My List of the Top 10 Spin-Offs

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

First, an apology to those who got this post early. I upgraded some things last night and wasn't used to some new shortcuts when I began this post this morning. 

This is an area where I have a lot of interest. I'm not really sure where it started, but I've always been curious about spin-offs. The idea that certain characters from a main show become popular enough that they get their own storylines without a crutch is just cool. And, over the years, there have been tons and tons of spin-offs. And, as per my usual, I'm pretty sure that some of my selections will shock readers. I tend to like things that are a bit off, and tend to loathe things that others adore (you will notice that Animaniacs did not make my list, for instance).

10. A Different World, from The Cosby Show. I actually like this show quite a bit, and it did great. But it was created to be a vehicle for Denise Huxtable, who only lasted a single season on the show, which is why I gave it the #10 spot. In case you've never seen it, it's about college kids at (mostly black) fictional school Hillman, and the troubles they deal with.

9. The Simpsons, from The Tracy Ullman Show. This one fell low on the list because a lot of people don't know that The Simpsons is a spin-off. And, I must add that I've never seen The Tracy Ullman Show, aside from the clips of the original Simpsons family that have come up over the past twenty years. Still, the show about an overweight guy and his somewhat average family is certainly a household name! 

8. Quack Pack, from DuckTales. As a child who was in her early elementary years during the height of The Disney Afternoon, I loved DuckTales as much as anyone. And, while I was partial to Webby storylines, Huey, Dewey, and Louie were great characters. So, when I found Quack Pack in middle school, I was delighted to see the threesome appear as teenagers. Only 39 episodes exist, but I think that the essence of the characters continued from childhood into adolescence, making for a very believable show.    

7. Melrose Place, from Beverly Hills, 90210. I didn't know that Melrose Place was a spin-off when I began watching in 1996. It was one of the only shows that my mom ever watched in original run, so that was my draw to it. In fact, I didn't know it was a spin-off until I was in graduate school and working my way through 90210 for the first time. The connection took place in the second season, as Kelly was interested in a guy named Jake, who lived in the eponymous apartment complex. On the whole, Melrose Place was way too mature for a young teenager, but I watched the final few seasons anyway... though it didn't entice me enough to ever go back and catch up on the entire series!    

6. Joey, from Friends. Yes, it failed miserably. People couldn't stand it, and nobody understood why Joey didn't talk about his friends... plus, no guest appearances in 46 episodes! Now, if you're a long-time reader, you may remember that I had a love-hate relationship with Friends until I was almost done with college. I ended up seeing the entire series and enjoying it, and worked my way through Joey in less than a week. I found the show to be amusing, though it was full of issues as the writers struggled to find an audience.

5. All Grown Up, from Rugrats. Rugrats was such a captivating show, as I believe that I have mentioned a few times. It's one show that I can say both of my siblings and I enjoyed together (which was a problem when we got the Playstation game - it was only 1 player!). All Grown Up ran for 55 episodes, and featured the kids aged ten years from the original show. This is another case where I think that the characters were very believable - the traits and personalities really matched what you might think the kids would grow up into. The show didn't really end with any closure, but was a good addition to the Rugrats franchise.

4. The Jeffersons, from All in the Family. A true classic spun from another well-loved show. The Jeffersons is downright hilarious, and my brother and I have many great memories of watching it together on Nick at Nite. Although George wasn't on All in the Family until it had been on a while (Sherman Hemsley was on Broadway at the time), his family was an interesting dynamic on the show, which took place in working-class Queens. The family later moved to a luxury high-rise in Manhattan, during one of the greatest lead-ins in television history - one week you move from the characters on one show, the next you move into a new place on a new show!

3. Daria, from Beavis & Butthead. I LOVED Daria. I thought that it was such a good, funny, clever show. Daria was a recurring character on Beavis & Butthead, a show which I am proud to say I've never seen. But, for a recurring character to go on to have a five-season success and two tv-movies says something. Daria's witty and pessimistic outlook on life amused me to no end, and I just thought that Quinn was the cutest thing ever. I've been waiting for the complete series to go on sale again, because I really must have it!

2. Family Matters, from Perfect Strangers. I loved Perfect Strangers when it ran originally.  I wasn't allowed to watch a lot of night-time television, but I vaguely remember catching it my grandparents' house or something a few times. I can't say that I remembered Harriet Winslow from that show, and therefore wasn't aware that Family Matters was a spin-off when it began (which I did watch by the third season or so). One might argue that Family Matters was far more popular (and much longer-running) than Perfect Strangers, though they were both very different shows. Harriet's character was clearly the same as it was in Perfect Strangers, and Family Matters became a memorable sitcom across the country.

