Is the Sitcom Dead?
October 8th, 2008 Filed under: Uncategorized — Movie CriticRemember when you and your entire family could sit down and watch TV together? Remember when a 30-minute show was packed with good clean fun? Are those days over?
In the 80s, which is as far back and I can go since I was born in 1979, we had some great shows. Shows like The Facts of Life, Different Strokes, Cosby, etc. In the 90s we had Full House, Friends, Frasier. Then came reality TV.
Survivor, Fear Factor, Amazing Race, American Idol, etc. all have dug the grave for what used to be entertainment on TV. Comedy sitcoms like the critically acclaimed “Arrested Development” could not last any longer than 2 seasons. The show had great characters, funny off beat writers, and was the best 30 minutes on TV. But it could not compete with the reality TV and the stupid nighttime game shows.
How can Fox justify killing a sitcom while they continue to renew hour-long stuff like Trading Spouses and Nanny 911? Is it the fact that people would rather watch a religious woman trade homes with a devil worshiper for a week? Do we all want to watch the family with four screaming kids and clueless parents? It’s the same exact theme every week with just new people!
I believe the real reason is money. It is much more cost effective to have a one-hour reality or game show. You do not need a team of creative writers to help Howie ask ladies to open a case. I think he can even handle the phone call from the banker on his own. You also do not have a cast to pay millions to either. Wonder how much a girl gets to hold a suitcase these days?
So in conclusion I believe the death of the sitcom has noting to do with the fact that we have lost talented writers and actors. It all boils down to money. They have taken the cheap deal and given the sitcom the no deal.
2 Responses to “Is the Sitcom Dead?”
By Diana Dobbie on Oct 8, 2008 | Reply
I completely support your opinion about sitcoms. It’s a shame that the next generation is subjected to such meaningless fluff. We are teaching our kids that it’s okay to make alot of money “holding a suitcase and looking like a Barbie doll” instead of letting them learn about life lessons in a fun but relatively realistic way. As a kid I loved the family sitcoms because although they were funny there was an underlying message, do the right thing, get good grades, be kind to others, support each other, The Brady Bunch, The Partridge Family and The Cosby Show took normal “disfunctional” family situations and showed their audience that their situations could work. What are we teaching our kids today?
By David Wells on Oct 8, 2008 | Reply
Yeah, I agree completely. It amazes me that networks cancel decent shows after 2 episodes, without giving it a chance. The Office and Earl are some of the few that have survived.
Reality TV is getting ridiculous.