TV Shows That Shot For The Moon And Did NOT Land Among The Stars - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TMC · 03-08-2021, 04:00 AM

https://www.buzzfeed.com/hannahmarde...f=bftwbuzzfeed

Quote:

Last week, Reddit user u/RedWestern asked, "Which TV show got too big for its boots?" and people had some pretty strong opinions. Here are just some of the shows that people submitted!

Warning: Spoilers ahead!

- When Heroes created all-powerful characters, then kept taking their powers away to justify the difficulty they had saving the world:
- When Glee tried to simultaneously tackle every popular song and every societal issue
- When Supernatural kept the show going after the Winchester brothers beat the devil, eventually having them fight God
- When all the murder plots on How to Get Away With Murder just got too convoluted
- When Grey's Anatomy kept putting its staff through life-altering disasters every season

JustaViewer · 03-08-2021, 07:29 AM

Just in answer to the thread title I can think of some older shows with big expectations that sputtered and died:
The New Dick Van Dyke Show.
When Things Were Rotten.
Life With Lucy.

king of comedy · 03-08-2021, 08:59 AM

This why I stopped watching these shows. If it aint' broke,don't fix it.

merlinjones · 03-08-2021, 07:07 PM

Joey

Joanie Loves Chachi

cnnbcbs · 03-08-2021, 08:32 PM

Community.
By the end season 3 just about every episode was a 'gimmick.' The show started out solid with entertaining characters and a world that was still somewhat grounded before the show went off the rails.

The Class.
Ambitious sitcom from the producers of Friends about childhood classmates whose lives interconnect once again. This show was witty and had a likeable cast. It was a bit ambitious having a large amount of lead characters that would rotate to a degree, much like a drama-show like Lost.

Me, Myself and I.
This is another show with an ambitious premise, chronicling the same man in three different periods of their life. I usually enjoy both Bobby Moynihan and John Larroquette but had trouble buying them as the same person.

cnnbcbs · 03-08-2021, 08:40 PM

Also, highly promoted star vehicles:
Bette, Bette Midler coming off of a memorable Seinfeld guest spot and a long career of film and stage.

Muppets. Basically, Muppets by way of The Office. I thought it was a needed fresh take on The Muppets. Large viewership sampled the premiere episode on abc, but didn't like what they saw and ratings dropped hard.

Other ambitious bombs: Cop Rock and Viva Laughlin. Both drama/musical blends.

Jim Clark · 03-11-2021, 08:20 PM

Howard Cosell’s Saturday Night variety show

Supertrain

JustaViewer · 03-12-2021, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cnnbcbs

Other ambitious bombs: Cop Rock and Viva Laughlin. Both drama/musical blends.

I remember Cop Rock. It was highly anticipated and immediately crashed and burned.

TMC · 03-13-2021, 07:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JustaViewer

I remember Cop Rock. It was highly anticipated and immediately crashed and burned.

One theory that I read towards why Cop Rock crashed and burned is that the action was too literal and not offset by traditional musical set pieces. In other words, the writers focused the musical sequences on a real time setting in which the dancing is done in tandem with pedestrian settings and behavior.

JustaViewer · 03-13-2021, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TMC

One theory that I read towards why Cop Rock crashed and burned is that the action was too literal and not offset by traditional musical set pieces. In other words, the writers focused the musical sequences on a real time setting in which the dancing is done in tandem with pedestrian settings and behavior.

The idea might have worked better as a movie.

treky · 03-14-2021, 03:31 AM

MASH-when it became "The Alan Alda show" from seasons 8-11 and every week it was "...oh we're doctors and we're nurses...and we save lives which makes us so good...and death is such a bummer...and war is hell..." And on and on and on...

I mean give us a break!
and Margrets reaction to every tragedy was "O God!"

03-14-2021, 03:31 AM	#11
treky star trek fan Eternal Member Forum Fanatic Join Date: Feb 25, 2002 Location: Conshohocken, pennsylvania Posts: 14,490	MASH-when it became "The Alan Alda show" from seasons 8-11 and every week it was "...oh we're doctors and we're nurses...and we save lives which makes us so good...and death is such a bummer...and war is hell..." And on and on and on... I mean give us a break! and Margrets reaction to every tragedy was "O God!"
	__________________ the Clampetts are in a fancy Beverly Hills jewelry store. Granny points to a tray of rubies. Granny: "How much fer one o' them red diamonds?" clerk: "Madam, those are rubies." Granny: "OK ask her kin we buy one offa her." clerk: " The ruby I am talking about is not a lady." Granny: "Lissen, how she got them diamonds is her business. I'm just sayin' ask her kin we buy one from her."

03-08-2021, 07:29 AM	#2
JustaViewer Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Jan 14, 2015 Posts: 64	Just in answer to the thread title I can think of some older shows with big expectations that sputtered and died: The New Dick Van Dyke Show. When Things Were Rotten. Life With Lucy.

03-08-2021, 08:59 AM	#3
king of comedy Member Forum Veteran Join Date: Aug 31, 2012 Location: New Jersey Posts: 5,140	This why I stopped watching these shows. If it aint' broke,don't fix it.

03-08-2021, 07:07 PM	#4
merlinjones Member Forum Regular Join Date: Dec 30, 2019 Location: los ángeles Posts: 931	Joey Joanie Loves Chachi

03-08-2021, 08:32 PM	#5
cnnbcbs Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 08, 2017 Posts: 366	Community. By the end season 3 just about every episode was a 'gimmick.' The show started out solid with entertaining characters and a world that was still somewhat grounded before the show went off the rails. The Class. Ambitious sitcom from the producers of Friends about childhood classmates whose lives interconnect once again. This show was witty and had a likeable cast. It was a bit ambitious having a large amount of lead characters that would rotate to a degree, much like a drama-show like Lost. Me, Myself and I. This is another show with an ambitious premise, chronicling the same man in three different periods of their life. I usually enjoy both Bobby Moynihan and John Larroquette but had trouble buying them as the same person.

03-08-2021, 08:40 PM	#6
cnnbcbs Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 08, 2017 Posts: 366	Also, highly promoted star vehicles: Bette, Bette Midler coming off of a memorable Seinfeld guest spot and a long career of film and stage. Muppets. Basically, Muppets by way of The Office. I thought it was a needed fresh take on The Muppets. Large viewership sampled the premiere episode on abc, but didn't like what they saw and ratings dropped hard. Other ambitious bombs: Cop Rock and Viva Laughlin. Both drama/musical blends.

03-11-2021, 08:20 PM	#7
Jim Clark Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Mar 11, 2021 Location: New York Posts: 9	Howard Cosell’s Saturday Night variety show Supertrain