NewsRadio is the Coolest Show

[Adamantium]

It's been my favorite show for years now. However, this week I've been watching all the episodes in order on DVD. I'm up to season four now (getting ready for "Who's the Boss? - Part 1) and I can't help but say how cool this show is.

Once Phil Hartman described this show as "Too Hip for the Room." And I have to agree with that.

The one flaw in the show is that the writers didn't know how to write for Catherine. They made her being black the basis for most of her lines. And even though I like Catherine, now that I'm in the post Catherine era, I don't really miss her.

And Bill having a butler? Too awesome!

This show being so cool, funny and wonderful has spoiled me from ever liking many other "sitcoms" out there that are not one-tenth as funny as the great NewsRadio.

[robyrob]

i always loved the show, but i wouldn't say that it prevents me from liking other sitcoms.


Adam, have you ever seen Dave Foley on Kids in the Hall? its a sketch comedy series, but it is a lot crazier than most.

[whipwarrior]

I'm with Adam. Since I first began watching NewsRadio in 1997, every other "sitcom" has paled miserably by comparison. Nowadays, the only TV shows that I enjoy are Saturday Night Live, and Family Guy. Everything else simply tries too hard to be funny, by no fault of their own.

Let's face the facts: Paul Simms and his team of writers and ensemble actors essentially captured lightning in a bottle with the creation of NewsRadio. Each episode is a relentless blaze of high comedy, vivid characterization, and uproariously funny dialogue, with knee-slapping visual humor that makes it eminently rewatcheable.

I cannot name one single contemporary television show that hits the mark as consistently (and with such comedic brilliance) as NewsRadio.

[Chocoholic]

I totally agree with you guys. IMHO, NewsRadio, as well as Wings, is one of the most unappreciated shows from the 1990's. It's a shame neither show ever got the attention and respect they deserved. Both had clever writing with interesting, likable characters. I'll watch those two shows over some of the megahits like Friends, Everybody Loves Raymond, and The Office any day.

[TVFactFan]

It's been my favorite show for years now. However, this week I've been watching all the episodes in order on DVD. I'm up to season four now (getting ready for "Who's the Boss? - Part 1) and I can't help but say how cool this show is.

Once Phil Hartman described this show as "Too Hip for the Room." And I have to agree with that.

The one flaw in the show is that the writers didn't know how to write for Catherine. They made her being black the basis for most of her lines. And even though I like Catherine, now that I'm in the post Catherine era, I don't really miss her.

And Bill having a butler? Too awesome!

This show being so cool, funny and wonderful has spoiled me from ever liking many other "sitcoms" out there that are not one-tenth as funny as the great NewsRadio.


It's a shame N@N didn't give me the opportunity to see if I would feel the same after puting the show on at 5am and then yanking it

[whipwarrior]

I love Wings, too! Tony Shaloub was hilarious! :)

[Adamantium]

i always loved the show, but i wouldn't say that it prevents me from liking other sitcoms.


Adam, have you ever seen Dave Foley on Kids in the Hall? its a sketch comedy series, but it is a lot crazier than most.

I've seen bits and pieces of it years ago. My sister actually owns the complete series, so if I ever wanted to really get into it, I could just borrow her DVDs.

My sister also started watching NewsRadio back when it first debuted. Because she was a fan of "The Kids in the Hall", "Saturday Night Live" and "The Ben Stiller Show." So a show with Dave Foley, Phil Hartman and Andy Dick (actors from each of those shows) was an exciting thing for her, lol.

And NewsRadio doesn't "Prevent" me either. I just meant it like Whipwarrior said it. All other shows pale in comparison (for me). But I still enjoy lots of sitcoms. I'm also a "Wings" fan, "Andy Richter Controls the Universe" fan, "Taxi" fan, so on.

[robyrob]

I've seen bits and pieces of it years ago. My sister actually owns the complete series, so if I ever wanted to really get into it, I could just borrow her DVDs.

