Which character would have had the best spin-off? - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

JackJanetChrissy · 07-15-2018, 02:35 PM

Which TC character (besides Jack + the Ropers obviously) would have made the best spin-off? I think Larry or Janet would have been great as main characters of their own shows.

robyrob · 07-15-2018, 03:20 PM

Felipe's Family - what he comes home to every night; just a bunch of random smart-mouthed kids, a smart-mouthed wife, a smart-mouthed neighbor, and endless stories of his evil arch-nemesis Jack Tripper and how he will someday get his revenge.

JackJanetChrissy · 07-15-2018, 03:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by robyrob

Felipe's Family - what he comes home to every night; just a bunch of random smart-mouthed kids, a smart-mouthed wife, a smart-mouthed neighbor, and endless stories of his evil arch-nemesis Jack Tripper and how he will someday get his revenge.

Good one! Would be interesting to see Jack as "the bad guy."

eleri · 07-30-2018, 10:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JackJanetChrissy

I think Larry or Janet would have been great as main characters of their own shows.

Not only do I agree 100% about Janet OR Larry, I would have strongly preferred Three's a Crowd if it was Janet AND Larry, instead of Jack and Miss Personality Zero.

Now, hear me out. Suppose in Season 8, Janet's parents get divorced. They grew apart or something like that. Janet is devastated (I don't think that's implausible), loses all her faith in marriage and decides that she'll never tie the knot. Meanwhile, she and Larry grow closer and she realizes that there's a nice . . . well, let's say moderately okay, sort of guy under that smarmy, selfish exterior. Things progress, ships are teased, and, at the end of the season, he proposes only for her to reject his offer a marriage. Somewhere in between, Mr. Wood's advertising firm transfers him to California (not sure how plausible that is, but this is a farce, so logic need not apply). This all tees things up for Three's a Crowd.

I always felt that Joyce and Richard had good comedic chemistry. It would have been great if, in the context of a relationship with Larry, Janet grew back into the smart and sassy character she was at the beginning of TC, before Chrissy left and Janet's character was gradually morphed to fill part of the void of goofy. Larry's goofy enough for two in a leading role. It would have been fun to see them play off of each other as a couple in an opposites attract sort of way.

By the way, I do recall the episode where Larry thinks he's in love with Janet, but that struck me as a moment of silliness on his part and it doesn't have to figure in his developing serious feelings for her later on.

JackJanetChrissy · 07-31-2018, 04:04 PM

Eleri, that is the best spinoff idea I have heard! I, too, have thought Janet and Larry would make an interesting couple. Your idea for how their relationship could have progressed during the final season of TC makes a lot of sense—they could have even referenced Larry's brief attraction to Janet in Season 4 as proof of how much they'd changed over the years. It's true that none of the characters ever truly "developed" over time because of the farce aspect, but you are right, Janet definitely changed, and even Larry was much less despicable toward the end of the series than at the beginning.

Like you said, I would loved to have seen Janet get back to her Season 2 and 3 self. And her practical, no-nonsense attitude would have been a perfect contrast to Larry's constant scheming.

If, in your version, Janet's father had returned and had been played by the same actor we saw before (Macon McCalman), the dynamic would have had a lot more potential for humor than what we saw on Three's A Crowd. The couple times we did see McCalman on the show as Janet's father he seemed nice but also a little clueless and easily perplexed, kind of a cross between Furley and Roper. He wouldn't have been the total drag that Vicki's father was. Now I wish I could watch this show....

ClarenceAlabama · 07-30-2023, 12:46 AM

I always wondered why the producers didn't offer Suzanne Somers a "Chrissy" spin off and air it after Three's Company like they did The Ropers.

She wanted a star salary, so why not let her star in her own sitcom?

BestTVever · 07-30-2023, 07:25 AM

I say none of them. Each of them were a character that thrived on the other characters of the show. Taking one of them out of the element would fail. It rarely works. The show was successful not because of ONE of them. It was ALL of them. Taking one out loses all the magic. Friends and Cheers were some of the most popular sitcoms. All of their spin offs of plucking characters failed except one.

thejasoomian · 07-30-2023, 04:35 PM

They could have started all over again with new tenants. Keep Ralph and have him interact with a new threesome. Only leave the pretending to be gay part out.

Or they could have tried having Larry buy the used car lot with Greedy Gretchen as his book keeper/ secretary. They could have a guy and a girl for two salesmans. They could have made it about mishaps with the customers.

07-15-2018, 02:35 PM	#1
JackJanetChrissy Member Forum Regular Join Date: Jun 18, 2014 Posts: 1,005	Which character would have had the best spin-off? Which TC character (besides Jack + the Ropers obviously) would have made the best spin-off? I think Larry or Janet would have been great as main characters of their own shows.

07-15-2018, 03:20 PM	#2
robyrob certified wackball#3 Moderator Forum Icon Join Date: Aug 03, 2003 Location: hiding under the third booth at Arnold's Posts: 58,176	Felipe's Family - what he comes home to every night; just a bunch of random smart-mouthed kids, a smart-mouthed wife, a smart-mouthed neighbor, and endless stories of his evil arch-nemesis Jack Tripper and how he will someday get his revenge.
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07-31-2018, 04:04 PM	#5
JackJanetChrissy Member Forum Regular Join Date: Jun 18, 2014 Posts: 1,005	Eleri, that is the best spinoff idea I have heard! I, too, have thought Janet and Larry would make an interesting couple. Your idea for how their relationship could have progressed during the final season of TC makes a lot of sense—they could have even referenced Larry's brief attraction to Janet in Season 4 as proof of how much they'd changed over the years. It's true that none of the characters ever truly "developed" over time because of the farce aspect, but you are right, Janet definitely changed, and even Larry was much less despicable toward the end of the series than at the beginning. Like you said, I would loved to have seen Janet get back to her Season 2 and 3 self. And her practical, no-nonsense attitude would have been a perfect contrast to Larry's constant scheming. If, in your version, Janet's father had returned and had been played by the same actor we saw before (Macon McCalman), the dynamic would have had a lot more potential for humor than what we saw on Three's A Crowd. The couple times we did see McCalman on the show as Janet's father he seemed nice but also a little clueless and easily perplexed, kind of a cross between Furley and Roper. He wouldn't have been the total drag that Vicki's father was. Now I wish I could watch this show....

07-30-2023, 12:46 AM	#6
ClarenceAlabama Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jan 15, 2005 Posts: 248	I always wondered why the producers didn't offer Suzanne Somers a "Chrissy" spin off and air it after Three's Company like they did The Ropers. She wanted a star salary, so why not let her star in her own sitcom?

07-30-2023, 07:25 AM	#7
BestTVever Member Senior Member Join Date: Jan 29, 2021 Location: Miami Posts: 1,898	I say none of them. Each of them were a character that thrived on the other characters of the show. Taking one of them out of the element would fail. It rarely works. The show was successful not because of ONE of them. It was ALL of them. Taking one out loses all the magic. Friends and Cheers were some of the most popular sitcoms. All of their spin offs of plucking characters failed except one.

07-30-2023, 04:35 PM	#8
thejasoomian Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Sep 15, 2019 Posts: 327	They could have started all over again with new tenants. Keep Ralph and have him interact with a new threesome. Only leave the pretending to be gay part out. Or they could have tried having Larry buy the used car lot with Greedy Gretchen as his book keeper/ secretary. They could have a guy and a girl for two salesmans. They could have made it about mishaps with the customers.