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TV Spin-offs
The good, the bad and the what were they thinking?
By Kati Johnston
Special to MSN Entertainment
It's human nature to want to let the good times roll as long as they possibly can -- and in the networks' case, to milk a concept within an inch of its life. Thus was born the TV spin-off, which takes a character or a concept from a successful show and lets it fly like a baby bird all on its own. Some have been great -- sometimes better than the shows from which they spun. Some have been clunkers. And some have been so wildly off-the-mark that you have to wonder what the network execs were thinking (and possibly smoking). Here's our list of favorite high- and lowlight TV spin-offs:
The Good
"Rhoda" (1974)/"Lou Grant" (1977): The wildly popular "Mary Tyler Moore Show" (1970) spun off both of these successful and appealing series, each with its own very different tone. "Rhoda" kept "MTM's" single-gal-struggling sitcom concept going, with great writing and a strong cast. "Lou Grant" became a serious drama -- not without a fair amount of humor -- about the Los Angeles newspaper biz and the issues it tackled, both inside and outside the newsroom. (Even "MTM" had her clunker spin-off, though; remember "Phyllis"? Cloris Leachman is a great character actress, but her whiny Phyllis was best as a punch line, not a lead character.)
"Frasier" (1993): This spin-off from the '80s phenomenon "Cheers" (1982) relocated stuffy shrink Frasier Crane to Seattle and proceeded to outdo its original show, with top-notch writing, snappy dialogue and great cast chemistry. The occasional guest visit from "Cheers" stars Ted Danson, Shelley Long and most memorably Bebe Neuwirth as Lilith kept the connection, but it always was Frasier's show.
"Star Trek: The Next Generation" (1987): Among the gajillions of spin-offs from the original '60s "Star Trek," "The Next Generation" was distinguished by a great cast led by Patrick Stewart. The dialogue was still inane ("Make it so," already), but Stewart's presence cast a gravitas most welcome amid the crew's adventures.
"Melrose Place" (1992): This randy spawn of "Beverly Hills, 90210" (1990) got America re-addicted to nighttime soaps.
(Remember Rolling Stone's classic graphic showing who'd slept with whom on the show, with the characters connected by little dotted lines made out of ... sperm cells?) Where "90210" was earnest, "Melrose" was nasty and unpredictable -- just the little pick-me-up that viewers needed. And Amanda? One of TV's best villains ever. (We don't lament the loss of "Models, Inc.," however; those producers seemed to think a lot of pretty faces would make up for poor plot and dialogue.)
"Laverne & Shirley" (1976)/"Mork & Mindy" (1978): "Happy Days" (1974), one of the most successful American sitcoms ever, procreated like there was no tomorrow. Two great shows, "Laverne & Shirley" and "Mork & Mindy," were born and showcased the comedic talents of Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams in the former, while the latter launched the bottle rocket known as Robin Williams. Sadly, some of "Happy Days'" kids were not so "Happy"; see below.
"Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" (1999): Before Dick Wolf abandoned the use of all birth control, his hit "Law & Order" (1990) seemed prime to become a franchise, and he chose well when he launched "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." The cast, featuring Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni, gelled in a way that only a few seasons of the original "L&O" did. It remains crisp, compelling and cutting edge. If only its siblings had fared so well; more below.
"Angel" (1999): We still miss "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (1997) and Sarah Michelle Gellar and her gang of evil-fighters at Sunnydale High. But the spin-off "Angel" was surprisingly strong -- with a much darker feel and fresh plotlines. (The phone calls to Buffy weren't the same as having a guest appearance by Gellar, though some of "Buffy's" best cast members, such as James Marsters as Spike and Charisma Carpenter as Cordelia, joined the "Angel" cast.)
"Maude" (1972)/"The Jeffersons" (1975): Norman Lear's groundbreaking "All in the Family" (1971) pushed television into edgy new frontiers, tackling racism, class issues, women's equality and a host of other topical notions, through the lens of the unapologetic Archie Bunker. As the original waned, spin-offs were inevitable, and two great ones -- "Maude," which showcased the indomitable Bea Arthur, and "The Jeffersons," starring comic geniuses Sherman Hemsley and Isabel Sanford -- were as addictive as the original. Because these were so stellar, we'll forgive the misfires of "Archie Bunker's Place" (1979) and (gulp) "Gloria" (1982) -- aaah, that voice!
"The Muppet Show" (1976): Kids' shows have had spin-offs, too. "Sesame Street" (1969), still going strong after decades, introduced America to Jim Henson's marvelous Muppets, who then went on to star in their own "The Muppet Show" and have guest gigs on "Saturday Night Live" and fabulous movie careers. Their secret: never writing or talking down to kids while slipping in a few jokes that grown-ups loved. Remember Cookie Monster as Alistair Cookie, host of "Monsterpiece Theatre"?
