Tween sitcoms: Destined to become classic TV?
Remember The Brady Bunch? Gilligan’s Island? The Jeffersons? Happy Days?
If you’re of a certain age, you can sing the theme songs to these old TV shows and recall your favorite episodes. Remember when Marcia got braces?
You don’t find many sitcoms on TV these days. That is, unless you have a tween who likes to watch Nickelodeon and the Disney channel. I recently heard a report on NPR that said a number of the writers from the old TV sitcoms are working on tween shows like Drake and Josh, iCarly and the Suite Life of Zack and Cody. While adult TV viewing is divided among dozens of cable channels, kids TV is much more of a communal event. Nickelodeon sitcom writer Dan Schneider says he expects today’s kids will sit around reminiscing about their favorite tween shows the way grown-ups used to talk about Seinfeld and Friends.
I know that today, my kids and their friends talk about the latest antics of Sam and Carly.
What do you think of these tween shows? Are they destined to be comedic classics?
Photo: scene from iCarly courtesy of PRNewsFoto/Nickelodeon
Baltimoresun.com's 
Comments
I think Dan Schneider is correct. The shows that he puts our are definitely going to be talked about for years to come. They're funny, real and original. You don't get much of that in these days of "Reality TV"
Posted by: Tricia | June 2, 2009 7:11 AM
I love iCarly and watch it with my daughter frequently. The character of Spencer is terrific and the guy who plays him (Jerry Trainor) is a great comedic actor.
Posted by: Nicole | June 2, 2009 11:07 AM
I think Tricia has a great point. With all the reality TV, there are so few sitcoms anyway, and even fewer ones kids can enjoy. And yes, I watch all of them, too, with my kids. I just hope Miranda Cosgrove transitions from tween star to young adult with more grace than some other actresses we've watched.
Posted by: Cheryl from Maryland Family | June 3, 2009 7:48 AM
Have to agree, nickolodeon and disney are making the best family-friendly sitcoms these days.
Posted by: jerry h | June 5, 2009 12:27 PM