The most popular early TV sitcoms were I Love Lucy and The Honeymooners, both of which went on to mold the genre in their respective images. Over the last 50 years, sitcoms have grown and evolved into a wide range of programs, but the only radical difference between current shows and their predecessors is the absence of a laugh track.
Sitcoms have, in essence, maintained their roots. While many incredible sitcoms are still favorites, even some great series aren't nearly as spectacular or relevant as they were at the height of their popularity. Complicating the problem, several once-beloved sitcoms have aged poorly and are now considered problematic.
Updated on September 19, 2023, by Andrea Sandoval: While sitcoms often manage to become some of the most iconic series of a particular time, frequently, they also garner a lot of controversy around them. We updated this article to include more examples of sitcoms that stood the test of time and sitcoms that people don't find as interesting now.
Sitcoms That Don't Hold Up
The Big Bang Theory
The Big Bang Theory was a widely popular sitcom throughout the 2000s and 2010s. The show brought an interesting dynamic between the four nerds of the show and their neighbor, Penny. The Big Bang Theory even managed to bring geeky culture to the forefront, and it had a big influence on people's current love for popular media.
However, The Big Bang Theory has been criticized for its misogynistic jokes and inaccurate and offensive portrayal of mental illness, especially when it comes to Sheldon. The good thing is that Young Sheldon, the spin-off that follows Sheldon as a kid, has corrected most of these initial mistakes.
2 Broke Girls
2 Broke Girls focused on the friendship between Max (Kat Dennings) and Caroline (Beth Bers), two women working at a Brooklyn diner. Max and Caroline were very different, particularly since Caroline had been raised by wealthy parents, which often meant she lacked street smarts and common sense.
While 2 Broke Girls had everything to be an amazing show, especially taking into account the great chemistry between the main characters, the show ultimately fell flat. People especially dislike the fact that 2 Broke Girls mostly delivers sexual and insensitive jokes.
Three's Company
Three's Company, starring Jon Ritter, Joyce DeWitt, and Suzanne Somers, ran from 1977 to 1984. This sitcom was considered a major milestone and was one of the most popular TV shows of its time. Unfortunately, there are way too many problematic elements in Three's Company.
Three's Company relied on sexist and homophobic tropes, with its basic premise revolving around a man pretending to be gay for "comedy" reasons. Three's Company featured very little racial diversity, which was par for the course during the 1980s. Coupled with its misogynistic jokes, people don't find this show as funny anymore.
Family Matters
Family Matters was one of the first Black sitcoms to earn widespread acclaim and develop a comprehensive fandom. Viewers still remember enjoying the show's funnier bits, especially nerdy neighbor Steve Urkel and his iconic catchphrase: "Did I do that?"
On the other hand, fans argue that Family Matters lost sight of its goal by handing over its narrative to Urkel, shoving other characters out of the spotlight. Family Matters also perpetuated deeply questionable stereotypes about African American suburban culture and wrapped these problems inside a series of fantastical storylines as a kind of camouflage.
Full House
Full House is an excellent example of an '80s sitcom. However, it became less watchable as the decades went by, eventually reaching its current status as nostalgic fluff. The concept of three men raising children was somewhat radical at the time, but Full House's sense of humor hasn't aged well.
That's not all, though. Full House was marinated in so much childish sweetness that today it leaves viewers longing for real conflict. The show's sequel, Fuller House, replicates its corniness with an unfortunate degree of accuracy.
Two And A Half Men
Two and a Half Men is a massively successful show, revitalizing Charlie Sheen's career until his character was bluntly expunged after Season 8. With that said critical appreciation for the series fluctuated wildly over its twelve-season run, with an article in The Australian calling it a "sometimes creepy, misogynistic comedy."
Two and a Half Men failed to expand on the originality of its premise, evolving into a sitcom that people might watch when they don't really need to pay attention to their screens. However, the show relied on misogynistic jokes and many people don't find it as interesting today.
Friends
Friends is the sitcom that defined the '90s, but it's aged poorly. The jokes are still funny, but it doesn't treat many of its side characters well, and it's especially hard on the LGBTQ+ community.
Friends turned everything into a punchline, from Chandler's transgender dad to Ross' toxic masculinity, diluting the seriousness of certain topics with humor. Friends has also been criticized for its entirely white cast. On the other hand, the show's impact on contemporary sitcoms cannot be underestimated.
Modern Family
Modern Family's mockumentary format was a breath of fresh air for its first few seasons, exploring the nuances surrounding kinship in the 21st century. The three families at its heart have their strong points and their drawbacks, with their circumstantial ups and downs mixed into Modern Family's whimsical banter with needle-like precision.
