Sitcom
A History in 24 Episodes from I Love Lucy to Community
A History in 24 Episodes from I Love Lucy to Community
"Obsessively watched and critically ignored, sitcoms were a distraction, a gentle lullaby of a kinder, gentler America--until suddenly the artificial boundary between the world and television entertainment collapsed. In this book we track the growth of the sitcom, following the path that leads from I LOVE LUCY to THE PHIL SILVERS SHOW; from THE DICK VAN DYKE SHOW to THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW; from M*A*S*H to TAXI; from CHEERS to ROSEANNE; from SEINFELD to CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM; and from THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW to 30 ROCK. In twenty-four episodes, SITCOM surveys the history of the form, and functions as both a TV mix tape of fondly remembered shows that will guide us to notable series and larger trends, and a carefully curated guided tour through the history of one of our most treasured art forms"--
Reviews with the most likes.
Why promise that you book is “a history in 24 episodes” and then spend each chapter discussing multiple episodes of multiple TV shows? I mean, it wasn't uninteresting, but it wasn't what I was expecting. Nothing really new and surprising about most of the shows that are profiled, but I guess the through line - sitcoms reflected American society until the last 20 years or so when they went all post-modern and started reflecting their own history - was moderately intriguing.
I've read more comprehensive sitcom guides and more insightful commentary on television in general, but skimming through this wasn't a bad way to spend a dreary weekend.
