

• The Millers - The First Season (DVD, $49.98): The first season of the CBS sitcom arrives on DVD, along with a nice collection of special features.
• The Mindy Project - Season Two (DVD, $29.98): The sophomore season of the Fox sitcom debuts on DVD with this release.
• Newhart - The Complete Fourth Season (DVD, $29.93): Fans of the classic series can return to the Stratford Inn with this release.
• Parks and Recreation - Season Six (DVD, $39.98): The NBC sitcom starring Amy Poehler returns to DVD once again with this release.
• Three's Company - The Complete Series - Come and Knock on Our Door (DVD, $134.98): Return to the place where the kisses are hers and hers and his with this complete series release, which puts all of the previously released season sets into one box.

Who to Follow: Antenna TV (Facebook, Twitter), "A new digital multicast network dedicated to hit movies and classic TV shows."

Claim to Fame: We're not going with a person for our "Follow Me" this week, because people aren't the only thing on Facebook and Twitter. Sometimes, a TV channel or other other similar entity is worth following on Twitter, and Antenna TV is a good example of this. Antenna TV, of course, was the broadcast digital network that debuted on January 1, 2011, and is known primarily for airing several classic TV series and movies. They're worth following since they post meaningful updates about their programming from people who really know and understand the programming seen on Antenna TV (as opposed to other networks, which may tend to just post generic updates reminding fans to watch a show without saying anything special about the episodes) and they're willing to interact with fans.

Pick of the Tweets: "LUCY FANS, get ready for a Lucille Ball double feature, tonight starting with "Yours, Mine and Ours" at 8p ET, and then "The Facts of Life" at 10:30p ET. What is your favorite Lucy movie?" (August 16, 2014)

NBC will offer a digital-only premiere with the launch of its new Thursday night comedy A to Z from Warner Bros. Television today, seven weeks before its linear launch in October. In a first of its kind, NBC is partnering with Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, which reaches 245 million listeners each month, to premiere the pilot across Clear Channel's vast network of digital properties. The first-of-its-kind campaign will include strong local and national integration, airing the A to Z pilot digitally on iHeartRadio - everywhere it is available - providing promotional support across contemporary hits radio stations both on-air and on their websites, mobile sites and social networks throughout the country; and featuring on-air discussions with Clear Channel's nationally syndicated top on-air personality Ryan Seacrest to drive awareness for the digital screening availability.

In addition to Clear Channel's digital properties and apps, the A to Z pilot will also be available on the NBC app, NBC.com, Hulu, Xfinity, the NBC owned and affiliate station websites and cable, satellite and telco providers On Demand and online services. The heartfelt A to Z pilot premiered digitally yesterday (exactly halfway on the calendar until Valentine's Day) with a version that is 90 seconds longer than the version that will premiere on NBC Thursday, Oct. 2 at 9:30pm ET/PT. Fans can connect on social with the official hashtag for the digital premiere #iHeartAtoZ. A to Z tells the story of Andrew (Ben Feldman, The Mindy Project) and Zelda (Cristin Milioti, How I Met Your Mother) - a pair that almost wasn't - and all that happened from the day they met. Henry Zebrowski (Best Week Ever), Lenora Crichlow (Being Human) and Christina Kirk (Girls) also star, with Katey Sagal (Sons of Anarchy, Married...with Children) as the Narrator.


It's Friday, so it is time for "Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows" for the coming week. This is where we list what sitcom stars are appearing on talk shows for the coming week, the stars are both current and past sitcom stars, so this is for all sitcom fans of all eras!
For the week of August 18-22, 2014, we have many current sitcom stars and past sitcom stars on TV talk shows! All times listed are Eastern. So get your DVRs (or whatever you use) ready! Ready? Here is all what you need to know for the coming week!


Monday, August 18, 2014

• Bill Cosby (The Cosby Show/Cosby/The Bill Cosby Show) - Watch Bill on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:34pm on NBC.
• Eric McCormack (Will & Grace) - Eric appears on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
• Jay Thomas (Murphy Brown/Love & War/Cheers) - Jay chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
• Jason Priestley (Call Me Fitz) - Jason talks about Beverly Hills 90210 on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
• Nolan Gould (Modern Family) - Nolan is a guest on a repeat of Home & Family on Hallmark Channel at 10am ET/PT.
• Kym Whitley (Young & Hungry/Animal Practice/Sparks) - Steve Harvey is in control of Kym's date on a repeat of Steve Harvey, so check your local listings.
• Alfonso Ribeiro (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air/Silver Spoons) - Alfonso will be part of the Plugged In panel on Access Hollywood Live, so check your local listings.
• Laura Marano (Austin & Ally/Back to You) - Laura will be on Fox and Friends on Fox News Channel at 8:50am.

