TVSquad

Hey, let's all mark our calendars, because it's a big day in the TV world. Now all the people who aren't watching According to Jim on TV can not watch it on DVD.

Season one of the ABC comedy (it's a comedy, right?) will be released on Oct. 21, 2008. It's part of a deal ABC Studios inked with Lionsgate Home Entertainment to distribute select titles on DVD. Season one of Reaper is next on Nov. 4, followed by Boy Meets World (which was discontinued in 2006), Hope and Faith, and 8 Simple Rules.

That's interesting, because I've got Season one of 8 Simple Rules here (no, I didn't buy it, a publicist sent it to me), and it's from Buena Vista Home Entertainment. So Lionsgate must be taking over distribution.

No doubt envious of all the buzz The Soup is getting, E!'s sister channel, Style Network, is planning their own version. Premiering August 16th, The Dish will cover more topics than The Soup including TV, celebrities, fashion and beauty. Here's the kicker though: The Dish is set to be hosted by Topanga herself, Boy Meets World's Danielle Fishel.

Style executive VP Salaam Coleman sums up The Dish's appeal, saying, "What's great about The Dish is that it takes a not-so-serious look at the often very serious world of fashion and finds the comedy in celebrity lifestyle." Well yes, that would be great--in theory.

The problem is, this is a type of show that is very difficult to do well. You need a strong group of writers and a charismatic host. While The Soup may be the toast of the town now, it kind of sucked when it first aired. While two of The Soup's executive producers are behind The Dish, I'm not sure if Danielle is going to quite have the "pop" that this show is going to need.

OMGLists has listed the eight worst sitcom names ever on television. This list is a trip down memory lane. Some of the names are so embedded in our minds (probably because they come from such beloved shows) that until you read them in the context of this list, you probably didn't ever think of them as terrible names.

I don't want to spoil your fun and say too much about who's included on the list so I will only mention one character: Topanga from Boy Meets World. This name was a no brainer for me -- at least it would have been a few months ago before I moved to Los Angeles from New York. I didn't realize there was actually a place in L.A. called Topanga Canyon. I even thought of Boy Meets World when we went there for a hike.

Welcome to TV Squad Lists, a feature where each blogger has a chance to list his or her own rundown of things in television that stand out from the rest, both good and bad.

Gung Ho
Before Scott Bakula became one of the hottest leading men in sci-fi, he starred in many terrible sitcoms. The worst of which was this TV version of the Michael Keaton film. Never mind that any conflict was completely resolved by the end of the big screen version, the scripts were not funny and Bakula isn't really known for his comedic timing.

Bob Patterson
One of the more famous flops in history, mainly because it starred Jason Alexander who had just ended his run on what TV Guide called "the best sitcom ever," Seinfeld. Imagine if George Costanza got his own show and then forgot how to be funny. That is Bob Patterson.

Tom Smothers' Organic Prime Time Space Ride
After The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour was unfairly canceled, Tom & Dick Smothers were thought of as two of the funniest and most cutting-edge comedians of the day. So when Tom's new show was announced people expected the same bold humor they were given before. Sadly the wildest thing about this show is the title.

Are you a fan of Boy Meets World, Night Court, Who's The Boss, Murphy Brown, or Airwolf? I hope you really enjoy the first DVD sets that were released recently, as those are the only ones you're going to be getting.

Seems that the DVD sets of those above shows didn't sell as much as the studios had hoped. For example, the season two set of Boy Meets World was off 12% from the first season, and the third season was down 39% from the second, so they're not going to release anymore sets of Boy Meets World. And that's one of the better examples, as the other shows did even worse. But I don't really get the math here. The reason why more Who's the Boss sets won't be released is because the first season set didn't sell as much as compared to the season 1 and 2 set of Seinfeld. And the reason why you won't see more Night Court is because that first season set didn't sell as well as Friends' last season set.

Why are they even comparing them to sales of Seinfeld and Friends, two of the most popular sitcoms of all-time?

After the release of Dukes of Hazzard and the big-screen adaptations of Dallas and Miami Vice already in the works, perhaps you started thinking to yourself, "They should make Knight Rider a full-length feature." If so, you should probably start watching some television that isn't pushing 20 years. But still, you're in luck 'cause the Weinsteins have picked it up for some sweet ex-cop/talking Trans-Am action. Unfortunately for David Hasselhoff fans, this is yet another no-show (he's not included in the upcoming Baywatch movie either). As long as they bring Mr. Feeny back to voice KITT, I'll keep my protesting to a minimum.

How do I know it's a holiday? When I find myself watching reruns of Boy Meets World on ABC Family (I usually have the YES simulcast of the Mike and the Mad Dog radio show on during the afternoons --  nice background noise while I do my work -- but they're off today). In the episode I watched, I saw a couple of people who would become future stars, ironically much bigger than any of the kids who were the stars of that show (I mean, has anyone heard from the person who played Topanga lately?).

One was Brittany Murphy, who played Topanga's best friend Trini. The second, and more surprising, find was Ethan Suplee, who currently steals every scene as Randy in My Name Is Earl. He played Frankie Stechino, half of a bully team that terrorized the school. It was tough to recognize Ethan at first, because he was much heavier back then (the episode was from 1995) than he is now. But I thought he was pretty funny; he put on a wiseguy accent and did a good job of being a "smart" thug. He and his partner, Joey the Rat, even did a nice little take on Reservoir Dogs. You could definitely see the comic potential in Ethan just from those scenes. Good thing he dropped some weight, though; he was unhealthily heavy back then. I can't imagine anyone else playing Randy, know what I mean?