Is 'Joey' One of the Worst Spinoffs Ever?

[Brian Damage]

Entertainment Weekly sited it as one of the worst. What is everybody's opinion on this?

[robyrob]

i really don't know why this show gets such harsh criticism; its like everyone expected it to BE "Friends" or something?

i liked the show - better than Friends actually - and I think that if it was exactly the same show and was NOT a spin-off of friends it would've done a LOT better.

[Adamantium]

I, too liked "Joey." I think it was a funny show.

You're right Robyrob, if it wasn't a spin-off, it may have been better recieved. Instead everyone compared it to "Friends" and it didn't stand a chance.

[TVFactFan]

I was never a fan of friends and actually able to get into this show a lot more

[TV Knowledge Fan]

...but compared to "FRIENDS", it was mediocre, an "okay" series- let's just say if you missed seeing several episodes in a row, you weren't missing much. The reason the series exsisted, of course, was because Jeff Zucker {"Mr. NBC"} didn't want to lose the momentum on his Thursday night schedule after "FRIENDS" ended in 2004. So, he decided, let's "spin off" one character into his own show, and the viewers are sure to stick around....about as brilliant as his decision to move Jay Leno into 10pm(et), "across-the-board", in the fall of 2009, so viewers wouldn't "miss him" after he left "THE TONIGHT SHOW". At least "JOEY" lasted two seasons. Jay has to return to "THE TONIGHT SHOW"- but is his future going to be more secure than, say, Matt LeBlanc's?

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY has always been very fond of "FRIENDS" (let's see, how many covers, articles and "special issues" did they devote to it during its ten years on NBC?). Naturally, anything they feel that's "inferior" is given a pass and shrug. Personally, the staff of EW are a bunch of snobs...

[tmac81s]

Originally Posted by Adamantium

I, too liked "Joey." I think it was a funny show.

You're right Robyrob, if it wasn't a spin-off, it may have been better recieved. Instead everyone compared it to "Friends" and it didn't stand a chance.

I agree. People were expecting "Friends," and NBC was expecting the "Friends" ratings. They had a lot of other shows with lower ratings. Maybe it cost too much?

Joey was always my favorite "Friends" character, I was glad when he got his own show. I wish it had gone on for more seasons, there were/are some really lousy shows that lasted a long time.