Tuesday, August 19, 2014

• Joseph Gordon-Levitt (3rd Rock from the Sun) - Catch Joseph on The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
• Tasha Smith (Tyler Perry's For Better or Worse/The Tom Show/Boston Common) - Tasha appears on a repeat of The Arsenio Hall Show, so check your local listings.
• Lena Dunham (Girls) - Lena is a guest on a repeat of Katie, so check your local listings.
• Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family/The Class) - Jesse gives the scoop on one of his coolest celebrity encounters on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
• Vicki Lawrence (Mama's Family) - Vicki appears as Mama on a repeat of The Queen Latifah Show on your local station or at 3am on BET.
• Malin Akerman (Trophy Wife) - Malin is a guest on a repeat of Home & Family on Hallmark Channel at 10am ET/PT.
• Kevin Hart (The Big House/Undeclared) - Kevin surprises a fan on a repeat of Steve Harvey, so check your local listings.
• Jennifer Esposito (Samantha Who?/Spin City) - Jennifer joins the Chew Crew on a repeat of ABC's The Chew at 1pm ET/12pm PT/CT.
• Ana Ortiz (A.U.S.A./Kristin) - Ana will be on New York Live on WNBC in New York at 12:30pm ET.
• The Cast of The Brady Bunch - Florence Henderson, Christopher Knight, Mike Lookinland, Susan Olsen and Barry Williams reunite to celebrate Florence's 80th Birthday on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.

Wednesday, August 20, 2014

• Kathy Griffin (Suddenly Susan) - Watch Kathy on The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
• Ted Danson (Cheers/Becker) - Ted is a guest on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
• Jaime King (The Class/Gary Unmarried) - Jaime visits Conan at 11pm on TBS.
• Josh Radnor (How I Met Your Mother) - Josh appears on a repeat of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check your local listings.
• Kristin Chenoweth (Kristin) - Kristin talks about Rio 2 on a repeat of The Wendy Williams Show at 12am on BET or on your local stations.
• Christopher Meloni (Surviving Jack/The Fanelli Boys) - Christopher dishes with Rach on a repeat of Rachael Ray, so check your local listings.
• Doris Roberts (Everybody Loves Raymond) - Doris talks about her film The Little Rascals Save the Day on a repeat of Home & Family on Hallmark Channel at 10am ET/PT.
• Kim Coles (Living Single) - Kim is a guest on a repeat of The Dr. Oz Show, so check your local listings.
• Joel McHale (Community) - Joel interviews Chelsea Handler on Chelsea Lately on E! at 11pm.

Thursday, August 21, 2014

• Chris Pratt (Parks and the Recreation) - Catch Chris and the rest of the cast of Guardians of the Galaxy on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
• Zach Braff (Scrubs) - Zach is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
• Jeff Garlin (The Goldbergs/Curb Your Enthusiasm) - Jeff appears on a repeat of The Arsenio Hall Show, so check your local listings.
• Ty Burrell (Modern Family/Back to You/Out of Practice) - Ty chats on a repeat of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, so check your local listings.
• Cynthia Nixon (Sex and the City/The Big C) - Tune in to see Cynthia on a repeat of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
• Josh Gad (1600 Penn/Back to You) - Josh chats with the ladies of The View on a repeat on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.

Friday, August 22, 2014

• Julia Louis-Dreyfus (Veep/The New Adventures of Old Christine/Seinfeld) - Catch Julia on a repeat of The Late Show with David Letterman at 11:35pm on CBS.
• Damon Wayans, Jr. (New Girl/Happy Endings) and Jake Johnson (New Girl) - Watch the stars of Let's Be Cops on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
• Max Greenfield (New Girl/Modern Men) - Max appears on a repeat of The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson at 12:37am on CBS.
• Hank Azaria (The Simpsons/Free Agents) - Hank is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
• Mary Lynn Rajskub (How to Be a Gentleman) - Tune in to see Mary on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
• Allison Janney (Mom/Mr. Sunshine) - Allison is a guest on a repeat of Tavis Smiley on PBS, so check your local listings.
• Whitney Cummings (Whitney) - Whitney is part of the guest panel on a repeat of Chelsea Lately on E! at 11pm.
• Brandy (The Game/Moesha) - Brandy appears on a repeat of The Arsenio Hall Show, so check your local listings.
• Mayim Bialik (The Big Bang Theory/Blossom) - Tune in to see Mayim on a repeat of The Wendy Williams Show at 12am on BET or on your local stations.
• Jason Biggs (Mad Love/Drexell's Class) - Jason is a guest on a repeat of The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.
• Cedric the Entertainer (The Soul Man/The Steve Harvey Show) - Learn how Cedric is killing his cholesterol on a repeat of The Dr. Oz Show, so check your local listings.
• Valerie Bertinelli (Hot in Cleveland/One Day at a Time) - Valerie joins the Chew Crew on a repeat of ABC's The Chew at 1pm ET/12pm PT/CT.

Leave us comments on our message board or Tweet/Facebook us to let us know what you think of this Friday feature! We do listen!