Why the fuck not?

As I pounded my head into the wall, trying to figure out what do with my Saturday, and furthermore, my entire life, I thought to myself that perhaps instead of doing myself considerable brain damage, I would blog instead. It took me a little while to weigh out the pros and cons of each way to pass time. Finally, I decided that I could use the blog to answer a question that I get asked pretty often.

I have been known to go on about how I think sitcoms are the greatest thing in the world. Generally, my rant centers around the key points that watching situations that we all face on television brings us together, a triumph of the will, if you will. That and the fact that humor is fun. I always get asked the question though, what do I think is the greatest sitcom of all time?

Before I start though, I should preface my list with some warning. This by no means is meant to be an objective list. It is entirely subjective, not only in that my sense of humor isn't the same as the next guys, but also in the sense that, while I do watch an extensive amount of television, I have not seen every show. I can only put on the list the shows that I have seen. Two good examples of shows that might be on the list, had I given them a chance, would be The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and the Bob Newhart Show. For these reasons, I will not call this list, The Greatest Sitcoms of All Time, rather, The Sitcoms That I Like the Most. Lastly, as a precaution, I should also mention that I have no idea right now what I am going to put on this list, so, your reading it might just be as surprising as me writing it. Here we go.

10. Roseanne
So, During the 90's, when sitcom was king, the major fad was to take any stand up comedian with a reputation, and just create a show built around that character (I just thought. Wouldn't it have been great if Steve Martin had gotten a show like this. I only think this because he more than any other stand up comedian really had a stage character he had developed, very similar to The Jerk (one of the greatest comedies of all time) but I guess that wouldn't go along with the theme of the 90's, the Everyman). More examples of this would include Home Improvement, Seinfeld (kind of what started it all) and later the George Lopez Show. Of these waves of shows, this show always stood out to me for several reasons. First, it tried very hard to be "real" in that Roseanne, when the show starts works her ass off in some factory. Money is always a central issue for the Conner's in the show. It would get very dramatic at times, but not really after school special. It was a good blend. Then there was the last season...almost pushes the show out of recognition. The last season, in which the Conner's win the lottery and Dan leaves Roseanne for another woman, finally ends with that crazy 10 minute monologue with Roseanne revealing that the whole show was made up by her, the character, for a book. The kids married opposite husbands, Jackie was a lesbian, and Dan died. Then there was some quote. I forget by who. Odd.

9. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air
Thank you Nick at Nite for bringing this show back. I can remember watching it in syndication after school. I didn't really care for it back then. Perhaps because I associated it with Mr. Cooper which I think came on before it. Since Nick at Nite has forced me to watch every episode several times over, I appreciate it for such great comedy. I wouldn't say this show fits into the Triumph of the Will genre of sitcoms, but it certainly makes me feel good when I watch it. I happen to think that Will Smith is amazingly talented with excellent timing. Any show that can pull off switching a mother mid-series, and have a kid age 4 years over the course of one summer, and call attention onto itself, is good in my book. Take a look at a past entry on Lost in which I discuss this.

8. The Cosby Show
Nick at Nite also brought this show back to my attention. I only put it on the list because of Bill Cosby himself. Yes, it can be very after school special, however, I have to admit, every time Bill starts telling a story, he tells it so well, I always listen. Plus, it was always fun to watch what a "normal" family would be like. I'd like to think that I can be as good a father as Bill Cosby. He's the kind of dad who can help his kids when they need it, and can laugh at them when he knows they don't. Fuck it. It goes on the list.

7. South Park
I have trouble with putting this show on the list, for obvious reasons. Not just because it is animated, but that it really is hard to define it as a situation comedy. Otherwise, I might have pushed it higher on the list. This show, better than any other I feel, really captures what a satire should be. I do not think it will really stand the test of time, however, it is more than any show a part of our time. I still am amazed sometimes at how well the writers really nail an issue on the head. This on top of the fact that it is sometimes extremely funny. Satires and spoofs are some of the easiest forms of comedy I think, but South Park really is the top of it's game when it comes to this.

6. Scrubs
Now this show I really want to put higher on the list as well, but, I just kind of feel like I would be that kid who hears a new song on the radio and concludes in that second that it is the greatest song ever. I say this because I have only started watching it with the syndication on Comedy Central. This is a show, much like Roseanne, that loves to blend the comedy and the drama. When they do comedy, it's funny, when they do drama, it's real. I dig it. Most people are turned off by Zach Braff, and I agree. He is kind of a weasel. But once you get past this fact, you get Dr. Cox, who I think is one of the greatest characters ever. But who am I?

5. The Simpsons
Here is the thing. I hate the new episodes. The entire style has changed. When I go back and watch the core years though, fuck, they're brilliant. This is the classic Everyman, Homer Simpson. A dysfunctional family like any other. Just classic. I actually prefer Futurama to the new episodes of The Simpsons, but as bad as these episodes are, nothing will change the good years.

4. Cheers
Again, thanks to Nick at Nite for giving me this on back in High School. Never really wanted to watch it. I think the dark set always turned me off. Awesome that a show can pull off taking place in a bar 90% of the time. It is the kind of show that you watch and think, which character am I? Cliff? Fuck, I'm not Cliff am I? Nah nah. I'm Norm. Yeah. Er. Sam. Yeah. Sam.

3. I Love Lucy
I have to put this high on the list for several reasons. First, there needs to be some classic show on this list, and I am most familiar with this one. Next, this was actually the first show I ever got into. I remember being into Gilligan's Island, but this show was the one what I first started watching. A couple weeks ago I watched the episode with Harpo Marx, and they end up doing that bit at the "mirror." So many moments like that that anybody could just list off. If a show can still run on network television 50 years after airing, who am I to reject it? This isn't to mention all the groundbreaking it did by using multiple cameras and really breaking ground for televised sitcoms.

2. Seinfeld
I don't feel like it is necessary to back this up. I have yet to meet a person who has watched this show and not liked it. I wouldn't put Curb Your Enthusiasm on this list, just because I feel like it would be redundant. If Seinfeld didn't exist though...eh...maybe I would put that show on this list. Then again, the last two seasons really have been let downs.

1. All in the Family
Thanks again to Nick at Nite in the late 90's for putting this show on. By far, the most intelligent comedy ever aired, All in the Family truly invoked critical thought throughout America. This show stands as proof of the power of artwork. I remember hearing Norman Lear (I think it was him talking) about what made the show so powerful. It wasn't so much that everybody hated Archie, more so that, as much as one might have disagreed with Archie on his ignorant views, every so often you might find yourself in Archie. That turned one person onto himself. This is kind of manipulative in that Lear could really control America. At the same time though, this show maintained a classic sitcom environment, while raising some of the most important issues during the 70's. All the while, it remained number 1 in ratings for years. To end the list, I will quote Archie hearing somebody say that Jesus was a Jew, 'Yeah, but only on the mother's side.'