Written as part of the weekly blogathon hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. Partake in the fun by picking three movies (or TV shows, when the case calls for it) that fit the week's theme!
I was originally going to do a theme within a theme this week, but ended up deciding to just pick three of my favorite TV Spin-Offs. It's been a crazy two weeks surrounding Pride weekend here in NYC and I'm more than a little tired. But also very spiritually fulfilled.
The Jeffersons (1975-1985) Just take a moment to revel in that theme song for a bit. It's okay, it's one of the greats. This All in the Family Spin-off (of which there were four others) is every bit as good as its parent show, dealing with issues that people weren't really talking about in "polite conversation" like interracial relationships and... well... racism in general. Sherman Hemsley and Isabel Sanford are perfectly matched as the titular couple who get to move to Manhattan's Upper East Side from Queens because of Mr. Jefferson's successful dry-cleaning business. Their fights are some of the funniest couple squabbles ever shown on TV. But it's Marla Gibbs as their maid Florence who really steals the show.
Frasier (1993-2004) One of the most Emmy-rewarded sitcoms of all time is a spin-off of one of the most successful TV shows of all time, Cheers. Famous for its witty, erudite scripts and sparkling chemistry between its leads, Frasier follows the titular radio psychiatrist as he takes care of his blue-collar father and clashes with his younger brother Niles, also a psychiatrist. I didn't much like this show as a kid when it was popular, but watching it in syndication as I got older, I came to really appreciate its smarts, which it never sacrificed even when it delved into farce and physical comedy.
Pinky and the Brain (1995-1998) GOD I miss great TV theme songs! Spun off from a recurring segment on the more variety show-esque Animaniacs, Pinky and the Brain follows the titular laboratory mice as the genius grump Brain hatches convoluted plots for world domination and the idiotic but good-natured Pinky inevitably screws them up somehow. This show was a staple of my after-school viewing as a kid, and it's still a delight as an adult, thanks in large point to the inimitable voice work and the often brilliantly-conceived and executed parodies that were the show's stock in trade.
Written as part of the weekly blogathon hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. Join our lovely little blogging family by picking three movies that fit the week's theme and writing a bit about them.
Well, it's that time of year again, the High Holidays, busy times spent with family celebrating and eating and singing and eating and fasting and eating... and on top of that, I'M MOVING! So to say I've been busy as all hell this past month would be an understatement.
All of which is to say, this will be a bit of a double week here, because last week, I would have picked the following Just Not Funny Comedies:
Old School (Todd Phillips, 2003)
Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (Adam McKay, 2004)
Step Brothers (Adam McKay, 2008)
Sorry, guys. I could barely do Will Ferrell on SNL.
And now that that's out of the way and I feel all caught up, let's get to the task at hand: TV Families. I'm going back in time a bit for my first pick, but if you haven't seen any of this classic sitcom, you owe it to yourself to watch. As for the others, if you're not watching... why the heck not?
All in the Family (1971-1979) The Bunkers are the most well-drawn sitcom family in TV history. everyone can see themselves and their family members in them, which is one of the reasons why the show was able to tackle so many social issues so effectively. Personally, my grandparents are practically dead ringers for Archie and Edith - he a loud-mouthed casual bigot of the working class, she a doting, slightly dotty near-martyr who just wants everyone to be happy. Carroll O'Connor and Jean Stapleton brilliantly make both characters so much more than stereotypes, and Sally Struthers and Rob Reiner match them perfectly as their modern daughter and her "meathead" of a husband. Nearly every episode is a perfect one-act play, but none is better, or more famous, than the one where Sammy Davis, Jr. drops in and plants one on Archie.
Jane the Virgin (2014-Present) The Villanueva women are my favorite current TV family, for how grounded they are despite all the crazy going on around them. What crazy, you ask? Well, for starters, young Jane - the virgin of the title - gets accidentally artificially inseminated with her doctor's brother's sperm, and decides to have the baby. And things only get more telenovelistic from there, with ruthless crime lords, mistaken identities, secret twins, forced comas, love triangles, baby snatching, fantasy sequences, and marriages both fake and real becoming plot points. But through it all, Jane, her mother Xiomara, and abuela Alba (and her biological father, telenovela superstar and perfect comic creation Rogelio de la Vega) are always there for each other, to provide support and remind of what is truly important in life. Jane the Virgin balances wildly divergent tones better than any show currently on the air, with wacky comedy, soapy plot developments, and heartfelt tear-jerking all living side by side in perfect harmony. Gina Rodriguez is absolutely luminous as Jane, and deservedly won the Golden Globe for her performance in the first season, giving a beautifully memorable speech in the process.
One Day at a Time (2017-Present) I just started watching this VERY loose remake of the classic Norman Lear sitcom on Netflix, and totally fell in love with the Alvarez family. Nurse and Army vet Penelope is newly divorced and raising her two teenage children with her very Catholic Cuban mother (Rita Moreno, proving that Betty White isn't the only octogenarian legend who's still got it) while dealing with a little bit of PTSD (and other timely issues). While the situation only bears the slightest resemblance to the show on which it's based, the scripts all feel like they are from that era of socially-conscious Norman Lear megahits (like All in the Family), equal parts humor and heart.
BONUS
My other favorite TV family, but I couldn't pick the show because it was really just a recurring sketch on the Carol Burnett Show (yes, there was Mama's Family, but that was NOT the same).
