The S1E1 Podcast
Join us every week where we’ll be picking a different sitcom and judging it solely on its very first televised episode. In doing so we’ll be challenging ourselves to erase any knowledge of future episodes so we can deliver an unbiased opinion. At the end of each show we’ll tell you if this is a show we would green light or cancel. Tune in to find out which mega shows wouldn’t make the cut, what forgettable mistakes we give a pass, and who started exactly where they should be.
Listen on:
Episodes
Thursday Nov 24, 2022
Thursday Nov 24, 2022
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.
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: Scott Baio, Willie Aames, Jennifer Runyon, April Lerman, Jonathan Ward, Michael Pearlman, Michael Sharrett, James Widdoes, & Julie Cobb
Thursday Nov 17, 2022
Thursday Nov 17, 2022
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
Thursday Nov 10, 2022
Thursday Nov 10, 2022
"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.
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: Fran Drescher, Charles Shaughnessy, Daniel Davis, Lauren Lane, Nicholle Tom, Benjamin Salisbury, & Madeline Zima
Thursday Nov 03, 2022
Thursday Nov 03, 2022
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.
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: Glenn Howerton, Tinsley Grimes, Chyler Leigh, Eddie Shin, Brittany Daniel, Margaret Smith, & Geoff Pierson
Thursday Oct 27, 2022
Thursday Oct 27, 2022
It's very rare when someone is able to star in back to back hit television shows but Melissa Joan Hart was able to do just that when shortly after wrapping up "Clarissa Explains It All" went on to star in this weeks episode, "Sabrina The Teenage Witch". The show chronicles the adventures of Sabrina Spellman, a girl who discovers on her 16th birthday that she is a witch. The show, which was based on the Archie Comics series of the same name was a near instant hit and ended up with a seven season run. So with that in mind a sitcom about a witch living in Massachusetts seemed like the perfect Halloween episode for this year. Will the boys give this one a green-light or are they just too far removed from when we were the target demographic. Listen as they review the pilot episode and find out.
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: Melissa Joan Hart, Beth Broderick, Caroline Rhea, Nate Richert, Nick Bakay, Jenna Leigh Green. Michelle Beaudoin, Paul Feig, Penn Gillette, Teller, & Debbie Harry
Thursday Oct 20, 2022
Thursday Oct 20, 2022
In "Deadbeat" Tyler Labine plays a medium for hire named "Pac" who uses his actual ability to see ghosts to help them move on to the afterlife. And much like most mediums he does so with the aid of his drug dealer. Despite this very unique ability Pac possesses he still struggles to pay the bills.
Deadbeat first premiered in 2014 and marks the first Hulu original show we've covered. It earned itself 3 seasons which is amazing because it was all done without any of us even being aware of its existence.
Can Hulu dish out great original content? We aim to find out when review this show's pilot episode, "The Sexorcism".
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: Tyler Labine, Brandon T. Jackson, Cat Deeley, Lucy DeVito, Samantha Bee, Danielle Dallacco, Paul Iacono
Thursday Oct 13, 2022
Thursday Oct 13, 2022
The Munsters is one of the most beloved shows to come out of the 60s... But we're not covering that show, we tackled that one last year (go back in the archives to listen). This week we're here to talk about "The Munsters Today"!
The Munsters Today is a revival of the original show where the family accidentally sleeps for over 20 years and then find themselves having to adjust to life in the 80s. The new version of the show is shot in color and has a whole new cast portraying the same characters we came to know and love in the original.
Despite being forgotten in time The Munsters Today actually produced more episodes than the original show. Is the show's 70+ episode run an indicator that they were able to recreate the same magic with this spin-off? Listen as we review their pilot episode, "Vampire Pie" to find out.
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: John Schuck, Lee Meriwether, Jason Marsden, Hilary Van Dyke, & Howard Morton
Thursday Oct 06, 2022
Thursday Oct 06, 2022
What might be a surprise to many American television fans, "What We Do in the Shadows" was not the first spinoff show to come from the movie of the same name. Before it was "Wellington Paranormal". Jemaine Clement created this paranormal cop show mocumentary using the characters Officer O'Leary and Officer Minogue who were seen very briefly in the film he and Taika Waititi made.
The show focuses on a division of the New Zealand Police Department specializing in paranormal activity. Originally airing in its native country of New Zealand in 2018, the show would eventually find a second home airing in the United States on The CW network 3 years later.
Can Wellington Paranormal get the same perfect score that the S1E1 boys gave its sister sitcom? Listen as they review the pilot episode, "Demon Girl" to find out.
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: Mike Minogue, Karen O'Leary, Maaka Pohatu, Thomas Sainsbury, & Erika Camacho
Thursday Sep 29, 2022
Thursday Sep 29, 2022
In celebration of the 40th anniversary of it first airing, it only made sense for us to cover "Cheers". Cheers was an absolute mega hit which will forever be remembered as one of the greatest shows of all time. Starring Ted Danson as the fictional former Red Sox pitcher Sam Malone, the show focuses on the day to day of a bar's staff and its regulars. The simple concept resonated with the viewers and became a ratings juggernaut landing a top 10 spot for 8 of its 11 seasons. Nearly 40% of the US population tuned in to catch the series finale. To this day the Boston bar that the show was based on remains a popular tourist attraction.
This Episode also features our first guest! Dave from In A Pickle joins in to share his perspective as both a Cheers super fan and a long time bartender in the Boston bar scene. Check out his podcast focusing on the less glamourous side of sports at IAP RADIO.
With all of that in mind will the pilot Episode which only ranked 74th out of 77th when it premiered get the green-light from the S1E1 boys? Listen to find out as the review Episode 1, "Give Me A Ring Sometime".
www.S1E1POD.com
Staring: Ted Danson, Shelley Long, Nicholas Colasanto, Rhea Perlman, George Wendt, & John Ratzenberger
Thursday Sep 22, 2022
Thursday Sep 22, 2022
When Lisa McGee created "Derry Girls", it was mainly a collection of things that actually happened to her growing up. The show is a British teen sitcom based around five teenagers living in mid-1990s Derry while attending Our Lady Immaculate College, a fictional girl's Catholic secondary school based on the real-life Thornhill College, where McGee herself studied. The show was an immediate hit and managed to be its networks most successful comedy in years.
That being said will this be an easy green-light for the S1E1 guys? Listen and find out as they do a deep review of the show's pilot episode, "Episode 1"
www.S1E1POD.com
Starring: Saoirse-Monica Jackson, Louisa Harland, Jamie-Lee O'Donnell, Nicola Coughlan, Dylan Llewellyn, Siobhán McSweeney