There are few issues higher in life than an excellent, brief TV comedy.
When the 30-minute comedy is completed nicely, it’s one thing you may revisit over and again and again, discovering new pleasure in acquainted characters and jokes every time.
So that you’ve already watched [deep breath] The Simpsons (Disney Plus), 30 Rock (Hulu), Seinfeld (Netflix), The Workplace (Peacock), Futurama (Hulu), New Lady (Netflix), Martin (HBO Max), Arrested Growth (Netflix), It’s All the time Sunny in Philadelphia (Hulu), Rick and Morty (Hulu), and Journey Time (Hulu and HBO Max). Now what?
We’re right here to assist broaden past these classics, with a choice of traditional sitcoms, fashionable office comedies, mockumentary collection, and far more so that you can take pleasure in at dwelling.
Gamers and American Vandal
Mockuseries maestros Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault helmed this pair of hilarious and surprisingly poignant collection about lovable “assured idiots” and the difficulty they get into. The primary, American Vandal, parodies true-crime documentaries and accommodates two seasons following a pair of scholar journalists investigating adolescent pranks. The second, Gamers, is likely one of the greatest reveals of 2022 and parodies sports activities documentaries in an esports setting.
Yacenda and Perrault’s appreciation for and mastery of the genres and subgenres they mimic elevate what would in any other case be foolish TV comedies into actually glorious tv. The pair have an impeccable eye for element, and the reveals’ manufacturing design and impressed casting of expert under-the-radar actors (and non-actors) immerse viewers in ridiculous worlds stuffed with memorable over-the-top gags. —PV
American Vandal is streaming on Netflix. Gamers is streaming on Paramount Plus.
The Larry Sanders Present
A direct predecessor of 30 Rock, The Larry Sanders Present is a sitcom that follows the employees of a late-night speak present. Garry Shandling performs Larry Sanders, the host of the present, whereas Jeffrey Tambor is his dense sidekick Hank Kingsley. Jeremy Piven, Janeane Garofalo, and Bob Odenkirk make early-career appearances as featured characters, and a number of celebrities visitor star as exaggerated variations of themselves.
For me, although, the true star of The Larry Sanders Present is Rip Torn’s Artie, the present’s producer. No person on Earth can ship a line with acerbic wit the way in which Torn did, and the hijinks of The Larry Sanders Present gave him loads of glorious materials to work with. I miss Rip Torn! —PV
The Larry Sanders Present is streaming on HBO Max.
Mythic Quest
A way more fashionable office comedy from a lot of the It’s All the time Sunny in Philadelphia crew, Mythic Quest is a sitcom set in a online game studio. The studio makes a World of Warcraft-style MMORPG, and is in a tough transition place from startup to established firm. Rob McElhenney is Ian Grimm, the “genius” inventive who constructed the sport however has steadily drifted other than his creation and the individuals who play it. Charlotte Nicdao is lead engineer Poppy Li, who has a better relationship with the sport because it exists now, however struggles to persuade Grimm to alter a few of his outdated methods.
Mythic Quest may be very humorous, however it additionally has a greater understanding of the online game business than most different main productions that contact on this world. There’s a recurring subplot the place your entire workplace tunes right into a preteen’s streams due to how vital and influential his approval is to their total success. However I additionally need to shout out the Oscar-winning F. Murray Abraham, who performs a former celebrated sci-fi novelist who’s now the sport’s lead author — an ideal setup for misunderstandings and clashing views. That’s the stuff sitcoms are fabricated from. —PV
Mythic Quest is streaming on Apple TV Plus.
Detectorists
Detectorists is a warmhearted British comedy about two eccentric oddballs dedicated to their passion of metallic detecting in a small English city. The 2 leads, males going by means of midlife crises, are performed to perfection by showrunner Mackenzie Criminal (the Pirates of the Caribbean films) and character actor extraordinaire Toby Jones. Their chemistry is electrical and retains the present vigorous even throughout quiet moments.
Whereas the present is ostensibly about their ardour for metallic detecting, it paints a wealthy image of a small neighborhood and the issues we do to maintain our lives fulfilling, in addition to the challenges of (and humor in) male bonding. With nice performances by the ensemble forged (together with one of many final performances by the legendary Diana Rigg), it’s a hilarious, candy present that’s nicely price your time. —PV
Detectorists is streaming on Acorn TV, at no cost with a library card on Hoopla, or at no cost with advertisements on Tubi, Pluto TV, and The Roku Channel.
Sports activities Night time
Aaron Sorkin’s first TV present is probably his greatest, a breezy office sitcom a few sports activities information present. His fast-paced, witty writing is a superb match for a nightly information present, the place tensions run excessive, deadlines are immovable, and, after all, folks stroll whereas they speak.
Josh Charles and Peter Krause star because the fictional present’s co-anchors and longtime buddies, loosely primarily based on SportsCenter’s former duo of Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick. They go a good distance towards carrying the present, as plausible buddies/occasional rivals who’re as assured of their opinions as they’re talkative.
