The S1E1 Podcast

All in the Family is a sitcom created by Norman Lear that aired on CBS from 1971 to 1979. The show centers on Archie Bunker (Carroll O’Connor), a loud, stubborn, working-class man whose beliefs are constantly challenged by his son-in-law and daughter. What set the show apart was its ability to use comedy to put taboo subjects like racism, sexism, politics, and religion front and center.

Initially divisive, All in the Family quickly...

"The Dick Van Dyke Show" is a landmark sitcom that originally aired on #CBS from 1961 to 1966. The series stars #DickVanDyke as Rob Petrie, the head writer for the fictional Alan Brady Show, and #MaryTylerMoore as his wife, Laura. Arguably the blueprint for every witty, modern sitcom couple that followed. Splitting its time between Rob’s chaotic writers’ room and his suburban home, the show blended sharp workplace banter with warm,...

"Rules of Engagement" is a sitcom that ran from 2007-2013 on CBS. Built around the different stages of a relationship, through two couples and their single friend. The series plays heavily on the contrast between cynicism and idealism, long-term comfort and honeymoon-phase cluelessness. Warburton’s deadpan delivery and Spade’s chaotic energy became the anchors of the series, helping it survive multiple schedule moves and inconsiste...

"Some of My Best Friends" was a short-lived sitcom that premiered on CBS in 2001. After Warren (Jason Bateman) is dumped by his boyfriend, he posts and add as a GWM ("Gay White Male") looking for a roommate. Macho Italian guy, Frankie (Danny Nucci) responds assuming that GWM stands for "Guy With Money". The show is loosely based on the 1997 indie film, "Kiss Me, Guido" and provides us with a new twist on the odd-couple dynamic.

Des...

"The Paper" is a mockumentary-style sitcom that premiered on Peacock in 2025. The show is the first official spin-off of one of the all time greatest shows, "The Office". It picks up with the fictional documentary crew attempting to do a follow up with Dunder Mifflin and winding up in Toledo, Ohio, where they instead focus on the declining historic newspaper, the Toledo Truth Teller. 

Critics have given The Paper a generally favora...

"The Ugliest Girl in Town" was an ABC sitcom that aired from 1968–1969. In it Timothy Blair (Peter Kastner), a Hollywood talent agent who falls in love with a British actress and through a series of truly sitcom-level circumstances, ends up becoming a fashion model in London… while disguised as a woman. Under the persona “Timmie,” he becomes an overnight sensation, forcing him to juggle his double life, hide his secret identity, an...

"The Neighborhood" is a CBS sitcom that first premiered in 2018. The show stars Max Greenfield as Dave Johnson, a relentlessly upbeat Midwesterner who moves his wife and kids to a predominantly Black neighborhood in Pasadena. His overly friendly approach doesn’t exactly win over his new next-door neighbor, Calvin Butler (Cedric the Entertainer), who’s not thrilled about the Johnsons’ arrival. What follows is a clash of cultures tha...

"Santa Clarita Diet" was a dark comedy series that aired on Netflix from 2017-2019. The show starred Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant as suburban realtors Sheila and Joel Hammond, whose quiet California life gets flipped on its head when Sheila mysteriously transforms into an undead, flesh-craving zombie. Instead of leaning into horror tropes, the show mined humor from the couple’s desperate attempts to keep their family and car...

"Tabitha" was a short-lived sitcom that aired on ABC in 1977, serving as a spin-off of the iconic series Bewitched. The show followed Tabitha Stephens (played by Lisa Hartman), now all grown up and blessed with her mom's powers, working as a television producer in Los Angeles. While Bewitched thrived on suburban domestic chaos, Tabitha shifted the formula into a workplace setting.

Despite its familiar pedigree and Hartman’s charm, ...

"Not Dead Yet" is sitcom that aired on ABC from 2023-2024. Loosely inspired by Alexandra Potter’s novel "Confessions of a Forty-Something F**k Up". The series stars Gina Rodriguez as Nell Serrano, a down-on-her-luck journalist who moves back to the States after a messy breakup only to find herself stuck writing obituaries. But there’s a catch: every time she writes one, the ghost of her subject shows up to hang out. With the help o...

Maniac Mansion was a sitcom that aired on The Family Channel from 1990 to 1993. The show was created by Eugene Levy and produced by George Lucas’s Lucasfilm Television. Loosely based on the cult-favorite 1987 video game of the same name. While the series took its name from the cult video game, the show used little to none of the source material, opting instead for a domestic sitcom laced with surreal, science-fiction twists. The pr...

“Good Grief” is a sitcom that aired on Fox from 1990 to 1991. It centered around a very unusual setting for a comedy: a family-run funeral home. The show’s offbeat concept was part of Fox’s early push into unconventional sitcom territory during the network’s formative years. The premise revolved around Warren Pepper, a straight-laced mortician who ran the “Sincerity Mortuary” with his sister Debbie. Their operations were disrupted ...

“Bust Down” is single-camera sitcom created by and starring Langston Kerman, Jak Knight, Chris Redd, and Sam Jay that premiered on Peacock in 2022. It centers on four friends who work low-wage jobs at a casino in Gary, Indiana. The show leans heavily into raunchy humor and over-the-top scenarios, with the creators noting they wanted it to be “raunchy, irreverent, and complicated".

Critics generally responded positively and praised ...

Welcome to Sweden was a sitcom that aired from 2014-2015. The series was produced in collaboration between Sweden’s TV4 and NBC in the U.S., making it one of the rare cross-Atlantic sitcoms of the 2010s. The show follows Bruce Evans, an American accountant who leaves his career behind in New York to move to Sweden with his Swedish girlfriend, Emma Wiik. Much of the comedy stemmed from Bruce’s struggle to adapt to Swedish culture.

W...

That’s My Bush! was a Comedy Central sitcom that aired in 2001. It was created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the duo behind South Park. The show, which was a satirical look at life in the White House was green lit with the understanding that the show would focus around whoever ended up winning the 2000 presidential election. The show’s premise was less about politics and more about lampooning the conventions of the American sitcom...

"It’s Garry Shandling’s Show" was a sitcom that aired on Showtime from 1986 to 1990 where Garry Shandling plays a fictionalized version of himself living in a suburban condo. The series was notable for breaking television conventions at the time, with Shandling directly addressing the audience, acknowledging that he was in a sitcom, and routinely mocking the artificial structures of television comedy. Its theme song even playfully ...

"Corner Gas" is a sitcom that aired from 2004 to 2009 on CTV. The premise centers around Brent Leroy (played by show creator Brent Butt), who runs the town's gas station. Known for its dry humor and character-driven storytelling, the show avoids traditional sitcom laugh tracks and instead leans on witty dialogue and understated situational comedy rooted in Canadian small-town life.

Reception for Corner Gas was overwhelmingly positi...

"The Building" is a CBS sitcom that premiered in 1993. It was created, written, and executive-produced by Bonnie Hunt. The show centers on Bonnie Kennedy a commercial actress who returns to Chicago and moves into her old apartment building across from Wrigley Field after separating from her fiancé. "The Building" was theatrical in tone with many Second City alumni as cast members. Episodes featured improvisational dialogue, overlap...

"227" is a sitcom that aired on NBC from 1985 to 1990, spanning five seasons and 116 episodes. Created by C.J. Banks and Bill Boulware, it was adapted from a 1978 stage play of the same name. The show was set in a middle-class apartment building in Washington, D.C., and became one of NBC’s popular Saturday night staples in the mid-to-late 1980s. It was notable for being a vehicle for Marla Gibbs, who had gained fame on The Jefferso...