Did The Goldbergs seem like a show that was a mega-hit yet, really wasn't - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

TMC · 06-15-2023, 01:33 AM

Somebody brought it up on Reddit, so I wonder if you agree with this sentiment?

It ran for ten seasons and over 200 episodes.
Had recognizable names like veteran actor George Segal as part of the main cast, and Judd Hirsch in a recurring role.
Various ‘pop-culture fixtures appeared (“Weird Al”, Rick Moranis, Anthony Michael Hall, Charlie Sheen, etc.).
Somehow managed to get a spin-off in the middle of the parent show’s run, which you would think only happens to extremely popular shows.
Ended up becoming, by the time it ended, the longest running current comedy on the “Big Three” U.S. networks.

And yet, the show:

Never even broke 9 million in ratings—their highest-rated episode ever was the series premiere.
Only attracted a total of 2.54 million viewers for the series finale (and I know… decline of traditional TV and all that, but if you look at how long the show was on the air, you’d assume it had considerably better ratings and was a beloved hit. It’s very rare to go 10 seasons for a sitcom at all, let alone today. There are shows considered all-time classics (Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary Tyler Moore, Golden Girls, etc.) that didn’t get to ten years.
Got cancelled abruptly in the middle of the farewell year without ample time to write a proper series finale.
Often got criticized for being formulaic.

IllinoisTVFan · 06-26-2023, 10:54 AM

Still got higher ratings than many other shows and very few get even 8 million viewers. Can't compare TV shows of now to the past, even a show ranked #1 today with their share would have been at the bottom of the ratings years ago.

icecream · 06-26-2023, 12:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TMC

[*]Somehow managed to get a spin-off in the middle of the parent show’s run, which you would think only happens to extremely popular shows.

Schooled spin-off only existed to give AJ Michalka something after she had complained about Jeff Garlin's behavior and nothing was done about it.

TMC · 12-02-2023, 12:34 AM

I suspect like others, that the situation with Jeff Garlin in the later seasons, really gave the show a negative mark. This was coupled with the unfortunate passing of George Segal and the simple argument that the series went on maybe two or three years too long. It's commonly accepted that the show really started to go downhill in quality when Adam F. Goldberg was no longer actively producing it. So it's within reason to say that as it went on and the quality declined, people tapered off each year.

06-15-2023, 01:33 AM	#1
TMC Member Forum Idol Join Date: Jan 09, 2001 Posts: 124,453	Did The Goldbergs seem like a show that was a mega-hit yet, really wasn't Somebody brought it up on Reddit, so I wonder if you agree with this sentiment? It ran for ten seasons and over 200 episodes. Had recognizable names like veteran actor George Segal as part of the main cast, and Judd Hirsch in a recurring role. Various ‘pop-culture fixtures appeared (“Weird Al”, Rick Moranis, Anthony Michael Hall, Charlie Sheen, etc.). Somehow managed to get a spin-off in the middle of the parent show’s run, which you would think only happens to extremely popular shows. Ended up becoming, by the time it ended, the longest running current comedy on the “Big Three” U.S. networks. And yet, the show: Never even broke 9 million in ratings—their highest-rated episode ever was the series premiere. Only attracted a total of 2.54 million viewers for the series finale (and I know… decline of traditional TV and all that, but if you look at how long the show was on the air, you’d assume it had considerably better ratings and was a beloved hit. It’s very rare to go 10 seasons for a sitcom at all, let alone today. There are shows considered all-time classics (Dick Van Dyke Show, Mary Tyler Moore, Golden Girls, etc.) that didn’t get to ten years. Got cancelled abruptly in the middle of the farewell year without ample time to write a proper series finale. Often got criticized for being formulaic.

06-26-2023, 10:54 AM	#2
IllinoisTVFan Member Forum 4000 Club Member Join Date: Jan 22, 2011 Location: South of Chicago Posts: 4,072	Still got higher ratings than many other shows and very few get even 8 million viewers. Can't compare TV shows of now to the past, even a show ranked #1 today with their share would have been at the bottom of the ratings years ago.

12-02-2023, 12:34 AM	#4
TMC Member Forum Idol Join Date: Jan 09, 2001 Posts: 124,453	I suspect like others, that the situation with Jeff Garlin in the later seasons, really gave the show a negative mark. This was coupled with the unfortunate passing of George Segal and the simple argument that the series went on maybe two or three years too long. It's commonly accepted that the show really started to go downhill in quality when Adam F. Goldberg was no longer actively producing it. So it's within reason to say that as it went on and the quality declined, people tapered off each year.