Sorkin tried to make this extra grounded than different sitcoms of the period, and lobbied unsuccessfully to get the present to air with no snigger monitor (eagle-eared viewers will discover the snigger monitor will get quieter and quieter because the present progresses). And since that is early on in his profession, a few of Sorkin’s extra aggravating writing tics don’t fairly present up but. —PV
Sports activities Night time is out there for digital buy on Amazon, Google Play, and Vudu.
Social gathering Down
Like a number of the different entries right here, Social gathering Down is a “if you realize you realize” state of affairs. A cult comedy hit that’s continuously flying just under mass enchantment, Social gathering Down is a present that inherently understands that office comedies perform greatest once we’re continuously reminded that work just isn’t essentially a enjoyable place to be, however good co-workers could make all of the distinction. To be clear, this group of cater waiters every making an attempt to make it in Hollywood are usually not essentially good co-workers. However they are a gold mine for dry, acidic comedy with a dream staff of expertise within the forged and crew. And generally that’s the shit that’ll get you thru the work day. —Zosha Millman
Social gathering Down is out there to look at on Hulu and Starz.
Superstore
Within the aftermath of The Workplace there may be, fairly merely, a deluge of office comedies making an attempt to do the identical factor. The very best half about Superstore is that it does the Workplace factor — discovered household with a compelling will-they-won’t-they in the course of all of it — higher than nearly anybody else, just by doing one thing utterly totally different. Superstore heaves the cringe humor in favor of hijinks that refill an in any other case mundane day of menial work (on the titular big-box retailer), and discover what the locale can truly do for comedy. It’s additionally truly humorous, with a powerful ensemble and nice interstitials with the visitors. And should you like your sitcoms with a facet of progressive politics, Superstore has that lined too. Briefly, it’s a one-stop store for all of your half-hour comedy wants. —ZM
Superstore is out there to look at on Hulu and Peacock.
The Tick
All three variations of the satirical superhero comedy The Tick are price watching — the unique animated 1994 model and the 2001 live-action rendition are each an absolute hoot — however I need to speak in regards to the nice 2016 remake. Peter Serafinowicz is pitch excellent because the naive Tick, with a deep booming voice and a childlike sincerity and curiosity in regards to the world, and Griffin Newman’s Arthur brings an actual coronary heart and private wrestle to what’s in any other case an awfully foolish comedy (The Tick pointing at a nasty man and shouting “STOP YOUR EVIL WAYS!” won’t ever not make me snigger).
It’s one of many funniest reveals on TV, however it’s additionally carried deep that means for me within the years since I watched it. Surprisingly usually, when coping with a tricky state of affairs, I hear The Tick’s booming inspirational cry to Arthur: “What are you going to do about it?” –PV
The Tick (2016) is out there to stream on Prime Video. The Tick (1994) is out there to stream on Hulu. The Tick (2001) is out there to stream on Tubi.
Search Social gathering (the primary 4 seasons)
Search Social gathering is numerous issues: a satire about no matter it decides to cowl that week; a whodunit; a coming-of-age story; a dystopic have a look at the introspection of a set of younger white Brooklyn millennials. One factor it hardly ever is is boring, shifting from one style to the following and mixing all of them collectively till it’s give you a completely new world order. I’m personally of the thoughts that the primary 4 seasons are the place it’s at, however should you’re in for a penny you might as nicely make up your personal thoughts. —ZM
Search Social gathering is out there to stream on HBO Max.
Girls5eva
In case you, like so many people, are in search of the following hit of comedic dopamine after ending a 30 Rock rewatch, there isn’t any higher observe up than Girls5Eva, the perfect of the brand new comedies from the Tina Fey/Robert Carlock manufacturing staff. Following a former teen lady group as they attempt to get again within the recreation of their 40s, Girls5Eva has each songs and jokes that may lodge themselves in your mind in methods you’ll by no means be capable to translate to your mates with out getting them to lastly watch the present. It cinched its place in our greatest TV of 2022 listing for a really particular motive, however the reality of the matter is Girls5Eva is simply good TV that everybody deserves to sit down down and snigger with. —ZM
Girls5eva is out there to stream on Peacock.
Completely happy Endings
Whereas there are limits to my love for Completely happy Endings, they’re for essentially the most half confined to sure varieties of 2010s humor which has aged badly. However since that comes with the territory of any 2010s Buddies-esque romp, we are able to largely forgive them and deal with the elements that work about Completely happy Endings: the remainder of it.
As soon as the present settles into itself and jettisons the notion of two leads enjoying out some lesser Ross/Rachel dynamic, Completely happy Endings is ready to absolutely embrace how completely wacky it may be, delivering a number of the quickest slinging, zany gags this facet of community TV. With a 20-minute sitcom like this the forged dynamics have to essentially sing to take all of it the way in which, and the Completely happy Endings group — with their meta winks and eccentricities — are the true deal. It’s the chaotic good of what bizarre isolationist buddy teams must be. —ZM
Completely happy Endings is out there to stream on Hulu and HBO Max.
