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I grew up upper-lower-middle class in a dying manufacturing town near Chicago so the The Simpsons, Married with Children, Roseanne always felt like home. I can

I grew up upper-lower-middle class in a dying manufacturing town near Chicago so the The Simpsons, Married with Children, Roseanne always felt like home. I can't agree with the article tho. I still see that same grasping in current shows like Better Call Saul, Shameless (which, aside from Season 2, is fantastic), and, in a different way, The Big Bang Theory and Silicon Valley. Most comedies are just joke delivery mediums with paper thin walls. But nothing has changed, shows have always been a reflection of their creators/runners and the networks fund people who've had hits.. Family Guy was a hit on DVD/[adult swim]? Ok! Order two more joke delivery vehicles from Seth MacFarlane! James L. Brooks had a string of hits with a strong emotional core. So after he helped get The Simpsons on the air it made sense that he essentially forced the 20-something writers to build the show around an emotional/sentimental core instead of letting it to devolve into a gag factory out of the gate.

pessimizer 10y ago
Better Call Saul is about a family of lawyers, the Big Bang Theory is about academics, and Silicon Valley is about tech millionaires. I'm not sure what you're seeing there.
- miiiiiike 10y ago
  Better Call Saul is about a low-level grifter from Chicago who slept on a pull-out in his office after working his way out of a mail room. The Big Bang Theory has two characters who worked as waitresses. One a struggling actress, the other putting herself through school. The Silicon Valley guys were broke. Jared lived in a shed. Two of them are great shows, you should watch 'em!
  - gardano 10y ago
    I enjoyed that built-in ambiguity in your comment. I know which 2 I enjoy!
- wccrawford 10y ago
  I've only watched the first ep of Silicon Valley and a few eps of Big Bang Theory, but... Better Call Saul is about a poor lawyer who works out of the back of a nail salon. Not exactly rich. Yes, his brother is, but the show is about Saul. Big Bang Theory is about guys that live in apartments, and they don't seem very rich to me. Maybe they're headed there, but they aren't there yet. I'll admit they don't lack for tech/nerd toys, though. Silicon Valley starts with a guy in an "incubator" who is clearly struggling, and then hits it big. It at least starts about a guy without money.
  - Cyph0n 10y ago
    Better Call Saul I agree with, the others are too whimsical. But Silicon Valley is damn hilarious, and even more so for us techies.
  - Pxtl 10y ago
    Not only that, but one of the main characters in BBT, the token non-nerd, works as a waitress and her lack of funds are a continuing plot-point of the show.
    - nommm-nommm 10y ago
      The problem is her lack of funds seems really fake though. She doesn't really seem to go through the type of real financial hardship I can identify with, it just seems haphazardly thrown in once in a while for laughs.
      - Pxtl 10y ago
        > it just seems haphazardly thrown in once in a while for laughs. This also applies to the science and the social issues in BBT. It's not exactly a very heavy show.
- panzagl 10y ago
  I use Big Bang Theory to try to convince my daughters that, despite what their schools are telling them, society values science so little that they can look forward to being in their 40's and still having to share an apartment with a roommate unlike the irregularly employed actress across the hall.
jon-wood 10y ago
Upper-lower-middle class huh? Makes me glad to live in the UK, where we have working class (manual labour, shop work, emergency/healthcare), middle class (anything in an office), and upper class (whatever you like, your income is from return on investments).
- gauthr 10y ago
  "I was born into what you might describe as the lower-upper-middle class." -- The Road to Wigan Pier, Ch. 8. I'm fairly certain George Orwell lived in the UK as well. cf. http://www.george-orwell.org/The_Road_to_Wigan_Pier/7.html http://www.george-orwell.org/The_Road_to_Wigan_Pier/7.html

pessimizer 10y ago

Better Call Saul is about a family of lawyers, the Big Bang Theory is about academics, and Silicon Valley is about tech millionaires. I'm not sure what you're seeing there.

miiiiiike 10y ago
Better Call Saul is about a low-level grifter from Chicago who slept on a pull-out in his office after working his way out of a mail room. The Big Bang Theory has two characters who worked as waitresses. One a struggling actress, the other putting herself through school. The Silicon Valley guys were broke. Jared lived in a shed. Two of them are great shows, you should watch 'em!
- gardano 10y ago
  I enjoyed that built-in ambiguity in your comment. I know which 2 I enjoy!
wccrawford 10y ago
I've only watched the first ep of Silicon Valley and a few eps of Big Bang Theory, but... Better Call Saul is about a poor lawyer who works out of the back of a nail salon. Not exactly rich. Yes, his brother is, but the show is about Saul. Big Bang Theory is about guys that live in apartments, and they don't seem very rich to me. Maybe they're headed there, but they aren't there yet. I'll admit they don't lack for tech/nerd toys, though. Silicon Valley starts with a guy in an "incubator" who is clearly struggling, and then hits it big. It at least starts about a guy without money.
- Cyph0n 10y ago
  Better Call Saul I agree with, the others are too whimsical. But Silicon Valley is damn hilarious, and even more so for us techies.
- Pxtl 10y ago
  Not only that, but one of the main characters in BBT, the token non-nerd, works as a waitress and her lack of funds are a continuing plot-point of the show.
  - nommm-nommm 10y ago
    The problem is her lack of funds seems really fake though. She doesn't really seem to go through the type of real financial hardship I can identify with, it just seems haphazardly thrown in once in a while for laughs.
    - Pxtl 10y ago
      > it just seems haphazardly thrown in once in a while for laughs. This also applies to the science and the social issues in BBT. It's not exactly a very heavy show.
panzagl 10y ago
I use Big Bang Theory to try to convince my daughters that, despite what their schools are telling them, society values science so little that they can look forward to being in their 40's and still having to share an apartment with a roommate unlike the irregularly employed actress across the hall.

jon-wood 10y ago

Upper-lower-middle class huh? Makes me glad to live in the UK, where we have working class (manual labour, shop work, emergency/healthcare), middle class (anything in an office), and upper class (whatever you like, your income is from return on investments).

gauthr 10y ago
"I was born into what you might describe as the lower-upper-middle class." -- The Road to Wigan Pier, Ch. 8. I'm fairly certain George Orwell lived in the UK as well. cf. http://www.george-orwell.org/The_Road_to_Wigan_Pier/7.html http://www.george-orwell.org/The_Road_to_Wigan_Pier/7.html