spinoffs or something else? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

jamesanthony · 10-24-2004, 04:37 PM

It seems like there are different definitions of what can be considered a spinoff:

1- A regular or frequently seen character in one show gets his or her own series: Checking In, Frasier, Jeffersons etc. Some do it while the old show is still on while others wait for the old show to end or use the last episode of the show to launch a spinoff: 3's Company, One Day At A Time, Facts of Life

2- A pilot for a series is used as an episode of an established show, but the characters who are supposed to star in the new show never appeared on the old show before: Kelly's Kids episode of the Brady Bunch, Andy Griffith in Danny Thomas Show. It's like the old show is used as a platform for the new one. Cosby Show had an episode like this with Tony Orlando.

3- Characters appear once or twice in a show and are given their own series- Maude, Laverne and Shirley and Mork from Ork in Happy Days. The Mork case is an odd one in that I don't know what the producers were thinking when they had him appear; none of the other Mork and Mindy characters appeared in the Happy Days episode from what I remember, it was like Happy Days was a platform to experiment with the character. i don't know what they were thinking with Laverne and Shirley either- I get the feeling that when they first showed up they were meant to be one time guests and they took on a popularity of their own.

4- I would consider revivals of shows to be spinoffs as well: Sanford, What's Happening Now, Munsters Today etc

5- Shows that were expanded from some sort of anthology series- Happy Days' pilot was an episode of Love American Style, some of the older shows like The Defenders were based in dramatic antholgogy series. These may not be spinoffs but there has to be some term to define them. Maybe they are adaptations.

It seems like at least 60% of hit shows have tried at least one of these spinoff tactics.

10-24-2004, 04:37 PM	#1
jamesanthony Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 30, 2004 Posts: 2,180	spinoffs or something else? It seems like there are different definitions of what can be considered a spinoff: 1- A regular or frequently seen character in one show gets his or her own series: Checking In, Frasier, Jeffersons etc. Some do it while the old show is still on while others wait for the old show to end or use the last episode of the show to launch a spinoff: 3's Company, One Day At A Time, Facts of Life 2- A pilot for a series is used as an episode of an established show, but the characters who are supposed to star in the new show never appeared on the old show before: Kelly's Kids episode of the Brady Bunch, Andy Griffith in Danny Thomas Show. It's like the old show is used as a platform for the new one. Cosby Show had an episode like this with Tony Orlando. 3- Characters appear once or twice in a show and are given their own series- Maude, Laverne and Shirley and Mork from Ork in Happy Days. The Mork case is an odd one in that I don't know what the producers were thinking when they had him appear; none of the other Mork and Mindy characters appeared in the Happy Days episode from what I remember, it was like Happy Days was a platform to experiment with the character. i don't know what they were thinking with Laverne and Shirley either- I get the feeling that when they first showed up they were meant to be one time guests and they took on a popularity of their own. 4- I would consider revivals of shows to be spinoffs as well: Sanford, What's Happening Now, Munsters Today etc 5- Shows that were expanded from some sort of anthology series- Happy Days' pilot was an episode of Love American Style, some of the older shows like The Defenders were based in dramatic antholgogy series. These may not be spinoffs but there has to be some term to define them. Maybe they are adaptations. It seems like at least 60% of hit shows have tried at least one of these spinoff tactics.