What happened to funny black sitcoms? This isn't even remotely funny. Did they look for every out of work B List black actor in Hollywood. This was so painful to watch. The CW has canceled every good black show they had only to but stuff with this crap. This is yet another reason to never watch this network.
shareB-List is too generous. This was god-awful.
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Even the canned laughter was sub par. This show has a cheaper feel to it, than any of the Saturday morning kid sit-com ever had.. Even back to Land of the Lost.
It's made by Byron Allen's production company, which produces those really, really, cheesy late-night celebrity interview shows like "Comics Unleashed". I saw a clip of this one, and saw some of "The First Family" (his other new sitcom). I respect Byron's hustle, but it's another one of his cheesy, cookie-cutter shows that only airs after midnight, then in reruns for years on end.
I agree that black sitcoms have really fallen off in the last 10 years. I get that they won't have the big budgets as shows on CBS or NBC, but, does the writing and overacting have to be so subpar too? It's probably one step above the Tyler Perry sitcoms or "Love That Girl" with Tatayani Ali.
That's not saying much.
Oh stewardess...I speak jive.
Well, the key to the groan level quality is Byron Allen.
It's weird, during the 80's Byron and Arsenio had a sort of neck and neck thing going in terms of their acts; a sort of non-threatening "isn't that strange" take on things. But Arsenio zigged and Byron zagged and they had totally different careers.
Byron just kind of stayed in that bland, ho-hum type humor. When it's just him, his humor doesn't hurt so bad, but once an entire show, with a full cast, is built around what he thinks is funny--it just doesn't result in belly laughs.
Looking back, Byron disappeared for a looooong time, then it seemed like he came up with the idea "if I can't BE in showbiz I can get a press pass, interview people, and at least share the screen with people who ARE in showbiz." And he did that for a while, sold that interview show in syndication, built up his bank account, met a bunch of people and built up a track record.
Cut to a few years later, he came up with the comedy round table show where HE didn't have to be funny, just host funny comics. So he did that for a while and then decided to go for the Tyler Perry sit-com model. And now we've got Byron producing this sit-com and the equally painful to watch First Family.
So I give the man an A+ for sticking to it all these years. But a solid D for execution. Given his history and knowledge of the industry, for him to have put that much effort into casting but NOT into writers is criminal. And why I agree with the thread's main point-this won't last long.
Only reason I'm here is because I thought it was old . I was horrified to find out this was a new show in 2012.
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UPN lives on & Essence Atkins all ready have a tv show called 'Are we ther Yet? why is she on another one.
share Is it really this bad in Hollywood for black actors?
You know what they say "if you gotta ask...", and I'm pretty sure they are effected by the recession too. Did you see, of all people Gladys Knight in an infomercial?
Anyway for that I give props to Byron Allen for hiring black actors - Jon Lovitz, Gary Busey and a few other white folks - and not making them all sexed up to be accepted.
Also, I don't hate on Vivica she's a working actor like many others who are in the industry that you may have seen here and there. So props to her too.
We be the ones that make you beat your wife and hate your life - Ice Cube
It's already been ordered for 100 episodes.
I mean, the cast is fairly talented, and I'm glad to see Bill Bellamy working again, but the writing on this show is beyond corny. It's like on of those cheesy Saved by the Bell-esque sitcoms that used to come on Saturday mornings on NBC. It's a kids show.
I didn't see The First Family, so I can't comment on that one.
well, I did say the guy had a serious knowledge of the industry. So I'm guessing he worked some incredible deal; like maybe cutting production cost to the bone and showing stats to prove it would still be profitable. Then getting the 100 episode commitment to convince the actors to get on board.
"It has been cleared in more than 85% of the U.S. Entertainment Studios first shot pilots for the sitcoms, which are getting initial orders of 104 episodes each."
http://www.deadline.com/2012/05/byron-allens-entertainment-studios-clears-syndicated-sitcom-block-for-fall-12-launch/
But it's shocking and insulting that enough people would collectively push this kind of crap on viewers. It's really insulting and pretty much says "they'll watch anything." But who knows, maybe there's a master plan to get REALLY good by episode 99.
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Pretty much everything that's come from Byron has a generic title. From what I can remember when I still worked 3rd shift...
-"EntertainmentStudios.Com" (Yes, that's the name of the show)
-"Cars.tv"
-"Pets.tv"
-"Recipe.tv"
-"Comedy.tv" (Are you sensing a trend here?)
-"Beautiful Homes and Great Estates
On one hand, it's a little clever because they're also websites, so in a way it's a marketing tool. On the other hand, it's just so damn bland sounding.
Oh stewardess...I speak jive.
Watched both shows and the quality isn't there. They all feel like early 90's shows production wise.
The Jokes are lame. Writing is WEAK.
Both this Show and the White house one have TOO MANY characters. A good show only needs five regulars and a recurruing cast. With a cast of five the writers can -develop everyone and give them stories.
All the extra characters do is lead to clutter onscreen. Byron could easily take quite a few of these once top shelf Black actors and make two other shows.
The sets are nice, and they have a variety of them. That's a strong point. But The lighting and camera work are ATROCIOUS. Many scenes are shot too dark, and some are improperly framed. The editing could use a little work as well.
