Reply to thread

Message

<blockquote data-quote="Crimson" data-source="post: 439343" data-attributes="member: 5079">I&#039;ve probably said it before, but I find the joy of sitcoms in the re-watch.&nbsp; More than any other genre or form of entertainment, the sitcom lends itself to repeat viewing.&nbsp; Most people seem to have their favorite comfort shows they default to and, I think for most, those comfort shows are sitcoms.&nbsp;&nbsp; Even on modern streaming services, the most viewed shows are often older sitcoms (FRIENDS, THE OFFICE) that people watch over and over, rather than the new shows the streamers pay millions to produce.I admit that&#039;s some good context that does change my opinion of the episode.&nbsp; What seemed like chaotic writing to me was intentional chaotic writing.&nbsp; I&#039;m surprised I didn&#039;t pick up on that even after two viewings.&nbsp; Now that I think about it, it wasn&#039;t even subtle.&nbsp; Sybil chided Basil for the chaos he caused in her absence and noted the hotel was probably functioning better off without him.Of course, intentional noisy chaos is still noisy chaos, so I suspect this will still rank as 6 out of 6 for me.&nbsp; Maybe next time around I&#039;ll just lower the volume.Back in the day, that kind of short(ened) season and unstructured release would have been the kiss-of-death for an American show.&nbsp; There are plenty of shows cancelled prematurely because they were moved around the schedule or experienced production delays.&nbsp; American series depended on consistency and frequency.In the age of streaming, a lot of shows follow a release schedule that would be familiar to the British -- short seasons, long delays in between.&nbsp; Americans hate it! Perhaps what impressed me the most about the first six episodes is that they all felt very distinct.&nbsp; Even among the greatest American sitcoms, a certain sameness kicks in.&nbsp; After all, within a specific premise and cast of characters, there&#039;s only so many scenarios that can be played out.&nbsp; With only six episodes, each felt very purposeful.&nbsp; I suppose if Cleese &amp; Booth had to write enough episodes to fill an American season, the outcome would have been very different.&nbsp; Little wonder American attempts at this show were doomed.Since I know you aren&#039;t familiar, I&#039;ll briefly hype my own favorite classic sitcom I LOVE LUCY.&nbsp; The first four seasons, a staggering 127 episodes, were written by two people.&nbsp; That always blows my mind.&nbsp; Some of those episodes are still considered among the all time greats, 70+ years later.&nbsp; Those two writers, Bob Carroll and Madelyn Pugh, continued to work into the 1980s but none of their later work was nearly as good.&nbsp; No wonder -- they burned up all their ideas in the first four years of their TV careers.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Crimson, post: 439343, member: 5079"] I've probably said it before, but I find the joy of sitcoms in the [I]re[/I]-watch. More than any other genre or form of entertainment, the sitcom lends itself to repeat viewing. Most people seem to have their favorite comfort shows they default to and, I think for most, those comfort shows are sitcoms. Even on modern streaming services, the most viewed shows are often older sitcoms (FRIENDS, THE OFFICE) that people watch over and over, rather than the new shows the streamers pay millions to produce. I admit that's some good context that does change my opinion of the episode. What seemed like chaotic writing to me was intentional chaotic writing. I'm surprised I didn't pick up on that even after two viewings. Now that I think about it, it wasn't even subtle. Sybil chided Basil for the chaos he caused in her absence and noted the hotel was probably functioning better off without him. Of course, intentional noisy chaos is still noisy chaos, so I suspect this will still rank as 6 out of 6 for me. Maybe next time around I'll just lower the volume. Back in the day, that kind of short(ened) season and unstructured release would have been the kiss-of-death for an American show. There are plenty of shows cancelled prematurely because they were moved around the schedule or experienced production delays. American series depended on consistency and frequency. In the age of streaming, a lot of shows follow a release schedule that would be familiar to the British -- short seasons, long delays in between. Americans hate it! Perhaps what impressed me the most about the first six episodes is that they all felt very distinct. Even among the greatest American sitcoms, a certain sameness kicks in. After all, within a specific premise and cast of characters, there's only so many scenarios that can be played out. With only six episodes, each felt very purposeful. I suppose if Cleese & Booth had to write enough episodes to fill an American season, the outcome would have been very different. Little wonder American attempts at this show were doomed. Since I know you aren't familiar, I'll briefly hype my own favorite classic sitcom I LOVE LUCY. The first four seasons, a staggering 127 episodes, were written by two people. That always blows my mind. Some of those episodes are still considered among the all time greats, 70+ years later. Those two writers, Bob Carroll and Madelyn Pugh, continued to work into the 1980s but none of their later work was nearly as good. No wonder -- they burned up all their ideas in the first four years of their TV careers. [/QUOTE]

Verification

Who played Sue Ellen in Dallas?