Is it possible to be beloved AND underrated? A lot of people don't remember this series but the ones that do always seem to think of it highly. And that's well deserved. While not as high brow or prestigious, for my money it's just as funny as Seinfeld or The Office. And although not as awarded it's funnier than something like Everybody Loves Raymond or Friends. That's simply one guy's opinion but let me explain why.
Aside from just being laugh out loud funny and at times ridiculous(in an good, entertaining way), the household dynamic of the Taylor family rings more true than almost any other sitcom family I've ever seen. Jill gets to have her own life. You see her applying for jobs and pursuing a fulfilling career. But you also see her doing mom stuff like ironing and the parents do mundane things like schedule picking the kids up from activities. It's clear they put a lot of thought into accurately representing a real family and I feel it pays off in spades. On the technical side of the production, I'll mention that the lighting in the yard scenes is beautiful in those early evening "golden hour" scenes. They've won Emmys for that. Well deserved.
I walk away from this series with 2 gripes. The biggest being that when the kids got older and got their own storylines I felt the comedy suffered a bit. But I can see how writers would sort of be backed into a corner with something like that. So I'd say this show is a 10 for the first 3-4 seasons and I'll knock one star off for the latter half of its run. I'm also a bit amazed that Patricia Richardson never won an Emmy for playing Jill. She's insanely funny, a great representation of a mother and wife, and knocks it out of the park when she needs to be dramatic.
All in all, I think any sitcom fan who hunts this show down and gives it a chance will come away glad that they did. Enjoy!
Aside from just being laugh out loud funny and at times ridiculous(in an good, entertaining way), the household dynamic of the Taylor family rings more true than almost any other sitcom family I've ever seen. Jill gets to have her own life. You see her applying for jobs and pursuing a fulfilling career. But you also see her doing mom stuff like ironing and the parents do mundane things like schedule picking the kids up from activities. It's clear they put a lot of thought into accurately representing a real family and I feel it pays off in spades. On the technical side of the production, I'll mention that the lighting in the yard scenes is beautiful in those early evening "golden hour" scenes. They've won Emmys for that. Well deserved.
I walk away from this series with 2 gripes. The biggest being that when the kids got older and got their own storylines I felt the comedy suffered a bit. But I can see how writers would sort of be backed into a corner with something like that. So I'd say this show is a 10 for the first 3-4 seasons and I'll knock one star off for the latter half of its run. I'm also a bit amazed that Patricia Richardson never won an Emmy for playing Jill. She's insanely funny, a great representation of a mother and wife, and knocks it out of the park when she needs to be dramatic.
All in all, I think any sitcom fan who hunts this show down and gives it a chance will come away glad that they did. Enjoy!