Optimum Cruise Speed

     So I'm re-watching in order That 70's Show, I'm in the middle of season two and there are several things that hit me and I'd like to share them with you.

     First of all, it's a pretty good show in my opinion. I mean, it works rather well despite the unbalanced Gender Equilibrium, it has some pretty good jokes, the characters are distinct without being to extreme, role balancing is nice,... all in all a fun show to watch.

I know how the show will end and probably could map out each season according to the different episodes, so there are a few things when watching the first season again that made me go "uh,... well that's a bit weird."

POCS Vs TOCS

Positive, Negative and Neutral Plot Lines

     This will be a basic post on ordinary plot-lines. Let's remember our first rule of Sitcoms :

BEGINNING = ENDING

     Understand this as everything comes back to normal. There are some little changes, such as growing children, and some that are more important, such as Maude Flanders's death. But the main characters, where they live, their jobs, etc... do not change. Homer will always work at the power plant although he gets fired every two or three episodes.

Yet, a plot is defined by the evolution of characters due to a certain event within a particular time lapse. So let's take a look at the three main plot evolutions.

This Week's best sitcom quote

Every week I'll try to put a different quote on this blog. You'll find it on the main page just under the TV on the right.
Don't hesitate to submit what your favorite quote is !


TRJ

Families in Animated Sitcoms

The main topic of this post is analyzing the structure of Families in animated sitcoms, mainly Family Guy and The Simpsons.

Let's keep in mind what we already said on the Gender Equilibrium, it might come in handy.

It's always a question of balance.

(Side note : I'm writing this post while listening to Yo-Yo Ma plays Ennio Morricone, awesome to the max!)

Adagio For Strings - Samuel Barber

     As I watch (for 1000th time) American Dad's "In Country...Club" (S05 E01), I'm amazed at how good the episode is. Probably because I always loved vietnam war movies and parodies. This spoof was really well done and if you haven't seen it I strongly advise you to get to it !

     It made me think of all the different sitcoms that played Samuel Barber's "Adagio for Strings" in reference to Platoon.

     So I researched "Samuel Barber" in IMDB and here is a list of episodes that feature that particular piece in chronological order : 

Seinfeld : S08 E06 - "The Fatigues" 1996
The Simpsons : S14 E09 - "Strong Arms of the Ma" 2003
South Park : S08 E 02 - "Up the Down Steroid" 2004
The Simpsons : S18 E17 - "Marge Gamer" 2007
The Simpsons : S19 E06 - "Little Orphan Millie" 2007
American Dad : S05 E01 - "In Country...Club" 2009
How I Met Your Mother : S05 E13 - "Jenkins" 2010

Most of the time, Samuel Barber wasn't credited for "Adagio for Strings" in these episodes.

The movie Platoon came out in 1986 and the "Adagio for Strings" was featured in movies and documentaries as well as sitcoms before but mainly after Platoon.

When Does "Adagio for Strings" Appear :

The Gender Equilibrium

Hello,

     The main characters of sitcoms have a major difference which is gender. Some have all men, some have all women, some mix, but rarely can we find an equal number of men and women in the same show. Yet, the number of females and males is crucial if you want to build better character interrelationships, not to mention if you want to portray equal rights between men and women (Twenty first century, dude, come on !).

Now the question is what does the number and choice of males and females entail. 

In my humble opinion, shows that succeed and are popular display what I call a "Gender Equilibrium". Obviously, you can't apply this equilibrium to every show, but it is nonetheless interesting to see how the balance between men and women can be spot on or off.

Seinfeld - The Sitcom King

     It would be crazy to publish a blog about sitcoms with no mention of Seinfeld, the sitcom that changed the landscape of television comedy. You may like it or not, but Seinfeld and its characters became iconic in american pop culture. What makes Seinfeld so particular ?

     There are many factors that brought Seinfeld to be one of the most popular shows on television. Jerry Seinfeld's stand-up was already very popular by the time the show premiered in 1989, but the approximately 23 minute episodes that aired every week made him one of the most beloved comedians of his time. He still is very popular.

Let's take a closer look at the structure of the episodes.

How I Met Your Mother (S07 E05) - "Fiel Trip"

Hello again,

Quick message :

I just watched the new How I Met Your Mother (HIMYM) episode and from the two first seconds, I could tell exactly what the episode was going to be about. That's why I wanted to share with you several elements of my viewing.

What Is A Sitcom

Welcome !

Let's get straight to business : What is a Sitcom ?

This will be my definition, you are absolutely free to post any comment to contradict me. But for the sake of this blog, I will stick to a simple and clear meaning of sitcom.

The most defining characteristic is that a sitcom is a TV show that exposes any given situation that undergoes rapidly a change which is resolved to return to the original situation.

Simply :

BEGINNING = ENDING