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 don't know if Legend of the Seeker could be considered a guilty pleasure or not. I mean, if you like something, why does it have to be a "guilty" pleasure? Having said that, I think a lot of people would consider this show something they're not willing to admit they like. But I'll admit it: I like it. It's a fun show.
Holiday TV Comedy Collection is a mix of Christmas episodes from various shows, including The Office, 30 Rock, Psych, Monk, and House.
This might not be the biggest DVD release day in history, but it's certainly one of the business. There's something for everyone this week, including a bunch of "Fan Favorites" DVDs for various sitcoms, including NewsRadio, All in the Family, and I Dream of Jeannie. That's a neat idea, though I wonder, if you're a big fan, wouldn't you already have the DVDs?
Oh, and remember Day Break, the ABC mystery series from a couple of years ago? You can get the Complete Series. I don't think I ever saw the end of that show. You can watch it on SlashControl, so maybe I'll start there before buying the set.
You can talk all you want about the best thing about the web: keeping friends and family connected, shopping, maps to help you get where you are going, making money. But I think the best thing about the web is that someone actually takes the time to upload episodes of short-lived 80s TV show.
Case in point: It's Your Move, the NBC sitcom that starred a teenage Jason Bateman and Married...with Children's David Garrison. The opening is pure cheese, but the writing was a notch above typical sitcom fare. Here's the first episode (parts 2 and 3 after the jump - more episodes here). Bateman's first little speech has a really funny payoff, and he always had great timing. River Phoenix shows up in this episode too.
Looking at this clip, I noticed that someone first posted it on YouTube back in 2006. So some of you might have seen it already. But as NBC used to say about their repeats, "if you haven't seen it, it's new to you!" What if The Wire had the laugh track from Married ... with Children? Wonder no more.
Mother's Day is Sunday, but we all have to realize that not every mom deserves a box of chocolates, a nice dinner, or a bouquet of flowers. AOL has their picks for the worst TV moms of all time, and a lot of the usual suspects are on the list. I think we can all agree that Marie Barone on Everybody Loves Raymond should be on the list. She clearly loves her kids, but...wow, how manipulative and pushy and meddling can a person get?
Evelyn Harper from Two and a Half Men is on the list, too. She's such a bad mom that it's sometimes easy to forget that she's even Charlie and Alan's mother. She seems more like some older, sexy aunt or something.
AOL has chosen the best TV shows of the 1980s, and it's not a bad list. But I'm sure everyone reading this will have their own thoughts.
Sure, there are shows that were my favorites I'd like to see on the list, but those would be personal choices. The only problem I have is where the shows place on the list. For example, is Fraggle Rock really a better show than Spenser: For Hire, Miami Vice, and Kate and Allie (even beyond the fact that it might be an odd show to compare to the other shows in the first place)? Is Facts of Life better than MacGyver?
Barney Miller is one of those sitcoms I never think about anymore. When I make my mental list of the best sitcoms I never even think of it, even though it was a very good show. I guess it's out of mind because it's not shown on TV that much. I'm surprised it's not part of the regular lineup of TV Land or Nickelodeon. Of course, they don't show The Dick Van Dyke Show much anymore either even though they own it, so nothing surprises me about those two channels anymore.
What happens if you're the former star of a hit TV show but the work isn't coming anymore? Well, there are plenty of bad options, but now you can make your own show on the web.
That's what former Married ... With Children star David Faustino has done with Star-ving, a new web show at Crackle.com. Episode 1 is up right now (and after the jump). It's not too long, and it's worth seeing. It's not the funniest thing, but kudos to everyone for going all out.
Faustino is pretty much playing a version of himself, and he's trying to get work in an industry that seems to have forgotten him. He goes to former co-star Ed O'Neil (nice of him to do a cameo here, and he's really funny) for help, and O'Neil pretty much tells him he's out of his f*****g mind. The show also co-stars former Parker Lewis Can't Lose star Corin Nemec. Episode 2 features Gilbert Gottfried, and future eps will feature Christina Applegate, Katey Segal, Ed Asner, and the cast of Growing Pains.
This is NSFW. It features swearing, references to drugs and suicide, and a disturbing scene of a German Shepherd licking Faustino's rear end.
Dancing With the Stars is a show that makes no sense to me. I understand the appeal of it; I'm usually very interested in any program that involves celebrities doing ridiculous things on national television and I know that people love bright shiny costumes, but it still somehow manages to hold no interest for me whatsoever.
As with most rumors, some of these turned out to be false, but others had some truth to them. Follow me after the jump for the official (and completely insane) cast of Dancing With the Stars' seventh season, along with some twists the producers have cooked up for this go-around.
Last month we told you about a contest being held by The New York Television Festival and The People's Choice Awards. They wanted you to come up with spinoffs for your favorite shows. Well, they've narrowed it down to three finalists, and it's time for you to vote at the PCA site.
Contestants had one minute to give a video pitch for their spinoff. The first finalist is The Halftime Show, a spinoff of Friday Night Lights that focuses on the people who play in the school bands that perform at football halftime shows. Married...with Children, 10 Years Later (I think that's the name of it anyway) has Al no longer married but becoming rich and starting to date again. The East Wing is a spinoff of The West Wing, and centers on the goings-on with The First Lady (estranged from her husband) and her staff.
A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.
Robert DoQui: He was a veteran character actor who appeared in a ton of TV shows over the years, including ER, The Outer Limits, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Party of Five, The Practice, NYPD Blue, Picket Fences, Happy Days, I Dream of Jeannie, Gunsmoke, Cagney and Lacey, Hill Street Blues, Knot's Landing, and others. He was also in three of the Robocop movies and also the films Nashville, Short Cuts, and Cloak and Dagger. He died at age 74 in Los Angeles.
Hey, remember that show The Pick-up Artist, starring internationally recognized d-bag Mystery? Was one of your Christmas wishes to see the same kind of show, except this time on the internet, with lower production values, starring two has-been former Fox sitcom stars? Well start carving up the Christmas goose, because you just got your wish!
In a move that is sure to please lovers of both so-good-it's-bad ironic entertainment and cautionary Hollywood tales, the AV Club is reporting that noted d-bag author of The Game, Neil Strauss, has released this set of promotional videos. In them, David Faustino and Corin Nemec team up to show just how good Strauss's method for picking up chicks is by challenging each other to a "who can get the most telephone numbers" contest. A sample (NSFW) video after the jump...
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
Mother's Day is Sunday, but we all have to realize that not every mom deserves a box of chocolates, a nice dinner, or a bouquet of flowers. AOL has their picks for 
AOL has chosen the 
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
What happens if you're the former star of a hit TV show but the work isn't coming anymore? Well, there are plenty of bad options, but now you can make your own show on the web.
Dancing With the Stars
Last month 
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
A roundup of TV people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.
Hey, remember that show 
Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.
TV Squad Ten: Top Ten ESPN shows from worst to first
Andy Richter: The TV Squad Interview
Have any questions for Vik Sahay of Chuck? Ask them here!
