[astrohip]

Home Economics, a new sitcom from ABC, premiered tonight, April 7, 2021. From wiki:

Inspired by the life of co-creator Michael Colton, Home Economics takes a look at the heartwarming yet super-uncomfortable and sometimes frustrating relationship among three adult siblings: one in the 1 percent, one middle-class and one barely holding on.

I thought it was okay. Sitcoms take time, and this one didn't suck out of the gate. I'll give it a couple more. Topher Grace is the biggest name.

Home Economics (TV series) - Wikipedia

 

[jlb]

We watched last night and LOLed enough times that we are sticking with it.

 

[lambertman]

I went in with super low expectations but ended up liking it a lot more than what currently passes as "American Housewife". It had some clever writing.

Denise and Marina are going to be two lynchpin characters for keeping the sibs from spinning out of control and taking the show with them.

 

[mlsnyc]

I missed recording the first episode but caught it on Hulu. I liked it; season pass set. Hopefully it lasts more than a season, but this may be the latest in a long line of ABC 1/2-hour comedies I like that didn't go the long haul.

 

[mattack]

The first ep seemed really "PC". Mr. Mayor is another new show that in some ways seems PC, but shows the mayor joking about it or being exasperated by it.

 

[Steveknj]

I thought it was decent, not great, but with potential. A bit cliche in some respects, especially "modern" cliche (or as @mattack said, PC). The average guy is a writer who I guess had some success but the last book tanked?. How about rather than get your brother to loan you money, get a, um, job? Only on TV does this happen. And the rich brother seems to be kinda dumb (which makes you wonder how he became a rich self starter in the first place) and kind of jerk, also a TV trope for rich people. And of course the "poor" one is a flake (and being it's 2021, is a lesbian, because every show has to have an LGBTQ character, or an interracial marriage). But I did laugh and the dialog seems fairly realistic.

 

[Tony_T]

I think that the interaction with the siblings will work, and maybe with the spouses, but with (I lost count of how many) kids, the cast is just too large.

And yes, PC, even the little girls dolls have “pronouns” (I’m not joking, that was a line in ep1)

 

[mlsnyc]

While you're certainly entitled to your opinion and your own reactions to what you watched...

The average guy is a writer who I guess had some success but the last book tanked?. How about rather than get your brother to loan you money, get a, um, job? Only on TV does this happen.

As mentioned in the OP and articles about the show, it's inspired by one of the co-creator's life. So not exactly a "this would only happen in TV" situation. And I think it is very realistic that a creative person will be wary of taking a 9-5 job that will likely derail their ability to fully pursue their true passion. If a sibling you're not estranged from is able to help, what's wrong with asking for it?

And the rich brother seems to be kinda dumb (which makes you wonder how he became a rich self starter in the first place) and kind of jerk, also a TV trope for rich people.

I saw his portrayal as more of a "bro" type of guy than as someone who was dumb. In the Monopoly scene, it was clearly portrayed that he has sharp business instincts combined with ruthlessness that makes it believable he's capable of making $5 million in a year.

And of course the "poor" one is a flake (and being it's 2021, is a lesbian, because every show has to have an LGBTQ character, or an interracial marriage).

She is, I believe, a child psychologist for at-risk children. Which is why she's "poor". And I didn't see the flakiness you saw, or not to the extent that you saw.

Again, you're free to like it or not. But the reasons you gave seem more about pre-conceived notions you have about this kind of show and the type of characters in it, rather than what was in the actual show itself.

 

[Steveknj]

While you're certainly entitled to your opinion and your own reactions to what you watched...

As mentioned in the OP and articles about the show, it's inspired by one of the co-creator's life. So not exactly a "this would only happen in TV" situation. And I think it is very realistic that a creative person will be wary of taking a 9-5 job that will likely derail their ability to fully pursue their true passion. If a sibling you're not estranged from is able to help, what's wrong with asking for it?

Perhaps, but he's a married guy with kids, any normal person's first thought would be to get a job. I admit, I'm not a "creative" person, but I also like to eat and feed my family. But on TV, that stuff happens a lot. Maybe, that's not how it goes in real life?

I saw his portrayal as more of a "bro" type of guy than as someone who was dumb. In the Monopoly scene, it was clearly portrayed that he has sharp business instincts combined with ruthlessness that makes it believable he's capable of making $5 million in a year.

Again, maybe, but again, he doesn't come off as that bright to me. You are correct, it's my opinion.

She is, I believe, a child psychologist for at-risk children. Which is why she's "poor". And I didn't see the flakiness you saw, or not to the extent that you saw.

Again, you're free to like it or not. But the reasons you gave seem more about pre-conceived notions you have about this kind of show and the type of characters in it, rather than what was in the actual show itself.