Taxi
It’s astonishing how fashionable Taxi nonetheless feels over 40 years later. The Emmy-winning 1978 sitcom about Taxi drivers in New York Metropolis has a dirty stylistic aptitude that, regardless of its multi-camera setup, nonetheless makes it really feel of a chunk with current-day single digicam sitcoms. At this time, the present is notable for its wildly stacked forged, which incorporates Danny DeVito, Andy Kaufman, Carol Kane, and Tony Danza, however the comedy holds up in material as nicely, with a Norman Lear-esque deal with getting large laughs whereas additionally taking swings at large points. Like numerous the perfect TV, watching Taxi feels such as you’re seeing somebody get away with one thing that in any other case wouldn’t be there if extra folks in cost had been paying consideration. Happily, you can listen, and have a rattling good time doing so. —Joshua Rivera
Taxi is out there to stream on Paramount Plus and at no cost with advertisements on Pluto TV.
Glow
Although extra of a dramedy than a lot of the different entries on this listing, Netflix’s Glow has persistently good comedy and much more constant character work. The ensemble forged behind the making of a girls’s wrestling present is an absolute enjoyment of each method, and the humorous however fraught social dynamics of the group are fixed fodder for each good stakes and fast wit. It’ll eternally be a tragedy that we didn’t get extra of this present (and that the third season left us on an uneven, incomplete be aware) however Glow’s gentle burns on. —ZM
Glow is out there to look at on Netflix.
Chewing Gum
Michaela Coel is an absolute powerhouse, with a thorny opus (I Might Destroy You) already on her resume and an look on this fall’s Black Panther: Wakanda Endlessly on deck. However should you haven’t checked out her first TV present — which she created, wrote, composed for, and starred in — you then’re lacking one of many true jewels of her crown. Humorous and empathetic in equal measure, Chewing Gum makes a full meal out of Tracey Gordon’s (Coel) journey of sexual discovery after being raised in a strictly spiritual family.
It’s express with out being provocative, permitting Tracey’s pure curiosity (and Coel’s professional comedic timing) to pave the way in which for a collection of misadventures we are able to all be taught from. —ZM
Chewing Gum is out there to look at on HBO Max.
Fawlty Towers
Forgive us should you’re studying this listing and end up pondering, “Of course Fawlty Towers, I believed this listing was alleged to be for issues I wouldn’t anticipate.” However Fawlty Towers earns its place on this listing as among the finest of the perfect, the classics who’ve completed it higher than nearly anybody else and stand the take a look at of time. And (in true British vogue) at simply 12 episodes, it’s usually a touchstone folks haven’t seen.
The premise is straightforward: Tense, overworked resort proprietor Basil Fawlty (John Cleese) and his spouse, Sybil (Prunella Scales), try to hold the titular resort operating by means of a collection of eccentric visitors and farcical escapades. Whereas the present wasn’t met with a lot acclaim when it first premiered, we are able to now acknowledge absolutely the enjoyment of each episode’s mounting slapstick, with every plot winding itself round and round till lastly the fuse hits the gunpowder. It’s straight comedy gold, and so it makes the listing in each sense of the phrase. —ZM
Fawlty Towers is out there to stream on Britbox or for digital buy on Apple TV, Amazon, Google Play, and Vudu.
Fleabag
Fleabag unflinchingly dives into the messy lifetime of a girl who can not cease self-sabotaging. Led by Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Fleabag isn’t the primary present to make use of the entire “character breaking the fourth wall and speaking to the viewers” schtick, however it used it to unbelievable — and devastating — impact. The primary season is brilliantly sharp and humorous, however the second season takes all these quippy rambles and hilarious eventualities and turns them into an achingly stunning and bittersweet love story — and it’s wonderful how that’s all completed in 12 half-hour episodes. —Petrana Radulovic
Fleabag is out there to stream on Prime Video.
Neighborhood
Neighborhood follows an unlikely group of scholars at a neighborhood faculty who band collectively in a examine group. It’s the kind of present that’s made by its colourful, eclectic characters — performed by some stellar actors — who would in any other case by no means work together, and a number of the greatest episodes are simply them bickering round a examine desk. After all, a number of the different greatest episodes contain school-wide paintball fights, spoofs on beloved film and tv genres, and the more and more elaborate and chaotic schemes of the college’s dean. —PR
Neighborhood is out there to stream on Netflix, Prime Video, and Hulu.
Phineas and Ferb
Every episode of Phineas and Ferb is simply over 10 minutes lengthy, and but every episode is so tightly plotted, filled with intricate storylines that weave into one another. The episodes all comprise some certainties: Phineas and Ferb will at all times construct a zany contraption; their sister Candace will at all times attempt to bust them; their pet platypus, who’s secretly a spy, will at all times attempt to foil the schemes of evil scientist Physician Doofenshmirtz. However these ensures merely make up the springboard that the present can use to launch itself in utterly wild and wacky instructions. It’s the proper fast burst of laughter on a cloudy day. —PR
Phineas and Ferb is out there to stream on Disney Plus.