TVSquad

One of the true breakout hits of this fall season is ABC's sitcom Modern Family. The critics have been singing the praises of this show, and the ratings have been good enough that I will predict without equivocation, that Modern Family will see a second season. And Ed O'Neill deserves a lot of the credit.

I like Modern Family. I don't love, love, love it, but I like it. The guys that were together on Frasier, Steve Levitan and Christopher Lloyd, have given us something good here. It's not Frasier level yet, but it might get there with time.

If there's one part of Modern Family that has won me over completely, it's Ed O'Neill. You might think, well, sure, it's Ed O'Neill. But I have never liked Ed. I was never a fan of Married With Children. I loathed it. And don't tell me I'm a moron for saying that; it's just a show that never worked for me.

I'm hearing a lot of things about NBC's Meteor miniseries, that it was deliriously awful, stupid, ridiculous, and overall a candidate for Mystery Science Theater 3000. Is that true?

I think these "Earth being destroyed by rocks from space" movies played themselves out years ago, and I thought the casting of people like Christopher Lloyd and Jason Alexander was kinda funky, but was it that bad? Give us your thoughts below and let me know if I should even bother watching it.

Back in the late 70s, there was a major disaster movie about a huge meteor coming to Earth and causing havoc. It was called Meteor and it starred Sean Connery, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden, Henry Fonda, and a ton of other big names, like all 70s disaster movies had.

Now we have another movie about two large meteors coming to Earth to cause havoc called Meteor, only this time it's on television and it's a miniseries and it stars Christopher Lloyd, Stacy Keach, and Jason Alexander. What did you think? Here's Part 1 if you missed it (Part 2 airs next week).

In July, I was at a sitcom writing seminar in which Sam Simon (who helped develop The Simpsons) declared: "the sitcom is dead." Veteran comedy writer Ken Levine (who hosted that sitcom seminar), however, disagrees. Ken believes the traditional multi-camera sitcom might be on a respirator, but still has a pulse. Levine said, "I would amend Sam's statement and say that yeah, the bad, stale, family sitcom with tired rhythms, forced laughs, and bogus characters is dead."

I guess if you're trying to revive the dying sitcom, a good way to start is by assembling a top-notch team. And Fox's new Wednesday night comedy, Back to You, does just that.

As most people know, there is very little about being an alcoholic or a drug addict that is funny. For most people who suffer from addiction the best they can hope for is to live "one day at a time" and do their best not to screw up their life and those around them. However, in the world of TV comedy, the addict is often the funniest person on the show. Many characters throughout TV history have given us all a belly laugh while they were under the influence. Here is my list of the funniest of those with this particular problem.

1. Jim Ignatowski (Christopher Lloyd) - Taxi
What could make a young Ivy League undergrad from a rich, influential family become a burned out reverend/cabbie with questionable judgment and a terrible memory? I doubt that even Jim could compile a complete list? At least his driving isn't any less safe than most New York cabbies.

The Hollywood Reporter is saying that Patricia Heaton and Kelsey Grammer are in talks to co-star in a sitcom together. The comedy is called Action News, in which Heaton and Grammer would star as a reunited anchor team at a local television station. It's being written and produced by Steven Levitan of Just Shoot Me, Greg the Bunny and Stacked, and Christopher Lloyd of Wings and Out of Practice.

I'm always a fan of a comedy that's based in a newsroom because I think there is a bottomless supply of humor. But, Patricia Heaton drives me nuts. I didn't like her on Raymond-- by the end of that series, she was a whining, yelling shell of a housewife. And those grocery stores ads are infuriating! I'm lukewarm on Kelsey Grammer.

What do you think of the possible pairing?

Yup, the short-lived Pamela Anderson FOX sitcom (short-lived, but still somehow made it to 14 aired episodes, scattered around the schedule) is coming to DVD in a "complete series" set on December 12.

The press release for this is so over the top: "Determined to prove she has ample talents beyond her ample talents...this hip, hilarious comedy...you'll bust out laughing!" Yeah, whatever.

The set is going to include 5 unaired episodes. Those must have been the brilliant, really funny ones. There will also be a few features on it, including something called "Nipplegate" and "Show Us Your Bloopers."