The Roseanne reboot that no one asked for premiered to spectacular ratings this week. 18 million people tuned in, which is probably their payback for ABC giving the cut to Tim Allen’s Last Man Standing.
Roseanne Barr, a vocal Trump supporter in real-life and on the show, was congratulated by Donald Trump himself.
The success of Roseanne leads us to wonder if this will lead to the greenlighting of more “middle America” sitcoms, which is quite a disheartening thought, although the 2018 Pilot Season is one of the most diverse in history.
While we can look forward to those diverse shows (hopefully) being ordered to series, here are family sitcoms currently running that represent today’s America exceptionally better than the “both sides” conversation Roseanne is attempting to present.
Their official descriptions are provided.
- black-ish
Dre Johnson (Anthony Anderson) has it all: a great job, a beautiful wife, Rainbow (Tracee Ellis Ross), four kids and a big home in a classy neighborhood, but as a black man, he begins to question whether all his success has brought too much cultural assimilation for his family. With the help of his father (special guest star Laurence Fishburne), Dre begins to try to create a sense of ethnic identity for the members of his family that will allow them to honor their background while preparing them to embrace the future.
- One Day at a Time
A reimagining of the Norman Lear classic, centering on a Cuban-American family. Our heroine is a recently separated, former military mom (Justina Machado) navigating a new single life while raising her radical teenaged daughter and socially adept tween son, with the “help” of her old school Cuban-born mom (Rita Moreno) and a friends- without-benefits building manager named Schneider.
On My Block follows a quartet of bright, street-savvy friends who are navigating their way through high school, including all the of the triumph, pain and newness they experience along the way. Lifelong friendships are tested as Monse (Sierra Capri), Ruby (Jason Genao), Jamal (Brett Gray) and Cesar (Diego Tinoco) confront the challenges of adolescence and life in their predominantly Hispanic and black neighborhood in South Central Los Angeles in this coming-of-age comedy.
- Fresh Off The Boat
1997 was a big year for Eddie Huang (Hudson Yang). He and his family vacationed in Taiwan, he had his first kiss, grieved the untimely death of his rap hero The Notorious B.I.G., graduated from middle school with his crew of misfits firmly intact and is ready to tackle the challenges of high school. Yet, just as the Huangs are finally settling into the suburban Orlando lifestyle, Louis (Randall Park) and Jessica (Constance Wu) make some big decisions that could change everything they know and love about the neighborhood they currently call home.
- The Good Place
From executive producer Michael Schur comes a unique comedy about what makes a good person. The show follows Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell), an ordinary woman who enters the afterlife, and thanks to some kind of error, is sent to the Good Place instead of the Bad Place (which is definitely where she belongs). While hiding in plain sight from Michael (Ted Danson), the wise architect of the Good Place (who doesn’t know he’s made a mistake), she’s determined to shed her old way of living and earn her spot. The first season featured surprise after surprise and twist after twist, all leading to a world-upending finale that throws everything up in the air for season two.
- Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Brooklyn Nine-Nine follows the exploits of the hilarious Detective Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg), his diverse, lovable colleagues and their more-serious-than-a-hunk-of-actual-granite boss, Captain Holt (Andre Braugher), as they police the NYPD’s 99th precinct.
- Speechless
Maya DiMeo is a mom on a mission who will do anything for her husband, Jimmy, and kids Ray, Dylan, and JJ, her eldest son with cerebral palsy. As Maya fights injustices both real and imagined, the family works to make a new home for themselves and searches for just the right person to help give JJ his “voice.”
In memoriam:
- The Mayor (on Hulu)
Young rapper Courtney Rose (Brandon Micheal Hall) needs his big break. For years, he’s toiled away in a small inner-city apartment, making music in his junk-filled bedroom closet. Tired of waiting for opportunity, Courtney cooks up the publicity stunt of the century: Running for mayor of his hometown in California to generate buzz for his music career. Unfortunately for Courtney, his master plan goes wildly awry, ending in the most terrifying of outcomes: An election victory. With the help of his mother (Yvette Nicole Brown, “Community”) and friends, including Valentina (Lea Michele), Courtney will have to overcome his hubris if he wants to transform the struggling city he loves.
- The Carmichael Show (on Netflix)
Inspired by the life of comedian Jerrod Carmichael, the series follows Jerrod and his opinionated North Carolina family as they navigate topics that all families face in America today. Jerrod often finds himself debating such issues with his old-school father, Joe (David Alan Grier); his devoutly religious mother, Cynthia (Loretta Devine); his fiance Maxine (Amber Stevens West); his social media-loving brother, Bobby (Lil Rel Howery); and Bobby’s outspoken almost-ex-wife, Nekeisha (Tiffany Haddish). And somewhere in the middle of all of their disagreeing is the heart of this family.
