Back to You: Old News in a New Bottle

Just a quick observation. Watching M*A*S*H last night. There seems to be a distinct similarity between the mannerisms of one Major Charles Emmerson Winchester III, and Dr. Fraser Crane.

I have always liked the traditional Sitcom. To me, there has always been a more genuine feel to the format. Which may seem odd, given how contrived the set-ups usually are. Nonetheless, there is something authentic about a three camera, filmed in front of a live audience show.

Why isn't this on CBS again?

@carlosthedwarf - The answer to your question is "Because FOX needed a traditional looking sitcom, because it is run by morons who cancelled Arrested Development."

The harm for that eggregious mistake is just starting to be felt....basically since that time, "The Office" and "30 Rock" have started to vault into popularity. Sure - the excellent "How I Met Your Mother" and the less excellent "Two and a Half Men" may still be popular, but the clear wave of comedy's future is non-traditional sitcoms. FOX had the gold standard with Arrested Development, and foolishly threw it away.

I of course haven't seen it yet, but am interested in the take that a writer in Entertainment Weekly had that it's fun to have a old-fashioned multi-camera sitcom since there are so few this season.

The writers, producers, director & actors are all seasoned from some of the best sitcoms ever (from Mary Tyler Moore to Frasier), so why not give them a chance to develop? The show may not be perfect out of the gates, but maybe it will find it's pace & voice. I'll give it a chance.

Hey, any show that gives Fred Willard a job can't be too horrible....

This is pretty much how I reacted to "The Big Bang Theory," which is playing online at CBS in advance of its premiere.

It might have been a worthwhile companion to that ABC block of comedies they used to call TGIF. But that was like 10 years ago, right?

I do wish Fred Willard would land on a good show. I imagine he would have been great on Arrested Development.

@saybo: How I Met Your Mother is one example of a relatively old-school, three-camera sitcom that I've praised nonetheless. Back to You is no How I Met Your Mother.

Just watched the Back to You pilot - conventional, yes, but utterly comfortable & pleasing. There's a reason that James Burrows is the only sitcom director who's a name brand - he knows how to get perfect timing & pacing out of almost any script. It's good enough to last awhile, as many viewers yearn for comfortable sitcoms to relax to. I doubt I'll watch it religiously, but it will be enjoyable in a throwback-y way, which a valid enough reason to watch.

@Chaddogg: Although it would be great to live in a perfect world, where television programs were sustained on quality not ratings prowess, we don't. Given the realities of commercial television, I think we should grateful to Fox for giving us three years of Arrested Development, not curse their names for canceling it. The vast majority of pilots don't make it to season 2, so Fox deserves kudos for sticking with the Bluths beyond their commercial viability.

@Jason - I have to disagree. AD was an Emmy winning comedy series, and a consistent nominee for its strong cast and writers. FOX, as we all know, rarely gets nominated for Emmy's in ANY category.

I should be grateful that FOX cancelled it, to air Michael Rapaport's comedy series? Or Pam Anderson's (Stacked)? Or the countless other disposable shows they've failed at airing since AD left the air?

And I should give them kudos for failing to market the show, failing to give it a consistent time slot, failing to air repeats of its episodes on its sister network (FX) where it could grow an audience, and failing to give it a strong lead-in?

Look, I'll gladly take 3 (abbreviated) seasons of AD's brilliance. But this show should have been a huge hit that lasted for more than 3 years. FOX just dropped the ball in marketing it and building an audience. Sometimes you stick by a high-quality show because the audience WILL come (i.e. Cheers, which NBC stood by until it grew into a comedy juggernaut). And you ESPECIALLY do it when that show is garnering Emmy nominations and your network RARELY gets an love from the Emmy's....if not for any other reason than growing prestige.

So I respectfully disagree with your analysis. I am grateful for AD, but my gratitude has nothing to do with FOX.

How many of Fox's other comedies that "replaced" AD (which isn't really how it works anyway) have lasted more than 3 seasons? None that I can think of. And Cheers was the #12 show in the country in its 3rd season (thanks to Cosby), so NBC's patience yielded results faster than AD's lifespan. And Emmy's don't mean anything unless they boost ratings, which AD's did not.

I'm not saying Fox did everything it could to make AD into a hit, but it did promote the show a lot more than many claim & stayed with it longer than any other example of a low-rated cult fave I can think of. If you're going to hate on Fox, save it for the many Brilliant but Canceled items in their short history that were never given a full season's chance: Firefly, Action, Profit, Wonderfalls, TV Nation, etc.

[...] both starred in long-lasting hit comedies in the 1990s (Frasier and Everybody Loves Raymond). On Fox's short-lived Back to You, they teamed up as news anchors, forming a kind of sitcom-star supergroup. Now they're debuting [...]