1. Frasier, from Cheers. One of my favorite shows since I began watching it, Frasier is a very long-running show spun from a long-running show. I've seen several dozen episodes of Cheers, and the overall feel of the show is vastly different from that of Frasier. And, although some people gripe about how different Frasier's character is between the two shows, I think that it was addressed throughout Frasier, and the Cheers characters still got along with Frasier for the most part. The storylines in Frasier were also very different (and many ran much longer) from those in Cheers, but both shows' successes certainly define the greatness that Kelsey Grammer embodied.

To end this post, I though I might point out to one of the craziest chains of spin-offs that I've ever come across... Sabrina's Secret Life was a spin-off of Sabrina, the Animated Series, which was a spin-off of the 1996 version of Sabrina, the Teenage Witch which was a spin-off of Sabrina and the Groovie Goolies which was a spin-off of The Archie Comedy Hour which was a sequel to The Archie Show. ...yeah.

Favorite Episodes: Joey

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

I've talked about Joey a few times, most notably when I was discussing short-lived shows. And, as I mentioned then, it wasn't that great of a show. The characters weren't too consistent, the plots were pretty wonky and didn't always make sense, and I wouldn't have kept watching if I hadn't enjoyed Friends so much. Still, I have seen every episode of both seasons, so it makes for a worthy entry in my Favorite Episodes series, which has now spanned almost a year. I think I'm down to the final five or so in this series (which will partially depend upon whether or not I get to finish up Arrested Development when I'm in Florida for Christmas), which I think I've said before, too... haha.

Season 1: "Joey and the Perfect Storm" (S01E05) This is a favorite because both storylines are pretty hilarious. On the one hand, there's an open apartment in Joey & Michael's complex, and they struggle to hide it from Gina, who is just dying to be closer to her little boy. This goes to extremes as an open house is scheduled and stuff. The other plot is about Joey understudying for three different plays at once, and when one calls, he's totally ready to be a different character with different lines, hahahaha. whole episode

Season 2: "Joey and the Stuntman" (S02E04) Joey's filming that movie with the kid now, and he's not doing so well at doing his own stunts, so they bring in a stuntman. Joey's also not that good at following the script, so he gets in trouble with Abby (who is hitting it off with Michael). Joey ends up using his stuntman as a distraction so he can flirt with girls. This is compounded when Alex can't seem to sort out her feelings for Joey. whole episode

Joey

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

From the ten-year classic that drew millions each week to a two-season flop that continually strove to find its audience. Friends without Chandler, Monica, Phoebe, Rachel, and Ross. Just Joey. And not in New York, but Los Angeles. And not with the charm of the original gang.

I watched all of the 46 Joey episodes in just about a week, and my husband and I spent a good deal of time analyzing why the show just didn't make it. It's actually quite amusing, as you can tell what elements were added and removed throughout the series' run in an attempt to draw in more viewers.

Yes, it is a little out-of-character/place for me to cover a show that wasn't very good in my "canceled too soon" series, but I think it will add an additional dimension to the understanding of what makes a show good enough to continue.

Let's start with the characters. The four characters appearing in every episode are Joey, his sister Gina, Gina's son/Joey's roommate Michael, and neighbor/super Alex. It was a good combination... sexual tension between Alex & Joey, familial issues with the triad, and a catty relationship with Gina & Alex.

Joey's agent Bobbie was in 32 episodes... 14 in the first season and 18 in the second, so that was fairly steady. Neighbor Howard was in 7 the first season and 10 the second... not bad. Zach, an acting friend of Joey's, showed up in the first episode of the second season, and stayed until the final 5 episodes of the series... here's where it gets interesting. Zach brought diversity to the show (black and seemingly homeless), while instituting a new friendship/work dynamic for Joey. I'm really lost as to how he became a major character (he participates in the "secret santa" with the regular characters) and how he just disappeared from the show. Next up: Jimmy, Gina's longtime lover, Joey's friend, and Michael's father (which Jimmy doesn't know for quite a while into his appearances). He shows up in Episode 11 of Season 2, and stays until the end, where he marries Gina. Jimmy is clearly added for the humor that he doesn't know he's Michael's father, and so Gina has a more steady person to interact with on the show. Then there are several people with whom Joey has a couple episodes with, including a rival actor at ausitions, a producer, and coworkers on his drama TV show (Deep Powder). They brought in Carmen Electra and Lucy Liu for crying out loud!