Yep, my opinion but she does seem flaky to me. She seems "typical" for that type of TV trope. Of course every character has there own little personality traits. And it's just the pilot so the characters are not developed yet. That's just my observation from ONE episode.

 

[TonyD79]

I think the term “cliche” is being confused with PC. There really is nothing PC about a writer who has writers block. Or a bit of a lunk being a brilliant businessman. The only thing close to PC is that one character is a lesbian. And that is pretty much so common on TV that it is now a cliche.

It’s a sitcom. Sitcom characters at least start out as caricatures so their unique traits are accented. It is how human the writers and actors make them within those caricatures that makes a show work or not. For a pilot, it worked. Let’s see where it goes.

 

[Steveknj]

I think the term "cliche" is being confused with PC. There really is nothing PC about a writer who has writers block. Or a bit of a lunk being a brilliant businessman. The only thing close to PC is that one character is a lesbian. And that is pretty much so common on TV that it is now a cliche.

It's a sitcom. Sitcom characters at least start out as caricatures so their unique traits are accented. It is how human the writers and actors make them within those caricatures that makes a show work or not. For a pilot, it worked. Let's see where it goes.

Agree. And as I said, that was my first impression, that they felt like generic 2020s type sitcom characters. And hopefully they develop into something more interesting. An example of this is the Chuck Lorre sitcom B Positive. I had a similar vibe about it when I watched the pilot. Nebbishy main character and flighty blonde just seemed like something we've seen a million times. But as we got to know the characters of the show, they developed into something more and the show is better and more fun. I think this show could be the same. And if a show makes me laugh, it doesn't matter if the characters are cliche or not really.

 

[DevdogAZ]

Perhaps, but he's a married guy with kids, any normal person's first thought would be to get a job. I admit, I'm not a "creative" person, but I also like to eat and feed my family. But on TV, that stuff happens a lot. Maybe, that's not how it goes in real life?

His "job" is writing books. He's had some success at it in the past so he's not a hopeless dreamer. He's in the process of writing his next one. If he takes a traditional 9-5, then it makes it much less likely he'll actually finish the book he's working on.

Again, maybe, but again, he doesn't come off as that bright to me. You are correct, it's my opinion.

I think that's just the actor, Jimmy Tatro. He was great in the Netflix show about the penis graffiti, but also had that somewhat lunkhead delivery and persona. They could have cast someone who portrayed a typical Type-A finance-bro suit, but I think the fact that they cast Tatro shows that they want that character to be more than just a cliche Wall Streeter. The fact that he was very quick to offer help to his siblings and a little hurt that they were embarrassed to ask him is where I think the casting of Tatro was excellent.

 

[Beryl]

I also had low expectations and was pleasantly surprised. I chuckled watching the kiddie EV race and did a double-take when the rich brother spoke with his deep voice. Great cast.

 

[TonyD79]

I also had low expectations and was pleasantly surprised.

Exactly.

 

[dwells]

This one is a rare comedy keeper for us. Like almost everything about it- hopefully it will have ratings success.....

 

[Family]

I don't understand why cliche/PC criticism when discussing a network comedy needs to be mentioned any longer, unless the PC is beyond obnoxious. Nearly all network comedies are going to be, unless the show is coming in with a large base like Young Sheldon.

The Nets are broadcasters, not narrowcasters. They are trying to bring in a wide range of the population, not target specific groups. If you don't want PC, network comedy is not for you.

PS keeping season pass for now.

 

[Tony_T]

I’m a Mac.

 

[mattack]

And I think it is very realistic that a creative person will be wary of taking a 9-5 job that will likely derail their ability to fully pursue their true passion.

Yes I did see your mention of it being based on a real situation. But this specific quoted area, you see plenty of "creative" people doing a day job and spending the rest of their time doing whatever their "passion" is. (Heck, you see the same thing for tech people too.. Mark Cuban talks about the various things he did for free or low paid work while he was starting.. Adam Carolla talks about so much stuff he did for free while he was trying to get into the biz)

 

[mattack]

I don't understand why cliche/PC criticism when discussing a network comedy needs to be mentioned any longer, unless the PC is beyond obnoxious. Nearly all network comedies are going to be, unless the show is coming in with a large base like Young Sheldon.

The Nets are broadcasters, not narrowcasters. They are trying to bring in a wide range of the population, not target specific groups. If you don't want PC, network comedy is not for you.

For me, your two sentences seem to contradict each other. Well, I thought it came close to "obnoxious", and some of the specifics were mentioned by others in this thread..

and especially BEING broadasters, that seems to me like it is liable to put off a large proportion of viewers.

 

[mattack]

I think the term "cliche" is being confused with PC.

No, I think you're misunderstanding what is being called PC. Unfortunately, this would probably be called political if I brought it up, but as mentioned, several other things (which I admit I guess are ALSO cliches) happened in that single episode.