"The Simpsons" (1989): A lot of folks forget "The Simpsons" started as an occasional short feature on "The Tracey Ullman Show" (1987), but whoever decided to give Springfield's finest their own half-hour show was brilliant. The show is still a bright light in Fox's lineup, and a recent study showed that more American kids were familiar with "The Simpsons" than the U.S. Constitution. We the People have spoken ... d'oh!
The Bad
"Joanie Loves Chachi" (1982): Even the "Happy Days" creators had their misfires: The well-intentioned but pretty stinky "Joanie Loves Chachi" was probably doomed from the get-go (though trivia buffs will enjoy knowing that the pilot episode was a big hit in Korea, where "chachi" means penis). Stars Erin Moran and Scott Baio were appealing enough but couldn't sustain the flimsy premise. And don't even get us started on the animated series "Fonz and the Happy Days Gang" (1980). Heyyy!
"Star Trek: Everything Else": Can we just stop boldly going, already? "TNG" was strong; everything else -- "Deep Space Nine" (1993), "Voyager" (1995), ad nauseum -- has been obtuse, diluted or just plain dull. Let Gene Roddenberry and his vision rest in peace -- so that the rest of us can.
"Law & Order: Criminal Intent" (2001): How far can Wolf take his police procedurals? "L&O: Criminal Intent" has its moments, but now the cast has doubled and is just plain confusing; "Trial by Jury" (2005) died while incarcerated (who cares about the sleazy perps and the people who defend them?); and brace yourself for the most recent spin-off, "Conviction," which revolves around -- wait for it -- hot young assistant district attorneys. Enough already! And honestly, we secretly believe Wolf is somehow responsible for all the "CSI"s and "NCIS"s too.
"Tabitha" (1977): "Bewitched" (1964), the sweet and frothy '60s sitcom about a suburban witch and her clueless husband, clicked because of the guileless performance of Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha. But once it ran its course, creators tried to build a show around the charisma-free daughter character, "Tabitha." She was cute in her crib moving her nose back and forth with her pudgy baby finger -- but that's a 10-second gag, not a 30-minute one.
"Knots Landing" (1979): What police procedurals are today, nighttime soaps were to the early '80s, so you probably couldn't blame the creators of the great guilty pleasure "Dallas" (1978) for trying to spin off another show. But "Knots Landing" never delivered like "Dallas," lacking a great villain like J.R. Ewing, and its setting in a generic California cul-de-sac coated the drama in blandness from which it never escaped. (Though we liked that one gal whose name we always thought was Valvoline.)
"Dr. Phil" (2002): Everything Oprah Winfrey touches turns to gold, but that doesn't mean it's all golden. Dr. Phil is great in small doses (or at least palatable) but just can't sustain his own show, "Dr. Phil," much less his own cult of personality, try as he might. Y'all, sometimes that dog just won't hunt.
What Were They Thinking?
"Joey" (2004): We've said it before: NBC squandered its best opportunity of the 2004 season, taking the most likable and interesting character from the juggernaut "Friends," Matt LeBlanc's Joey Tribbiani, by transplanting him, in "Joey," to California (did he move to Knots Landing?), and surrounding him with annoying sidekicks and generic gags.
"The Ropers" (1979)/"Three's a Crowd" (1984): Sometimes bad spin-offs are easy to predict. When you start with a show such as "Three's Company" (1977), based completely on sexy double entendres about two women rooming with a guy and a lot of jiggling and elbow-nudging, you might not have enough to work with. The original show was appealing because of the stars' chemistry, especially that of Suzanne Somers and John Ritter. But take away Somers and you've got ... "Three's a Crowd" (shudder) and even more icky, "The Ropers." Honestly, Somers' subsequent infomercials for the ThighMaster made for better TV.
"Diagnosis Murder" (1993): Was there any reason for "Jake and the Fatman" (1987) in the first place? So what are we to make of its spin-off, "Diagnosis Murder," which was essentially "Murder, She Wrote" in a hospital? Precious years of prime time, all wasted.
"Baywatch Nights" (1995): Let's get this straight: The appeal of "Baywatch" (1990), as we all know, was to watch gorgeous lifeguards jogging in their bathing suits along the sands in the warm California sun. So the point of "Baywatch Nights" was to ... what? Show what the kids did when the sun went down? It had something to do with an agency and solving stuff, but other than launching the career of Angie Harmon, this spin-off deserved its untimely death.
"Petticoat Junction" (1963)/"Green Acres" (1965): How low (brow) can you go? Some folks loved "The Beverly Hillbillies" (1962) and its fish-out-of-Dogpatch premise; others couldn't make it through one episode. But the appetite for hick comedies was high in the '60s, and the show actually spun off two -- successful! -- shows, "Petticoat Junction" (the point of which seemed to be imagining the girls of Hooterville -- get it? -- bathing in that water reservoir; hey, people drink that stuff!) and "Green Acres," the best actor of which was, hooves down, Arnold the pig.
Kati Johnston is a freelance writer who specializes in entertainment. Send e-mail to Kati at Kati.Johnston@comcast.net
Red heads ROCK. Blondes do not rock. Nuff said.