Now, a little more on the regular characters... Michael was a much more central character in the first season than in the second... I guess a 20-year-old sheltered child prodigy with issues talking to girls has been overdone, LoL. Gina's job as hairdresser disappeared and she worked for Bobbie in the second season (despite the fact that Joey gave her the money to open her own studio... that was never talked about again...), allowing her to be around Joey without Michael since they had the workplace and the apartment to interact. Lastly, Alex's divorce to an always-absent husband really seemed to rush the romance between Joey and Alex in a way that took Friends several seasons to flesh out.

Plots. What was the point in having Joey look at houses, pick one out, buy it, redecorate it, move his stuff, have a party, and have the place burn down? Well, it brought in a pretty girl as the interior designer, but otherwise it didn't really serve much of a purpose (with the exception of possibly giving Michael more of his own storylines, but after we see him with his friends, that's useless). Having Joey nearly get fired was good, and having him buy a Mack truck was very in-character. Food and women playing a big role in the show was also good, and a second sister and his father coming in at different times worked well. BUT, why no reference to the grandmother that loved everything Joey was in? Why were the sisters played by different people than the original sisters in Friends? Why was there no mention of the Friends gang except for a vague sexual reference to Rachel?? Could they not get Matthew Perry to at least do a "phone" appearance for the show? And since David Schwimmer did direct several episodes, I find it hard to believe that there were no other crossover events or mentions whatsoever. There are a few other strange things that took place that I could go into, but I think you get the point. Absurd things happening, striving to shine the spotlight on "interesting characters," all in vain.

Now, the show ultimately fell because it was moved from Thursdays to Tuesdays, putting it up against American Idol. But it does seem that hope was lost before that, since it was put on hiatus at one point, and they never did air the final eight episodes in the US. I'm actually kinda surprised that it hasn't been bundled with Friends for syndication. It wouldn't be the first time that two spin-off series taking place in different states were bundled together (think The Torkelsons and Almost Home or Good Morning, Miss Bliss and Saved by the Bell!)...

Summer Shows are Coming to a Close!

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Yep, I've changed the dates this post runs. I had to. I was never catching Monk live, LoL.

Friday:
Monk: Monk looks just like a hitman, so when the hitman has an accidental death, he must fill in. He took the role uber-seriously, and that was kinda crazy. Otherwise, it really wasn't that great of an episode. bleh.

The Goode Family: waiting to be picked up again.

Sunday:
The Simpsons: September 27th

Family Guy: September 27th

American Dad: September 27th

Monday:
How I Met Your Mother: September 21st.

Little People, Big World: October?

Lincoln Heights: September 14th.

House, M.D.: September 21st.

Lie to Me: September 21st.

Jon and Kate Plus Eight: loved how much Alexis and Leah talk now! Kate's pink cowgirl outfit was annoying. the dude ranch just wasn't that intriguing, and while I bet it was a great trip for the boys, it wasn't an interesting trip for me.

Table for 12: who knows?

The Secret Life of the American Teenager: George built Ashley a new room. Amy's jealous... anyone not see that coming? I don't like that all of the arcs were about moving... Betty, Adrian, and the Juergens? geez. I'm surprised Tom didn't lobby for his girlfriend to move into their house! Grace's dad has been dead 5 months? I guess it happened in April? I totally thought it was closer to the end of the school year, since people kept telling her she didn't have to go back until the next year... They named the dog "moose" ??? hahaha, "I forgot your mother and I are divorced." What in the hell do you do with a pogo stick besides jump on it?!? Once again, Ricky is a shining star, and had a great moment with Adrian when he wanted to have sex. Ashley's attire in this episode sucks... it's really boring and very I-wanna-be-a-whore, without having the curves to pull it off. Next week is the half-season finale!

Cake Boss: off.

Tuesday:
18 Kids and Counting: Duggars in Washington, DC again. They started with like a minute in the Capitol, then over to the Jefferson Memorial. They saw the Marine 1 helicopter go over, that was neat. They were really noticed there, so they were rushed to move along. Then it was on to feed the needy... but Jim Bob said he didn't have much experience cooking... like he wasn't sure how to do up some chicken, peppers, and onions... Anna kinda headed up the clothing order-filling. That was interesting, since I never knew how this kinda thing worked. Also, an announcement was made that the Duggars bought all the ingredients... but at another point the head chef said that they get so many donations that they're picky about what they use to cook with... that's a strange statement. It was amusing to watch them use the DC Metro system. I'll vouch that it's not the easiest, but I can't imagine the complications of dealing with and holding that many cards!! oh my gosh!! Leave it to Jessa to figure it all out. The Ethiopian place (Dukem) seemed to be a strange experience for ALL the kids... none of them seemed too excited about it.

