‘Must-See TV’ to apply to Thursdays again
Here’s some momentous scheduling news. Starting Nov. 30, NBC’s Thursday night lineup will be as follows: “My Name Is Earl,” “The Office,” “Scrubs,” and “30 Rock,” with “E.R.” still finishing the night in the 10 p.m. slot.
Take a moment to ponder that two-hour chunk of comedy. If I were to name the 10 funniest shows currently on TV, those would be four of them. A couple of them would be in the top five. These are four consistently funny, smart, and non-condescending comedies. None of them use canned laughter. All of them are sharply written and well-acted.
NBC owned Thursday nights for comedy through the 1980s and ’90s with such monster hits as “Cheers,” “The Cosby Show,” “Seinfeld,” and “Friends.” But the two-hour block hasn’t featured four quality shows since 1987, when the lineup was “Cosby,” “Family Ties,” “Cheers,” and “Night Court.” Since then, there was has always been some crap like “Caroline in the City” or “The Single Guy” wedged in between the good shows. The stellar new lineup is the best block of comedy in 20 years, on NBC or any other network.
Unfortunately, while all four shows are critically beloved, none of them are major ratings hits. The most popular is “My Name Is Earl,” which typically falls around 45th place with about 9 million viewers. In a just world, these four shows would be in the top 20 every week. But we do not live in a just world. Not yet, anyway. If we all watch NBC on Thursdays starting Nov. 30 (and stop watching “Two and a Half Men” altogether), perhaps the world will become just.
(OK, if I were to name the 10 funniest shows currently on TV, they would be, in alphabetical order: “Campus Ladies” [Oxygen], “Curb Your Enthusiasm” [HBO], “Family Guy” [Fox], “Help Me Help You” [ABC], “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” [FX], “My Name Is Earl” [NBC], “The Office” [NBC], “Scrubs” [NBC], “South Park” [Comedy Central], and “30 Rock” [NBC].)
November 20th, 2006 at 3:52 am
Although getting less and less funny, the Simpsons will always have a place in my heart.
As far as Family Guy goes, I think South Park is right, it is written by manatees.
November 20th, 2006 at 8:35 am
I think Family Guy, in general, is way funnier than Simpsons. Last night’s episodes (11/19/06) were an exception, where Simpsons gave me more laughs than Family Guy.
Don’t get me wrong here: I’ve always been a Simpsons advocate, AND I think the morals in Family Guy are skewed terribly. But when it just comes down to who’s funnier, Family Guy wins.
November 20th, 2006 at 11:11 am
I love Comedy but out of your 10 funniest shows, South Park is the only one I watch consistently. I hated Family Guy and didn’t like the one episode of Scrubs that I saw but maybe I should give a few more of these a chance.
November 20th, 2006 at 12:15 pm
All I know is that a Thursday night with no laugh track is an answer to at least two prayers. The fact that I also love all of the shows just shows what great taste I have. Hooray for NBC finally getting a decent night of comedy back together! Huzzah!
November 20th, 2006 at 12:18 pm
The 2nd season of The Office is such a great DVD set. What a brilliantly hilarious show. I thought this season stumbled a bit but has recently found its stride again–and the new merger throwing in new characters to the mix has all kinds of potential……… I can’t wait for Thursdays.
November 20th, 2006 at 10:12 pm
I am enthusiastic. I love all of these shows, and I’ve only recently become a fan of “Scrubs” since Comedy Central started airing reruns. Thursday nights are my favorite nights.
November 21st, 2006 at 7:54 am
I cried tears of joy when I read that list. Can such a beautiful tv line-up exist. The only thing that would make it better would be for NBC to ressurect Arrested Development and put it on in place of ER.
As for my top ten list, I would go Arrested Development (I know it’s cancelled, but let me still dream), Office, Scrubs, My Name is Earl, Reno 911, 30 Rock, South Park, Simpsons, Pimp my Ride (for its unintentional humor) and “that one with Heather Graham that got cancelled after 1 show.”