The S1E1 Podcast

S1E1: The Golden Girls

From its debut in in 1985 all the way to modern day "The Golden Girls" has remained a staple in modern television. Despite the fact that the series finale first aired over 20 years ago the show manages to remain just as relevant in pop culture now than it was then. All this despite being a show about a group of older women. The show centered around a 4 women who all ended up living together in Miami after finding themselves either divorced or widowed, a concept that may not initially leap out at you as comedic gold. But the real core of the show is the bond these women had created and their strong friendship which in turn is relatable to viewers all ages.
The show had an interesting origin. One year prior to its debut NBC held a presentation to help promote the network’s programming to potential advertisers. At this presentation actresses Doris Roberts and Selma Diamond performed a sketch in which they parodied the network's hit show "Miami Vice" where they played two retirees playing cards in a Florida community and named it "Miami Nice". The sketch was a hit among its audience and as result the execs at NBC decided to take the concept and develop it into the show we know how as The Golden Girls.
Despite the show's popularity and fan base was the show an instant hit right from episode one? Listen as the S1E1 guys do a deep dive on the show's pilot episode, "The Engagement".
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Starring: Bea Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, & Estelle Getty

S1E1: The Single Guy

The Single Guy was a sitcom starring Jonathan Silverman as a struggling New York writer attempting to manage his way through the dating scene. The show premiered in 1995 on NBC and was immediately thrown into its Thursday night "Must See TV" lineup. The show was given the opportunity of a lifetime when thrown in the 8:30 timeslot placing it right in between the networks two biggest hits, "Friends" & "Seinfeld". The show however was written-off as one in a long line of "singles in the city" sitcoms that emerged in the mid-1990s. After only two seasons The Single Guy was dropped by its network, leaving it as one of the most highly rated shows to ever be canceled.
Was the show just a product of "right place, right time" or did it have enough substance to survive on its own? Find out as we do a deep dive into the show's pilot episode. 
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Starring: Jonathan Silverman, Jessica Hecht, Mark Moses, Joey Slotnick, Ming-Na Wen, Ernest Borgnine, Jeff Bornstein, Olivia d'Abo and Larry Miller

S1E1: Merry Happy Whatever

You would never be able to have an entire sitcom focused around a holiday like Christmas with weekly episodic television. A show celebrating the same holiday for 4 to 6 months doesn't make much sense. Fortunately, due to the Netflix format where an entire season drops at once it's a lot easier to make something like that happen. Unfortunately, the result of that is this weeks show, "Merry Happy Whatever". For whatever reason Netflix still hasn't been able to knock a sitcom out of the park. The show follows Don (Played by Dennis Quaid) The head of the Quinn household as all his children return home to follow their annual Christmas traditions. Routine becomes a little complicated when his youngest child Emily brings home her boyfriend Matt from California for the holiday.
Will Merry Happy Whatever follow the same fate as the past Netflix original sitcoms S1E1 has covered or will the holiday spirt take over for the five this week? Listen as they do a deep dive review of the show's pilot episode, "Welcome, Matt"
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Starring: Dennis Quaid, Bridgit Mendler, Brent Morin, Ashley Tisdale, Siobhan Murphy, Adam Rose, Elizabeth Ho, Hayes MacArthur, Garcelle Beauvais, & Tyler Ritter

S1E1: Titus

Starting in the year 2000 "Titus" was able to accomplish something that seemed near impossible in the world of television... Test the limits on what Fox was okay with airing. This show which was based on the life and comedy of the shows leading man Christopher Titus was not afraid to push boundaries. In fact, there were multiple episodes of the show that either weren't aired or were postponed and aired out of order due to content. With all that being said this show isn't necessarily that edgy, it was more that the people in charge of this show were very unwilling to compromise on almost every detail behind it. There was even a rule that the studio couldn't add any canned laughter to strengthen the sound if the studio audience wasn't lively enough. Eventually Fox had their fix and despite pulling decent ratings the show was cancelled after its third season. Were the boundaries really being pushed too far or were they sitting right in the comedic sweet spot? Find out as we review Titus' pilot episode, "Sex With Pudding".
 