I'd love an episode where they showcase a few kids (like 4?) at a time, and show pictures of them growing up. Like I wonder how many of the older girls looked like Joy Anna when they were little.

I'm sure that I caught "Duggars on a Deadline" tonight, and it seems for sure the one I saw last time. So now I KNOW I'm missing "Duggars in Dixie" and "Duggars and Bates Reloaded"

Wednesday:
South Park: October 7th.

Glee: September 9th.

Wipeout: loved the first contestant (Andrea) going through the tipsy towers. hahaha. That Brush Rush looks really difficult... like I don't even have a strategy!! Anya was pretty freaking fast! holy mackeral she killed that first course in 2:01!! SuperBoy killed it in 1:45 AND made it all the way through the tipsy towers! what was up with the ninja kid?? Chelsea did the tipsy towers like some sort of giraffe, but it worked! Round 2 was interesting, the wipeouts were funny. I'm glad the final spot went to Volleyball Coach, I liked her. Jeff would've been a good candidate (the screenwriter), but he made dumb mistakes. I had never seen all the participants so close together than the first & second time they were running #3!! geez! Ninjetta was funny on the spinning, but I didn't care for her grunting. No big items in the Wipeout Zone, but I'm glad ninjetta didn't win, haha.

Thursday:
16 and Pregnant: off-season.

We hit Joey really hard and finished up the entire series (2 seasons). It definitely began to decline in the second season, and it also became really easy to see how the network struggled to gain/maintain a fanbase for the show. I'll be featuring it as my next Monday series (shows canceled before their time), which won't publish until the Monday after Labor Day (heading on a mini vacay, you can read about that sometime soon on the other blog).

Top 10 TV Cars

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

There's a bunch of posts going around the internet about the top ten clunkers on television, so since that was taken I figured I'd give a go at the best cars.

10. The General Lee on The Dukes of Hazzard. All kinds of stunts. Lots of speeding. But getting in and out of the car through the windows is a pain, so that's why he's up at 10.
9. The A-Team's GMC van. Famous for busting through to save the day. Bulky, tho.
8. Matt's Camaro on 7th Heaven. The only car on this list I couldn't get a photo of. Annie, Mary, and Lucy fixed it up. Mary and Matt got a flat tire in it. Annie and Matt were held up in it. Theresa stole it. Simon drove it later. That car got a lot of use, and it was a great car to pick up girls in. Somehow, I just can't get a photo of it!

7. Kitt the Trans Am on Knight Rider. Um, it talks. Done deal.
6. Mach 5 on Speed Racer. The first of three animated vehicles to make my list. Definitely a smooth-looking vehicle. Crazy fast. And all the neat tricks it can do are awesome.
5. Mustang on Full House. Danny drove it. Jesse drove it. DJ learned to drive in it. Joey drove it. It's in the opener for years. Stephanie drives it through the kitchen. Danny stands in front of it in some openers. Jesse's all over it in another.
4. Joey's convertible on Joey. Baby blue, top always down. Joey sped through the streets of LA up until he got his cool yellow semi (no photo available). Actually, the episode where he has to deal with the rental car he never returned was also a classic...
4. George Jetson's space car. Um, duh this made the list. How cool must it be to just zip around? Or to have a clear glass bubble for a roof?
2. Homer Simpson's designer car. This was supersweet in the Simpson's Road Rage game, and thus totally deserves a prominent placement here.
1. Steve's Corvette on Beverly Hills, 90210. Famous for the license plate "I8A4RE" among other things, Steve drove this bad boy up and down LA and the surrounding areas for most of the series (until he and Janet needed something more practical for the baby). Actor Ian Ziering loved the car, although he wasn't allowed to drive it long distances after the first three or four seasons (he let the others drive it off-set or something). I'm only sorry I couldn't get a better shot of that forever-present car!

less than a month until real tv starts again!

by Amy K. Bredemeyer

Sunday:
The Simpsons: September 27th

Family Guy: September 27th

American Dad: September 27th

Monday:
How I Met Your Mother: September 21st.

Little People, Big World: October?

Lincoln Heights: September 14th. looking forward to this, and quite glad that it's running opposite dates of Secret Life, since my Mondays are so full as it is!

House, M.D.: September 21st.

Lie to Me: September 21st.

Jon and Kate Plus Eight: no new episode this week.

Table for 12: who knows.

