The S1E1 Podcast

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...

In many ways, "The Big Bang Theory" is what really brought nerd culture to the forefront after it became a fast breakout hit when it first debuted in 2007 A show about two scientist who enjoyed comic books, science fiction, role playing games, and so much more hadn't really gotten much love on prime time television. And certainly not as main characters depicted in such a positive light. The show p...

When it comes to "Rob", Jace Lacob of The Daily Beast described it as CBS's "worst new show" and wrote that it "offers a wafer-thin appreciation and awareness of Mexican culture". Robert Bianco of USA Today wrote  "Some of this barrage of stereotypes might be passable if even one character were intelligently written and skillfully played". So with reviews like that clearly we needed to investigate...

One might wonder how Jim Belushi was originally chosen to be the lead on his own sitcom. But knowing their lineage may help put those pieces together. In 1979 Laraine Newman & John Belushi shared a stage as two of the founding cast members on the comedy staple "Saturday Night Live". 22 years later Laraine's sister Tracy develops a sitcom based around John's brother, Jim. From that, "According To J...

Debuting in first-run syndication on September 7, 1985, "Small Wonder" starred 10-year-old Tiffany Brissette as Vicki, a robot made to look like a girl who lives with her inventor and his family. Yes, you heard that right. And for as wild as a premise like that is, the show was very popular in its 4 season run. With that in mind it only made sense for us to look back at a show as wild in concept a...

"Modern Family" was conceived after show creators, Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan shared stories of their own families with one another. The show revolves around three different types of families (nuclear, blended, and same-sex) living in the Los Angeles area, all of which are connected to one another through blood relatives. The show was an instant hit and remained popular throughout its 11...

In 2001 the now defunct WB premiered the show "Reba", a sitcom staring real life country superstar Reba McEntire. On this show McEntire plays the character Reba Hart, a newly single mother of 3 after her husband left her to be with his dental hygienist. At the same time she also finds out she's about to become a grandmother when her 17 year old daughter announces that she's pregnant. Can this show...

"Homeboys in Outer Space" doesnt even sound like it's a real show. Based on name alone it sounds like a sitcom you'd make up while joking with your friends. But believe it or not in 1996 UPN actually aired this show about two 23rd century guys from the ghetto who decided to live out their dreams traveling through space in a flying low-rider looking ship called the "Space Hoopty". Again, YES this w...

Stand-up comedian George Lopez had long expressed his desire to star in a sitcom where he could play a fictionalized version of himself much like Seinfeld. Additionally, he wanted to create a show that portrayed Latinos in a positive light due to a lack of representation in television. But getting TV deal isn't such an easy task. Eventually, Sandra Bullock of all people had been put on to his come...

Will & Grace was the brainchild of the show's co-creators Max Mutchnick and David Kohan who looked to develop a show around the real-life friendship of Mutchnick and Janet Eisenberg which had been a bond since childhood. The two dated for a while but the romantic chemistry was bever there. Come to find out Max was gay. And after Janet's initial shock from the news the two ended up forming a tight...

After the success of a web series named Italian Spiderman, SBS an Australian broadcaster contacted its creators in regards to adapting it for television. Unfortunately due to licensing issues, such a thing was unable to be made into a reality. Still interested in partnering up, SBS asked Alrugo Entertainment to develop a different show instead. Three different shows were then pitched and the one t...

In the early 90's Andrew Dice Clay was an unstoppable force doing record breaking sold out shows across the country performing stand-up. He was the first comedian to sell out two consecutive nights at Madison Square Garden. At the time it seemed as if no other comedian could ever reach the heights that Dice hit. But by the mid 90's Andrew Dice Clay was starting to feel like Diceman character had "...

Boy Meets World is the coming of age story about a boy named Cory Matthews. A young boy from Philadelphia who has the misfortune of living next door to his teacher. Show creator Michael Jacobs already had a string of success after developing such hit shows as, My Two Dads, Charles In Charge, and Dinosaurs. For his next show he wanted to be able to created a show from the perspective of the middle...