Modern Family's hilarious quotes, relatable familial dynamics, and blended family made fans fall in love. Unfortunately, several relationships in the show are now seen as problematic. Modern Family dragged its storyline a bit beyond the point of no return, ending its run with a fraction of the flair it started with.
How I Met Your Mother
How I Met Your Mother started strong, but viewers soon pointed out that the series was only trying to recapture Friends' vibe by presenting viewers with a group of six friends in New York. As the seasons wore on, fans stuck around even as their interest waned.
How I Met Your Mother was riddled with character and narrative inconsistencies. The show's eighth and ninth seasons were especially wobbly, and the series finale was widely criticized for its 180-degree turn in the final reveal. In January 2022, How I Met Your Father was released. The sequel series received mixed reviews but was ultimately canceled.
New Girl
New Girl followed the eccentric and quirky Jess Day, who moved in with three strangers after her boyfriend cheated on her. Throughout the show's seven seasons, viewers saw Jess, Nick, Winston, Schmidt and Cece grow closer, grow apart, and trample each other in their comedic stampedes.
Despite its great first impression, New Girl's sense of humor isn't as liked today. Some problematic elements include Nick's intimate relationships with much younger women, Schmidt's possessiveness, Cece telling people to ignore consent, and a host of controversial jokes about Schmidt's Jewish faith and Winston's race.
Married...With Children
Married...With Children was funny during an era where audiences actually enjoyed watching dysfunctional families, especially those that made very few attempts to better themselves. Although the show was praised for its brash comedic style, certain concepts eventually lent themselves to controversy.
Protagonist Al Bundy, played by Ed O'Neill, was known for his rampant fatphobia, especially when it came to female characters. In fact, many women in Married...With Children were thoroughly objectified and mistreated. This sitcom may have been funny in the 1980s, but 21st-century viewers want nothing to do with Al's problematic perspectives.
Coupling
Coupling contains countless moments of brilliance, some of the finest examples of British humor out there. Many fans regard it as the perfect blend between Sex & the City and Friends, a combination that highlights this iconic sitcom's unique charm. Unfortunately, there are simply far too many issues that cannot be ignored anymore.
When actor Richard Coyle chose to exit the show after Season 3, the writers decided to bring his character back as a woman. In a dream sequence, Steve learns that Jeff apparently transitioned and moved to the island of Lesbos to find a woman willing to date him. Transphobia has never been funny, and it completely ruins the vibe Coupling was trying to build.
Sitcoms That Still Hold Up
The Nanny
A classic sitcom from the 90s, The Nanny follows Fran Fine as she arrives at the Sheffield home to sell makeup and ends up being the unlikely Nanny of the Sheffield children. Unlike other family-oriented sitcoms, The Nanny features relatable and sarcastic yet wholesome humor that makes it a timeless show.
What's more, Fran Fine's iconic outfits have gone in history as some of the most brilliant fashion portrayals on television. Fran's amazing aesthetic and the show's campy and hilarious situations make The Nanny one of the best sitcoms in history.
The Good Place
The Good Place is one of the most beloved recent sitcoms. The show revolves around Eleanor Shellstrop, a woman who ends up in "the good place" despite being selfish and reckless when she was alive. Soon, she makes an alliance with intelligent and goody-two-shows Chidi Anagonye, who tries to teach her Philosophy to make her a better person.
The Good Place arrived to completely transform the sitcom genre into a more dynamic, plot-infused, and thought-provoking format. While incredibly funny, The Good Place also focuses on great character development and creates an engaging and thrilling storyline (characteristics that sitcoms often lack).
Community
The robust comedy in Dan Harmon's Community is not only timeless; it's also shaped the academic understanding of TV as an art form. Community is filled with references and meta-references, a smorgasbord of absurdism that still packs a solid punch.
All six seasons of Community were critically acclaimed, and the series was such a hit with its fans that they're still hoping for more seasons. Community was praised throughout its run for being inventive and hilarious. It's irreplaceable, and the vacuum left behind by Community's conclusion will never be filled.
The Office
The Office is a hilarious commentary on office work, warping employees' humdrum lives into a tornado of satirical genius. The show was also cast to perfection. Performances from Steve Carell, Mindy Kaling, John Krasinski, Ellie Kemper, and Rainn Wilson helped The Office become an integral milestone in the sitcom genre.
Although it's a remake of Ricky Gervais' British series by the same name, The Office established an independent territory for itself. From Michael Scott's eccentric behavior to Jim Halpert's hilarious pranks, The Office eventually earned a place in the annals of television history.
Frasier
Frasier won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series from 1994 to 1998, competing against shows like Friends and Mad About You for the prestigious award. All things considered, the show has aged remarkably well compared to other '90s sitcoms.