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Starring: Christopher Titus, Cynthia Watros, Zack Ward, David Shatraw, Stacy Keach, & Lesley Fera 

S1E1: Baby Talk

A show that George Clooney was quoted as saying was "a particular low point" in his career. "Baby Talk" was a television adaptation of the hit movie "Look Who's Talking" The show was created by Amy Heckerling, the writer and director of the original film and Ed Weinberger, who co-created such hit shows as "Taxi" & "The Cosby Show". The show was even originally slated to be called Look Who's Talking until it was determined that it may cause confusion with the sequel that would be airing concurrently. This show also readapted and recast the main characters so we don't see the likes of John Travolta and Kirstie Alley reprising their roles and instead of the baby being voiced by Bruce Willis the network went with Tony Danza who was already starring in the show "Who's The Boss" at the same time.
Despite having the likes of Danza and Clooney involved in the project the show just didn't perform well. Shockingly a full second season was eventually ordered but not before a total re-haul changing nearly the entire cast and location. Those adjustments did little to improve ratings and the show was canceled at the conclusion of the season. But with all this in mind does the pilot episode have enough laughs to make you want to watch more? Listen as we do a deep dive of the show's pilot episode, "Baby Love".
 
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Starring: Tony Danza, George Clooney, Julia Duffy, Lenny Wolpe, Ted McGinley, & William Hickey

S1E1: Grounded For Life

"Grounded For Life" was a sitcom that depicted a family where the parents had children early in life and are now raising three kids while in their early 30s. The show's original network Fox made the decision to cancel the show early into its 3rd season but then was picked up by The WB where it remained until the end of its fifth and final season.
The show was met with mediocre fanfare through it's entire run from 2001-2005, but does that mean the S1E1 guys will feel the same? Find out as they do a deep dive of their pilot episode, "Lily B. Goode."
 
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Starring: Donal Logue, Megyn Price, Kevin Corrigan, Lynsey Bartilson, Griffin Frazen, Jake Burbage, Bret Harrison, & Richard Riehle

S1E1: Charles In Charge

It would be safe to assume that a large percentage of people remember the show "Charles In Charge". The show ran for 126 episodes and had a very strong run in syndication. But despite being one of the more popular shows of the late '80s, if you were to start watching the show again from the first episode the majority of you would have a hard time remembering most of the cast. That's because after a first season of mediocre ratings, CBS decided to pull the trigger on the show. The entire cast, with the exception of Scott Baio (Charles) and Willie Aames (Buddy) was changed. With a new look the show started gaining some traction and became what you know remember today.
Was the original cast strong enough to keep the show running without the need to change it? Find out as we deep dive Charles In Charge's 1984 pilot episode.
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Starring: Scott Baio, Willie Aames, Jennifer Runyon, April Lerman, Jonathan Ward, Michael Pearlman, Michael Sharrett, James Widdoes, & Julie Cobb

S1E1: In The House

LL Cool J is one of those artists that has seemed to effortlessly transition from the music world to acting. From shows like "NCIS: Los Angeles" to movies such as "Deep Blue Sea" it's pretty common to see him on your television screen. But in 1995 LL still had a fairly limited amount of acting credits when he was cast to be the main role in the NBC sitcom "In The House".
In the show he stars as Marion Hill, a former NFL player who due to some unfortunate financial troubles needs to rent his house to a woman and her two children to help cover the bills. The show took on a total overhaul when the majority of the cast was changed in season 3 after the show moved to UPN. But was the original format solid enough to last? Listen as the boys deep dive their pilot episode, "Getting To Know You".
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Starring: LL Cool J, Debbie Allen, Lisa Arrindell, Jeff Wood, & Maia Campbell

S1E1: The Nanny

"The Nanny" is the result of a chance meeting between Fran Drescher and former president of CBS, Jeff Sagansky on a transatlantic flight. On said flight Drescher was able to convince Sagansky to meet with her in LA to pitch a television show. Although at the time she didn't actually have a pitch in mind she eventually came up with an idea for a modern twist on "The Sound of Music". From this the Nanny was born and Fran Drescher herself would be in the starring role playing a fashionista  turned nanny after a day of door to door cosmetic sales lands her at the house of a rich widowed Broadway producer. The Nanny would go on to be one of the biggest shows in the '90s.
Despite all the show's success were they able to land all that TV magic in their pilot episode? Listen as the boys do an extreme deep dive of The Nanny's pilot episode.
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Starring: Fran Drescher, Charles Shaughnessy, Daniel Davis, Lauren Lane, Nicholle Tom, Benjamin Salisbury, & Madeline Zima

S1E1: That ’80s Show

That '80s Show was given all the tools to succeed. The show had both the creators and network from That '70s Show behind it. But instead of having a 200 episode run of its own, this show fell a little shy... By about 187 episodes. Was the magic just not in the air for this one? What was so different about the approach that kept it from succeeding like its '70s counterpart? Listen as the boys review the pilot episode, "That '80s Pilot" to find out.
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Starring: Glenn Howerton, Tinsley Grimes, Chyler Leigh, Eddie Shin, Brittany Daniel, Margaret Smith, & Geoff Pierson