California Dreams is a show The Los Angeles Times called "Nothing more than a Saved by the Bell clone set in an upscale beach town". In reality, the creative team behind California Dreams all came fresh from working on Saved By The Bell. California Dreams was a show intended to be a family sitcom based on the Garrison family, who's two oldest teenage children were in a rock band with their friends...

In the early 90's comedian Martin Lawrence was on the rise, between hosting HBO's "Def Comedy Jam" and movie rolls in "Do The Right Thing" and "House Party". Lawrence decided to strike while the iron was hot and began shopping around a sitcom centered around him that would also feature a slew of characters he would also play in addition to the staring role. Eventually HBO ordered a pilot to be mad...

One year after a deadly virus wipes out the planet and you're the only survivor. How do you pass the time? Do you search for others? In "The Last Man on Earth" these questions are answered when the show's star and creator Will Forte (Saturday Night Live, MacGruber) finds himself alone in Tucson, AZ. Forte developed this show after merging a film idea by the writing team of Phil Lord and Christophe...

This week the S1E1 boys finally step foot into the world of Nickelodeon programing by covering, "Hey Dude". Hey Dude is a comedy series featuring a group of teens who spend their summer working at the Bar None Dude Ranch. This series was the first full-length live action show to join the Nickelodeon's lineup. They also took a unique route by actually shooting on location at a ranch in Tucson, Ariz...

Debuting in 1972, M*A*S*H was a show that was based on a movie... that was based on a novel. Taking place during the Korean War, M*A*S*H takes a comedic approach on covering a day in the life in the 4077th Mobile Army Surgical Hospital. And looking at it now you may think, who would want to watch a comedy covering an actual war? Well apparently in 1972 everyone did because M*A*S*H survived 11 seas...

"WKRP in Cincinnati" was the product of show creator Hugh Wilson wanting to make a sitcom about his experiences working at an Atlanta radio station. This show, which originally aired on CBS features a strong ensemble cast with the likes of Howard Hesseman, Loni Anderson, & Tim Reid just to name a few. Will WKRP's top 40 Rock n' Roll free the S1E1 guy's souls? Find out as they review the 1978 episo...

In the late 80's the world was first introduced to the likes of characters such as Zack Morris, Screech Powers, Lisa Turtle, & Mr. Belding on a little show called... Good Morning Miss Bliss? Well that show only lasted one season before being canceled and retooled becoming what we would later come to know as, Saved By The Bell. In this new incarnation of the classroom based show the focus was taken...

Kim's Convenience is a Canadian sitcom that first aired in 2016. The show, which was based on a 2011 play of the same name depicts the lives of a Korean Canadian family who run a small convenience store. By the show's 3rd season the show had gained distribution outside of just its home country and was now available internationally through Netflix where its full 5 season run is still available for...

Debuting in 1991, Step By Step was very much a modern twist on the Brady Bunch. Once again we find 2 people falling in love and getting married each with 3 kids of their own. Patrick Duffy and Suzanne Somers were strategically cast as the parents on this show, taking two of the most attractive stars of 70's television and pairing them together. Filling out the cast were also a who's who of various...

Trailer Park Boys is the byproduct of a couple independent films written and directed by Mike Clattenburg. In said films we are first introduced to the acting duo of Robb Wells and John Paul Tremblay, who will eventually come to be known as Ricky and Julian. The two portray two ex-convicts living their day to day lives in a trailer park which happens to be filmed documentary style. Also joining th...

The Chicago Tribune listed "Cavemen" as one of the 25 worst TV shows ever, The New York Post declared the show "extinct on arrival", & TV Guide listed it at #22 on their list of 25 Biggest TV Blunders. But in 2004 an advertising campaign for the auto insurance company GEICO featuring Cavemen living among us in modern day took the world by storm. After 3 years of continued success ABC gave a pilot...

In real life Eddie Huang is a chef, a difrector, and an attorney just to name a few things. So as you'd imagine shortly after releasing his autobiography "Fresh Off the Boat: A Memoir", studios were jumping at the opportunity to create a show based on his life. The rights eventually landed in the hands of ABC and 20th Century Fox Television. The show depicts a Young Eddie moving from DC to Orlando...