Seriously, it’s like every sitcom creator thought “parents living with adult children!” at the same time.

 Not quite the end of the sitcom crop, but it's not far off.  I think these are the last two of the "parents living with adult children" variety.  I'm not sure why that concept hit the zeitgeist so powerfully this year, but whatever the reason, it's infused what feels like a majority of the new comedies in a variety of forms. "Mom," "Dads," and "The Millers" are certainly the purest of the form. "Welcome to the Family" isn't far off...

 

Welcome to the Family (NBC, new.  Single-camera sitcom.)

Watched: Pilot

Premise: Unexpected pregnancy leads teens to abandon their college-bound plans in favor of marriage, creating culture shock as their racially- and socially-different families have to merge.

Promise: I was pleased to see Mike O’Malley and Mary McCormack, each of whom I’ve enjoyed on other shows (their roles here aren’t terribly different from those in Glee and In Plain Sight, respectively).  But the show itself is a mixed bag.  It’s got some cute touches, as the show sets up expectations for the characters and then leads the characters to defy them in various ways.  That made for an amusingly unpredictable pilot, but as the families merge, I think the humor is likely to become predictable pretty quickly.  Much of it is driven by the antagonism between the two fathers, which can’t sustain itself for long without becoming tired, and the naivety of the teens, which could easily become depressing.  It walks the line of racial stereotyping—mostly drawing humor from the ways it subverts stereotypes, which is a step up from a lot of the stuff out there, but still not super-great.  Plus, from my perspective, the characters are a bit hard to identify with, but of course mileage may vary on that point.

Verdict: Occasionally amusing, but nothing special.

The Millers (CBS, new.  Multi-camera sitcom.)

Watched: Pilot

Premise: Divorced mother moves in with her adult son while her ex-husband moves in with their adult daughter.

Promise:  It’s a great cast:  Margo Martindale is a genius, and Will Arnett, Beau Bridges, and Jayma Mays are no slouches.  But the talent is wasted.  The jokes are so stale they hurt.  Old men can’t figure out remote controls!  Mothers are controlling!  Parents having sex is icky!  Old people fart!  Sigh.

Verdict:  The sooner the show ends, the sooner these talented actors can get new jobs.

On the DVR: The Blacklist, Marvel's Agents of SHIELD, Lucky 7 (canceled), Masters of Sex, Betrayal, Hello Ladies, Ironside, Super Fun Night, The Originals, The Tomorrow People.  So:  more reviews coming soon!