Welcome to a new Sitcom Tuesday and more of our second annual RERUN series, designed to give yours truly a chance to get further ahead in coverage of our last few ’90s comedies. Regular programming will resume soon, but in the meantime, I’m excited to resurrect and re-examine some of my favorite Sitcom posts from this blog’s nearly six year run!
As with last year’s series (begun here), my intention is to provide a link to each original piece and then offer a tiny bit of updated commentary, either on episode picks I’d call differently now (like in my famous “Regrets” post) or on something broader, like evolving thoughts on the year/series as a whole. I’ve picked a few goodies, so I hope you’re as excited as I am about revisiting our favorites… But please be gentle! Many of the posts you’ll see were written a while ago. The standards here have changed as I’ve changed. (There are plenty of typos, juvenile “hot takes,” and places where more information would now be appreciated.)
This week, I’m rerunning… The Five Best DREAM ON Episodes of Season One. Check it out here: https://jacksonupperco.com/2017/06/20/the-five-best-dream-on-episodes-of-season-one/
Every show I cover here sharpens my commentary skills and makes my pool of insight richer for the next series. However, there are a few shows that, in the grand scheme, I think I could have skipped and not missed very much. One of these is Dream On (1990-1996, HBO)… Now, don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the show and am grateful that this blog gave me the opportunity to watch and discuss the entire run, but it didn’t really do what I had hoped — it didn’t legitimately benefit my coverage of either The Larry Sanders Show, HBO’s next (and better) sitcom, or Friends, also from Kauffman & Crane. Additionally, I look back and I don’t see any classic episodes that resemble the best of its era. That is, there are indeed great episodes, based on the context of the series and its own set standards, but when I’ve attempted to make a list of my favorite sitcom episodes we’ve covered here from the period, it’s harder to find episodes of Dream On that compete with the likes of its contemporaries’ highlighted gems. So, while I don’t regret the opportunity — and, once more, I do indeed enjoy the show — I regret that six weeks were spent on a series that didn’t produce any entries that, again, “in the grand scheme,” are absolutely stellar… Nevertheless, it’s a unique effort that’s always fun to watch… and was even more fun to discuss. So, check out the post above again (for the first season), and feel free to share your thoughts on the series and its trajectory in the comments below!
Come back next week for another Sitcom Tuesday! And stay tuned tomorrow for a new Wildcard Wednesday!