My sister also started watching NewsRadio back when it first debuted. Because she was a fan of "The Kids in the Hall", "Saturday Night Live" and "The Ben Stiller Show." So a show with Dave Foley, Phil Hartman and Andy Dick (actors from each of those shows) was an exciting thing for her, lol.

And NewsRadio doesn't "Prevent" me either. I just meant it like Whipwarrior said it. All other shows pale in comparison (for me). But I still enjoy lots of sitcoms. I'm also a "Wings" fan, "Andy Richter Controls the Universe" fan, "Taxi" fan, so on.
when I first heard about Newsradio I was definitely looking forward to its premiere because I was such a big fan of Dave Foley and Phil Hartman.

[Chocoholic]

I love Wings, too! Tony Shaloub was hilarious! :)

Yeah, he'll always be Antonio to me. I never had any interest in watching Monk.

I loved Kids in the Hall too. Haven't seen it in years though.

[whipwarrior]

Tony's most hilarious bit was the way he did that dumbstruck laugh the very first time he met Casey (Amy Yasbeck). I was in tears!:lol:

[Chocoholic]

Why don't you come post over at the Wings board? Even Antonio got a little more action ;)

[Adamantium]

Okay, I watched all 97 episodes in order (the order I prefer which differs a little from both production and broadcast order). Anyways, here's the things I noticed...

It was the season three premiere, "President" when Joe first mentions aliens. For the remainder of seasons three, four and five, Joe is all into aliens, positive that they're among us. That, to me is the turning point in Joe's character. He became one of my favorites because of it.

Season three is also when Joe, all of a sudden, has a thing for Catherine.

Season three is also when Matthew begins hero worshipping Bill. He first admits it in "Led Zeppelin Boxed Set", though it was evident in the earlier episode "Massage Chair."

When I finished the final episode, I went right back to the pilot - just to compare the changes. It's funny to see Dave in the opening scene. A big smile on his face, boasting about being the new News Director for WNYX and by the end of the show, he's miserable.

During the fifth season, there are moments where you just know Bill would have said something. But due to his absence, his lines were either given to another cast member, or a void was just left there. I remember a line that Lisa said, that I know Bill would have said if he was there.

Also during the fifth season, I missed Walt a little. Mostly when Lisa was with Johnny or when the staff thought that Dave and Lisa were sleeping together again because they kept fighting. I'd think about Walt and his crush on Lisa, and what he would think of what's going on.

Another observation... Beth. Early on, she was a normal person who just acted weird to be funny. That was her thing. But as the show went on, she seemed to really become zany, and weird. As if she wasn't acting. I noticed this turning point in the fifth season.

[whipwarrior]

When I finished the final episode, I went right back to the pilot - just to compare the changes. It's funny to see Dave in the opening scene. A big smile on his face, boasting about being the new News Director for WNYX and by the end of the show, he's miserable.
Dave's character arc reminds me of Herbert Lom's Commissioner Dreyfus in the Pink Panther films. He starts out relatively normal, and then becomes increasingly more insane as the series progresses.

Also, if you're interested in the Walt/Lisa/Dave love triangle, I wrote a very funny NewsRadio fic entitled Achilles' Last Stand (http://newsradiofanfic.angelfire.com/Dale4.html) (named in the grand tradition of Led Zeppelin song titles).

Finally, the reason that I'm not on the Wings message board is because I was only a casual viewer of that show, whereas I know NewsRadio forward and backward, inside-out. I'm just more comfortable in my element.

[masterdkd]

Newsradio is a great show. The first 4 seasons I mean. The fifth season was really awful. The writing was atrocious and wasn't even funny at all and boring and it turned out to be like any other boring sitcoms. Few of the episodes, the chemistry between characters didn't make any sense at all. It was stupid and boring. Also, fifth season disrespected the loyal fan(s) to a certain degree, character(s), and the late actor/character. I don't blame the actor(s) for Season 5 atrocity. They did everything they could with the crap they were given. So, I don't recognize the fifth season at all or care about it.

This is not the only show that I liked. There are other shows that I enjoyed too. Married with Children, Simpsons (the 1st 10 seasons), Three's Company, Night Court.