MovieChat Forums > Newhart (1982) Discussion > So bad, but in a trainwreck sort of way....

So bad, but in a trainwreck sort of way.

posted 5 years ago by [deleted]
8 replies | jump to latest

Before it became fashionable to hate watch anything, I used to hate watch this show every year for the last few seasons just so I could laugh at how bad it was. It was one of those shows that was funny but for all the wrong reasons. I think that's why the writers ended it the way they did, where they just wrote off the entire series as a bad dream. Even they knew what a joke of a series it had become so said, "Eff it. Let's just pretend none of it happened, and then have Newhart talk about how absurd all the characters and situations were."

Anyway, the reason why I'm posting is that I started rewatching it on Decades to see if it was as bad as I remembered and yes, it very much was. It's just a cheesy show but oddly entertaining because of how lacking in self-awareness the writers and show runners were.

[–] modica (4169) 3 years ago

I don't think the first two seasons were too bad. I liked Kirk. When he left the show slowly took a tumble. The last few seasons are unwatchable.

[–] zaq123 (2389) 3 years ago

I feel exactly opposite. The show became much better without him (his act got old really fast) and held up well to the end.

[–] modica (4169) 3 years ago

Oh well.

[–] pjpurple@verizon.net (5619) 2 years ago

I think it was a mistake to get rid of Kirk unless the actor wanted to leave. He was an overall normal character with a few quirks. He fit into the show.

Replacing him with those three buffoon brothers was a bad move. Larry, Darryl and Darryl were hilarious in the first episode. Dick hired them when he needed someone to dig up a body he thought was buried in the basement. But they wanted to pay HIM! Very odd quirky characters like that should be used sparingly, not made into regulars.

They reminded me of the wild mountain man Ernest T. Bass on The Andy Griffith Show. The series wisely used Ernest in just a handful of episodes. And it worked because his type of oddness (like the three brothers) is hard to take on a weekly basis.

Still, a good show. Bob Newhart is always funny. But the brothers were too much of a weird thing!

[–] JosephQCat (706) a year ago

Finding a balance in terms of character appearances can be tough. The analogy with Ernest T Bass is apt. Gomer Pyle did better on the Andy Griffith Show appearing in 1 out of every 3 episodes versus being a feature character on his own show. I was just making the same observation about the Robert Conrad WWII show Black Sheep Squadron this past Saturday. A character such as Colonel Lard (played by the talented Dana Elcar) was well matched to story whether he was featured for 2 minutes or 15 minutes.

[–] MaximRecoil (4495) 2 years ago

"It was one of those shows that was funny but for all the wrong reasons."

No, it was funny for the right reasons, i.e., it had good comedic writing and good comedic performances.

"It's just a cheesy show but oddly entertaining because of how lacking in self-awareness the writers and show runners were."

The writing was good, which, along with the actors' good performances, is why it's one of the funniest sitcoms ever. The poker-playing scene in the final episode of season 1 is one of the funniest scenes I've ever seen on TV; it's up there with the pool-playing scene from Seinfeld and the open-window car wash scene from Sledge Hammer.

Tom Poston's not-so-great acting was the only cheesy part of the show, but he still had some funny scenes. Bob Newhart, Julia Duffy, Peter Scolari, William Sanderson, and Thomas Hill were all amazing in their roles. Mary Frann did okay. There was nothing wrong with her acting, but her character was rather generic in comparison to most of the other main and recurring characters.

[–] OnanTheBarbarian (11584) 2 years ago

Sorry, but only an idiot watches a show he hates. You sound like a negative fool who loves to wallow in cynicism.

It was a decent show. Nothing in which Bob Newhart was involved could be a fail.

[–] xanthas (3215) a year ago

There was too much Larry, Darryl and Darryl at times, but otherwise the show was great.