Fox is not the kind of network that usually inspires grown-up words like “trilogy,” but “Grounded for Life” is part of one–the Dysfunctional Family Trilogy. Following in the footsteps of “The Simpsons” and “Malcolm in the Middle,” “Grounded” (debuting Jan. 10) is about two parents who act like kids. In part, that’s because the parents (Donal Logue and Megyn Price) are 32-year-olds raising a teenage daughter and two younger sons. But they’re also, in the true spirit of Homer Simpson, congenitally juvenile. He gets off on watching people make out in cars–until he discovers that the smoocher is his own kid. She’s a babe with supersexy clothes and with-out a clue about discipline. Quick-witted and raunchy in the best Fox tradition, “Grounded” has the makings of the best new sitcom of the year.
It’s hard to say what’s more galling: the fact that NBC is foisting another annoying sitcom on us or the nerve of naming the lame “Three Sisters” after a play by Chekhov. There doesn’t seem to be any reason for the dramatic allusion, except to provide another example of the show’s thinking it’s more clever than it is. “Three Sisters” (Jan. 9) is narrated by Steven (David Alan Basche), who must endure life married to a woman (Katherine LaNasa) who is one of three exceptionally close sisters. Bess, the wife, is the logical one. Annie (A. J. Langer) is the flighty one. Nora (Vicki Lewis) is the sarcastic one. Individually, they’re irritating as hell. As a group–where they’re incessantly joined by their parents (Peter Bonerz and Dyan Cannon)–they’re a symphony of dumb dialogue and contrived cuteness. The show apparently intends to appeal to women, hence the episode where the family piles into the delivery room when Bess gives birth and the one where Annie helps Nora pick up guys. But none of this stuff is very amusing. In fact, “Three Sisters” makes Chekhov seem funny by comparison.
Here comes the first wave of “Survivor” wanna-bes–the hordes of reality programs hoping to become the next big thing. The show with the loudest buzz is Fox’s hormonal “Temptation Island” (Jan. 10), in which four committed–but unmarried–couples spend two weeks frolicking with a gaggle of gorgeous men and women. Can the couples resist near-naked temptation? Even though the show hasn’t been screened, religious groups are already calling it amoral–which almost always guarantees big ratings. ABC’s “The Mole” (Jan. 9) is a sort of “Road Rules” with a twist. It features 10 people working together to complete various challenges, though one of the 10 is a “mole” who is secretly sabotaging the group. The WB’s “Popstars” (Jan. 12) started in Australia, but we’ve already seen it. It’s essentially a female version of ABC’s “Making the Band,” in which aspiring singers compete to be selected for a real music group. Except for a few gloriously awful fashion statements, the all-girl show proves as vapid as the guys'.
“100 Centre Street” (Jan. 15) is A&E’s first weekly drama, so you can’t really call it a replacement. Instead, let’s just call it wonderful. The show centers on the judges, lawyers and criminals in a New York City night court and stars Alan Arkin. It’s created by director Sidney Lumet, who brings the same crackling energy and passionately imperfect characters to TV as he did to “Network” and “The Verdict.” In a world overstuffed with crime dramas, “100 Centre Street” makes the entire genre feel fresh.