The Secret Life of the American Teenager: Ricky and Adrian doubling with Amy and newboy Mark? AWKWARD. Grace is running and abstinence group? boring. Madison telling Grace to be fun? Out of character, but at least amusing. Madison's fake laugh? even worse. Lauren's parents allow her to wear that much cleavage to school?? I find that ridiculous. And Heather has a crappy attitude. that b!tch. How is Rumer Willis an offspring of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore?? Her face is fugly. Amy's outfits were a bit prudish as well. I don't like Bossy Adrian in bed. Amy's attitude also sucks, especially about her Dad... just because he doesn't live there doesn't mean he's not her father! George's lecture on family was pretty bad though... I definitely wasn't very open to hearing it, and I wasn't even the one being addressed. Griffin has TWO gay older brothers? c'mon now. Amy befriending Heather? A real sign of maturity, but out of character. We'll see more of the adoption process in the future, that's been confirmed... as had the fact that the setting is in California. I'd really like to know if the introduction of the dog was specifically to foreshadow Anne needing emergency help and the dog has to dial the phone. ::eye roll::

Cake Boss: off.

Tuesday:
18 Kids and Counting: so I was able to catch the new episode as well as one of the older episodes that I had missed during my July outings. The new episode was half about the Duggars trip to Amish country, and the other half was the beginning of their DC trip. The Amish part was interesting, and several of the less-outspoken kids got to explain what they learned (like the New Amish use electricity while Old Amish use batteries, etc). It was very brief, but still a nice representation of their trip. I can't believe they drove their bus around DC!! I was just there a month ago, and that place is nuts to drive anything in, let alone a gigantic bus! Good gracious. I can't wait to see the next one! Other thoughts... chronologically, we know that this episode is after the Bates' trip. I'm getting kinda tired of Anna's fake laugh...

I also saw the first episode of the Duggars-help-the-Bates-remodel series. I was astounded that there were 18 kids under 10 there when the Wilsons, Duggars, and Bates were staying at that house. Now I understand why there was so much talk about Tori Bates on the internet... she's really the most disrespectful of all the kids I've seen on this show! (except maybe Cousin Amy...) It's also weird that we see Anna's sister (Suzanna) in this episode, yet we don't hear about how she's staying for the summer until last week's episode (which I caught as a rerun over the weekend but I forgot to take notes so I can't comment on it). I'm still missing Duggers in Dixie, and another of the Bates episodes. Originally I thought I was missing Duggars on a Deadline, but now it might be Duggars and Bates Reloaded... I can't seem to find any defining features on either episode, so if you know of any, please inform me so I try to catch the correct ep!

Wednesday:
South Park: October 7th.

Glee: September 9th.

Wipeout: I loved the whirly big ball action in the first round. I don't understand why one of the contestants just "jumped off" the platform in the second round... unless she had a medical issue that couldn't be ignored for another three minutes, LoL! The pastor was kind of annoying in the third round, and it took a lot of faith in CursingGirl to let him go first on the triangles! There were some really interesting moves in the Wipeout Zone this time, especially since different parts of the course were the ones causing the contestants trouble. I was kinda weirded out when the one guy couldn't get the gauntlet to match up correctly... usually it's pretty straightforward. At least there were no quitters.

Thursday:
16 and Pregnant: off-season.

Friday:
Monk: Monk was more amusing last week, with UFOs and all sorts of people (including Stottlemeyer and Natalie) believing that Monk was from another planet. This week I'm out of town, so I may have to either change the dates of this entry (and run them Fri-Thurs instead of Sun-Sat), or just start planning on posting on Saturdays after I catch the new Monk.

The Goode Family: waiting to be picked up again.

I did catch the finale of Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and it was amusing. The kid going for the million practically the entire hour was kinda annoying. But what was worse: the final question asked about LBJ's beverage favorites... aside from coffee, tea, and Coke, what would he get? apparently it was Fresca, not yoo-hoo or root beer or v8. When Meredith Viera came out as the celebrity contestant of the night, then sprung it on Regis that HE'D be the one playing, he was either truly surprised, or this was one of the very best acting jobs I've ever seen.

My husband and I are also watching Joey in the evenings. We are big Friends fans (he was long before I was), and we were curious as to how the spin-off didn't even last two seasons. We've seen nine episodes now, and they're kinda hit-or-miss. Joey lives in LA with his nephew, Michael. Michael's mother/Joey's sister is over often, and they have a friendly neighbor (Alex) who is also over often. The storylines are generally about Michael being an overprotected genius or Joey trying to get acting gigs. So far the best two episodes were the one where Joey is understudying three shows at once, and the one where they go to Vegas. Crappy episodes include the one with Joey in a book club, and the one where Alex's husband is not jealous of Joey. It's not magical, but it's not bad... I'll continue to report over the next several weeks as we watch all of the episodes.