Byron has a lot of potential here, but He's got to get his writing game up. The stories just aren't funny enough to compel me to watch any more episodes of either show. I'm hoping he can work out the kinks before the 100 episode deal runs out.
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Thinking about it, I definitely see what everyone means about the 90s sitcom look. It kinda felt like I was watching a UPN or WB comedy from 1997. The thing is, all those shows had decent writers.
But many shows start off slow, so I'm willing to cut Byron some slack. I definitely agree there's way too many cast members, considering the episode plots will likely be independent of each other. An hour-long drama like "Desperate Housewives" or "Lost" could have large casts because the storylines are stretched out over a whole season.
Oh stewardess...I speak jive.
I'll take this over "reality" TV.
We be the ones that make you beat your wife and hate your life - Ice Cube
you notice the actors don't promote any of these shows in social media. These low budget shows is all about getting a quick check. Artistic integrity goes right out the window. It's embarrassing to watch some of my favorite actors and comedians having to do these junk shows to make a living. Tony Roberts is a great comedian and does well so I'm wondering why he has to do this. The writing is in the toilet. If it's crap on the page it's crap on the stage
shareI discovered this show and The First Family about a month ago and for some strange reason, I am hooked. I can see that the shows have an outdated style, the writing is corny and I really can't see how he managed to get a cast that big for both shows. I can understand if it was just the main four like Bill Bellamy, Jon Lovitz and the other two guys, but I am not too sure about the fellow faculty members. Maybe just one or two but then I noticed Rick Fox and Gary Busey in the cast. Now how in the hell did THOSE two get involved? Or worse yet, why are they in the main cast? I have only seen Rick Fox appear in very few episodes that I have seen thus far, same with Gary Busey.
I can understand if Essence Atkins and Vivica A. Fox are in the cast because they have appeared in a lot of episodes that I have seen so far. I am surprised that Allen hadn't added the actors who play the students in the cast.
Yet, for some reason, I am still really drawn to these shows and I can admit how low budget they are. Weird.
All I need is one mic...
Hubby and I are watching this on Fox right now and I think it's kind of cute. Reminds me of Saved by the Bell. It might not be the greatest show on earth but at least it's wholesome and has some type of "lesson" to be learned like the old sitcoms lol:). Unlike the stupid reality shows like Honey Boo Boo and others, this at least is a cute show that occasionally makes me laugh:)Not sure if we will watch it again, but it's not terrible.
shareI like the cast, but I really don't care for the comedic dialogue and story situations. Everything is overdone and simply not funny. Aesthetically, the lighting is too bright, and the school and classroom interiors look too much like The Steve Harvey Show.
shareI thought this was some holdover comedy that was made at least 10 years ago but was shelved for obvious reasons. The creative forces on this show must have been trapped in a time bubble or thawed out from some age long gone.
They should've lumped all the Tyler Perry show and Byron shows into one pool, and take out the top 10% of directors, writers, actors,editors etc, fire the rest, and maybe there'd be a semblance of a decent show.
"what is your major malfunction numbnuts?!!"
Yea this show is awful, but i think this is a new trend where the producers know there is a huge lack of black family programming, so they know that even if its not any good there is a garanteed fanbase. And, by doing it so cheap, they can ensure they turn a profit and get it syndicated (they've already ordered 100 episodes like someone else mentioned, and there's a show in TEENNICK called Hollywood Hts or something thats doing the same thing where they just shoot 80 episodes right away). However, i think i will watch one episode just outta pure nostalgia for the time before everyone had satelite and networks like CW aired these crappy syndicated shows that looked like they were shot in someones basement.
Is it really that hard not to be a dick on IMDB???
"Yea this show is awful, but i think this is a new trend where the producers know there is a huge lack of black family programming, so they know that even if its not any good there is a garanteed fanbase."
Seems like theres a real "Bamboozled" situation going here. Theres an obvious awareness of the lack of programming for blacks and minorities in general and the big networks arent willing to gamble on something they think a wider audience wouldnt watch so Byron Allen, and other producers of these cheap-o syndicated sitcoms know they can make money reguardless of quality. Even the actors seem to benefit due to the lack of quality as its just another paycheck and facetime they otherwise wouldnt get.
"No my brotha, you got ta buy yo OWN!"
This show, along with that First Family b.s., isn't a CW show. Both are syndicated so local affiliates buy it, not just the CW. Byron Allen somehow managed to sell this to the company that owns the CW and MyNetworkTV. This is also why they were able to film 100 episodes of BOTH of these disasters before it was sold. No real network, big or small, would order that many episodes of a show even if it's a hit.
I saw both this and First Family this afternoon and I couldn't figure out why it looked so oddly familiar even though it's obviously new. Then I came here and read the comments about it looking like it was filmed in the 90s. I really does look like that! They all have those little cheap-o sets where you can tell they only use one set and just re-dress it. Then there's that bright ass lighting like it's a TNBC show that has to be vibrantly lit so kids don't lose interest.
Allen did have a good idea by trying to bring back syndicated shows that run on weekend afternoons. Those kind of shows did good in the 80s and 90s but these shows stink.
I just caught this mess of a sitcom to rail on how bad it is, but all the comments posted here beat me to it as they are right on the mark. My only question, is this shot in Canada? It has all the earmarks.
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