New Episodes of The Bill Engvall Show and My Boys Premiere Tomorrow (A Spectrum of Reviews)

The wonderful folks at TBS sent me several DVDs worth of preview shows along with a comfy pair of pajamas (my first pajamagram!) I am glad to announce that one of these shows, The Bill Engvall Show, premieres new episodes tomorrow night.

Truthfully it has been awhile since I’ve watched an “old-fashioned” style sitcom with the laugh track . Those types of show were the staples of my viewing back when I was younger. The Bill Engvall Show is an updated version of these shows I used to watch religiously.

It was fun to watch the sitcom family in action: patient wife, goofy husband, the three kids with the requisite know-it-all, dunce and beauty, plus an annoying-with-a-soft-spot neighbor, naturally. Of course they have a family dog - who ends up being the subject of one of the episodes I previewed. The jokes were sometimes predictable, as is the formula for such shows, but I found myself chuckling along nonetheless. The plot lines are definitely lighter and more entertaining in a “kick-back-after-a-long-day” sort of way than some of the heavier “drama-dy type” shows I typically watch.

It is definitely refreshing to be able to watch a show where it isn’t necessary to know a ton of “backstory” or panic if one happens to miss an episode. Each episode is a story in itself, just like it “used to be” and yet somewhat of a novel concept these days in the world of reality television (you must know that Bobby kissed Suzy or you won’t understand why Bobby’s usually perky girlfriend is now staring daggers at our dear S) and complex puzzles about disappearing magical healing islands.

The Bill Engvall Show is funny and current but also clean. It isn’t laced with profanity, difficult concepts, or mature content. It is definitely a family-oriented show, one that can be entertaining but perhaps also a springboard for discussion. (Don’t try all those schemes those crafty sitcom kids often do!) Of course, I only see that potential now that I am a parent – when I was a child watching these half-hour comedies I saw them as pure fiction, and yet I acknowledge that my perceptions about various issues were shaped by some of the reactions and themes I had seen on television.

I suppose to prove I’m still not grown up, I found myself empathizing with the kids pretty frequently, although I couldn’t help seeing things from the parental perspective as well.

TBS sponsored two special events for bloggers: a telephone conversation with mom-on-the-show Nancy Travis (which I had to miss because of the crazy end-of-school stuff) and a "mommy blogger brunch" in NYC with Bill Engvall and Tim Meadows (the video below).