Frasier spun-off from Cheers, but it eclipsed its predecessor in every imaginable way, from fan following to critical praise. Frasier retained its freshness for eleven seasons, long past the age of standard sitcoms, and the stage is set for its reboot series. In October 2022, the Frasier revival on Paramount+ was confirmed, with 10 episodes in the works.
Seinfeld
Seinfeld is arguably the most important sitcom ever made, although several other shows are also in contention. This meta-comedy "about nothing" holds true to its premise, while simultaneously crafting dozens of inconceivable situations for Elaine, George, Jerry, and Kramer to sharpen their fangs on.
Seinfeld doesn't do anything complex or unrealistic, and therein lies the show's ineffable charm. The subplots follow the four protagonists' daily lives through dates, work, family relationships, and hobbies, but somehow weave these humdrum affairs into a truly surreal tapestry. Seinfeld's had a big influence on media even if the show itself is somehow forgotten.
Malcolm In The Middle
Despite its title, Malcolm in the Middle doesn't revolve solely around its protagonist, Malcolm Wilkerson. The boy's incandescent genius doesn't make life better for him, but eventually helps him understand what his mother has been trying to teach him. Every character in this sitcom can be described as iconic, from Reese's inspired bullying style to Dewey's musical brilliance.
Bryan Cranston, later known as Walter White in Breaking Bad, received universal praise for his performance as Hal, the bumbling family patriarch. In simple terms, Malcolm in the Middle is a subconscious lesson in socialism. The sheer strength of character exhibited by the Wilkerson family is a testament to their stubbornness as well as their integrity.
Will & Grace
Will & Grace is pathbreaking, not only for its inimitable comedy but also for normalizing LGBTQ+ characters as sitcom leads without pigeonholing them into caricatures. The show is notable for winning an Emmy Award for each of its four main cast members, an achievement shared only by The Golden Girls, All in the Family, and Schitt's Creek.
Will & Grace exerted immense cultural power over its audience, prompting then-vice-president Joe Biden to state that it "did more to educate the American public than almost anything anybody has ever done so far." Will & Grace was revived in 2017 after an eleven-year break, finishing its story with three more brilliant seasons.
30 Rock
30 Rock is irrefutably one of the most important sitcoms ever created. It's a genre-defining and cliche-defying pastiche of parodic playfulness. Originating from Tina Fey's real-life role as SNL's head writer, the series satirized everything about television production with surreal humor reminiscent of a darker version of The Mary Tyler Moore Show.
30 Rock has often been compared with Seinfeld and I Love Lucy, two illustrious shows in their own right. This series is, by every definition of the word, a masterpiece. 30 Rock ended its run after seven scintillating seasons, each as spectacular as the rest.
Schitt's Creek
The successful Canadian sitcom Schitt's Creek followed the formerly wealthy Rose family as they settled into Schitt's Creek, the small town Johnny Rose had bought for his son as a joke. Each member of the Rose family starts out spoiled and entitled but the series never rests on its laurels. Instead of giving fans an unchanging fish-out-of-water comedy, the Roses evolved and changed their town with them.
There is nothing more heartwarming than seeing Schitt's Creek's flashbacks of previous, lavish, empty family Christmases and juxtaposing them with the Rose family coming together in their motel room, happily spending the evening together. Schitt's Creek boasts wholesome characters, positive LGBTQ+ representation, and themes of self-improvement but it's never self-serious. It's as funny as any sitcom, before or since.
I Love Lucy
The modern sitcom would not exist without I Love Lucy. Even if the genre existed, it would be completely different than what audiences have grown to love. The sparkling chemistry between actors Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz was arguably inspired by their real-life marriage.
As such, Lucy and Ricky Ricardo have become one of the most legendary television couples of all time. I Love Lucy didn't reinvent anything because the sitcom itself hadn't been invented yet. On the contrary, the series established frameworks and benchmarks that were later adapted, revised, and modified by its successors. Technological creativity aside, I Love Lucy has somehow managed to stay (somewhat) fresh for over seventy years.
Trailer Park Boys
Sitcom fans who haven't heard of Trailer Park Boys should check out this fantastic Canadian enterprise without delay. Despite its relative anonymity, this mockumentary-style show is nothing less than a prize jewel of the sitcom genre. Trailer Park Boys follows the adventures of three men and their attempts to make a better life for themselves, all while wading through layers and layers of social hierarchy.
Describing the show's sense of humor is futile — viewers have to watch it to understand its admittedly bizarre yet profound narrative. Interestingly, Ricky and Lucy's relationship in Trailer Park Boys might be an allusion to the same-named characters in I Love Lucy. That said, Trailer Park Boys is nothing like I Love Lucy, showing just how much the sitcom has evolved since the 1950s.