They say that you should never judge a book by its cover — the same goes for TV shows and titles. In a media landscape with endless options, a series needs to be able to stand out in order to keep the audience from changing the channel or scrolling onto the next thumbnail. Sometimes, a perfectly good television show is saddled with a terrible or misleading name. If a terrible title gives a person the ick right away, it unfortunately doesn’t matter how good the writing or performances are.
Depending on their ad budget, a regrettable moniker could pop up on billboards, commercials, and websites around the globe. However, when viewers give a questionably-titled series a chance, they might find that they’re actually watching a hidden gem. In an effort to get more eyes on some shows that didn’t necessarily get a fair shake during their original runs, here are five sitcoms that are way better than their misleading titles would indicate.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
The CW’s “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” is an excellent musical comedy with hilarious original songs, a diverse ensemble cast of phenomenal performers, and a nuanced look at modern mental health. With that being said, you would never get any of that from the title. The series — co-created, written, directed by, and starring Rachel Bloom — follows Rebecca Bunch, a New York City lawyer who moves to West Covina, California on a whim to reconnect with her ex-boyfriend from summer camp, Josh. Based on this synopsis and the word “crazy” in the title, one might presume that this show perpetuates the historically negative stereotypes surrounding women, dating, and mental illness. However, it’s quite the opposite.
Keeping things upbeat with amazing musical numbers such as “The Math of Love Triangles” (an ode to vintage Hollywood movie musicals) and “Let’s Have Intercourse” (a ridiculous Ed Sheeran-esque ballad), Rebecca’s story explored sexuality, the positive impact of therapy in someone’s life, and the complexities of relationships (romantic, platonic, professional, or otherwise) over the course of four incredible seasons. In a world that is post-“High School Musical” and “Glee,” “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” is the logical next step for fans of quirky, meta comedy and musical theater. At the same time, it’s a great example of how comedy holds a mirror up to society and shows us exactly who we are. And though the fandom isn’t as big as the network’s corner of the DC Extended Universe or “Supernatural,” this award-winning seroes is one of the best CW shows of all time.
Cougar Town
There was a point in the 2000s when the word “cougar” became more prominent than ever. The word was just everywhere thanks to reality TV and celebrity gossip at the time. Unless you were a fan of the “Real Housewives” franchise or similar shows, you likely got sick of hearing “cougar” all the time. So, when “Cougar Town” premiered on ABC in the fall of 2009, there was a good chance you probably didn’t tune into the new sitcom starring Courteney Cox.
With the benefit of hindsight, however, we as a society have learned to give shows created by Bill Lawrence a chance before judging it too hastily. Before “Cougar Town,” he gave us top notch work on “Spin City” and “Scrubs.” Afterwards, he would go on to create modern classic sitcoms “Ted Lasso” and “Shrinking” on Apple TV. And, honestly, more people should be talking about “Bad Monkey” starring Vince Vaughn.
Beyond that, “Cougar Town” isn’t even about older women dating younger men. While that may be an element of the show early on, it’s more about the double standard of growing older for women versus men. The themes and characters on the show are incredibly relatable and highly entertaining. In addition to Cox leading another stellar cast in a show about growing up (just like “Friends”), Christa Miller and Busy Philipps shine as as Jules Cobb’s friends, Ellie and Laurie.
Don’t Trust The B in Apartment 23
When it comes to a sitcom that will likely be displayed on every surface available to the Walt Disney Company, maybe you shouldn’t put the word “b*tch” in the title. But for the people who didn’t tune into “Don’t Trust The B” In Apartment 23,” they missed out on a wild ride.
Created by Nahnatchka Khan (who would later develop “Fresh Off The Boat” and “Young Rock”), the ABC sitcom starred future Marvel Cinematic Universe superhero Krysten Ritter as Chloe, an adventurous, chaotic, and wildly irresponsible party girl who ends up forming an unlikely friendship with the bright-eyed and bushy-tailed Midwestern roommate she intended to scam for rent. Over the course of the series’ two-season run, Dreama Walker’s June Colburn gets swept up in Chloe’s outrageous antics while hilarity often ensues as each layer of a scheme unravels.
One of the biggest highlights of the show is the late James Van Der Beek playing a fictionalized version of himself. In an effort to revitalize his acting career after “Dawson’s Creek,” Van Der Beek turns to some insane gigs that result in many hysterical bits. He becomes the spokesperson for a Vietnamese energy drink called Surge Machine and recites some nonsensical taglines in the commercial. He also launches super skinny jeans called Beek Jeans, which unlocks a treasure trove of jokes.
Happy Endings
“Happy Endings” isn’t an inherently bad title for a sitcom. In this show, a group of friends are searching for their personal, professional, and romantic happy endings in Chicago. It’s the perfect series for fans of “Friends,” “How I Met Your Mother,” or “New Girl” looking for more 20 or 30-something tomfoolery. And with Damon Wayans Jr., Eliza Coupe, Adam Pally, Elisha Cuthbert, Casey Wilson, and Zachary Knighton as the leads, there were several prime comedy moments in every episode.
However, when promos put the cast in robes as if they’ve just gotten out of a spa, or include the tagline, “Was it good for you?”, things start to feel questionable. Spinning the name of this sitcom into a dirty joke probably doesn’t endear the show to the more conservative members of the audience or advertisers. Despite the innuendo, “Happy Endings” still managed to deliver three seasons on ABC, a “lost episode” script reading that took place at Entertainment Weekly’s EW PopFest in October 2016, and a special pandemic reunion episode to benefit charity. Simply put, the show is “ah-MAH-zing.”
Selfie
Considering four out of the five shows on this list aired on ABC, you’d think the network would have learned their lesson about naming sitcoms. Perhaps predictably, they repeated their mistakes once again with “Selfie.” Even though almost everyone takes selfies, some people projected shallowness and vapidness onto anyone or anything heavily involved with social media at the same. And this bias blinded audiences to the fact that “Selfie” – a story inspired by the Greek myth “Pygmalion,” 1912 play by George Bernard Shaw of the same name, and 1956 musical “My Fair Lady” — was actually really good.
The sitcom starring John Cho and Karen Gillan wasn’t perfect by any means. The pilot was poorly received, which likely attributed to a lack of returning viewers and a mid-season cancellation/relegation to streaming after Episode 7. But, as the season progressed, episodes started to improve. Eliza Dooley (Gillan) slowly started to realize (with the help of her co-worker, Cho’s Henry Higgs), that virtual relationships were not a substitute for real life companionship.
Unfortunately, the uptick in quality and unmistakable chemistry between Cho and Gillan wasn’t enough to keep the series alive. The passionate international audience tried to stay vocal and express their desires to ABC and Warner Bros. Television, but their pleas for another season or a revival movie to get closure fell on deaf ears. Now, the show isn’t even streaming anywhere in its entirety for folks to rediscover by chance.
