Sitcoms have stayed a staple of our television and pop culture consumption. Each decade of TV and family brought forward various stories with comedic scenarios aplenty and made the viewers fall in love with the characters and the world itself. As we huddle over the new TV set equivalents, the streaming channels, we are exposed to shows our network deemed appropriate or suitable for us and went in search of our favourite shows.
With all this global TV at our fingertips, we’re exposed to cultures beyond our everyday scope. When the internet and globalisation made this phenomenon mainstream consumer media, there was content that tried to be inclusive but relied on stereotypes and goofs to make the situations comedic.
The 2010s brought about more representation, more stories and more platforms for us to watch, thus creating a demand for diversity in writing and heart-warming stories that go above and beyond to explore and entertain.
Below are some of the best sitcoms from the past couple of decades that are pioneers, great stories and wholesome but hilarious shows that you’ll want for your next cozy night in
Schitt’s Creek
This Canadian story is one of the best queer representation to have been written on global TV and leaves you obsessed with The Roses. This affluent but distant family comes together in misery quite literally, by no space apart. While the first season was still finding its’ comedic timing, from season 2 on is smooth sailing for viewers to laugh at the family’s hijinks up Schitt’s Creek and fall in love with the town.
The town existed in a sort of utopia where homophobia does not exist, steering clear of the tragic queer character trope very often seen, quite deliberately according to the showrunner and actor, Dan Levy. The completed show is available on Netflix and is almost sure to make its way into your heart with its ensemble cast, universality and recurring theme of camaraderie and love.
Modern Family
An iconic in sitcom history, this long-run show pioneered storytelling beyond the American suburbia and ironically is set precisely there. The show is a complex weaving of a family constantly in each others’ lives, and fights like most of us do.
The show was very carefully inoffensive, especially for the tie period it began in, but never let go of its comedy gold. The show ran for 11 seasons and had its’ highs and lows, but it always had created a sense of comfort for the audience. The award-laden show did not shy away from the bad parts of the pie(so to speak) and instead showed it with sensitivity and care. It has queer representation, POC representation and does not rely on making stereotypes the punchlines, but did use them as undercuts every so often.
The Good Place
The Good Place is a great one of a kind show, giving you a found family story with a side of existential dilemma and moral philosophy. This show is the sitcom’s answer to the age-old question: “What happens when we die”.
The show has the protagonists come together in a bizarre series of events and show their growth exponentially with literal out-of-world adventures. The show is excellent with depicting characters of colour, queer orientation, neurodiverse and never makes fun of the things that make them different but instead laughs with us at the characters existential problems.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine
An important subgenre of sitcoms is workplace comedies… with stalwarts like 30 rock, Parks and Recreation and the Office, but Brooklyn Nine Nine took over the torch and did so very gracefully. The show is set in a Brooklyn Police Precinct and has beautiful queer, POC characters and is brilliant at showing intersectionality. The show has SNL alums and a great collection of stellar actors who bring the found family trope to life, with being exceptional friends beyond the show.
The show centres around a group of colleagues who become a family, learning to love and accept one another, warts and all. This thread of love runs strong through the hijinks, Jimmy Jabs, Halloween Heists and gut-wrenchingly sad moments. The NBC show is available on Netflix and proves to be a steady hit.
Please Like Me
The Australian show, while not strictly a sitcom, is very cheeky and emotionally vulnerable. The show wades through the protagonist’s complicated life with grace and lot’s of light. The show has stunning depictions of queer culture, growing pains of young adults and dealing with grief. The story does not follow the typical laughter patterns of laughing at hijinks or at the characters but is very wink wink about its’ great sense of humour.
The pilot sets the scene where the protagonist realises he’s gay and his mother attempting suicide via overdose. The critically acclaimed show, written by brilliant comedian, Josh Thomas, is charming, funny and has lots of grit and heart.
