“Mom” Becomes Broadcast’s Best Comedy: The Top 25 Shows of 2016, No. 8

A brave comedy about mother and daughter addicts in recovery and the impact their behavior past and present has on the people in their lives Mom boldly takes on the emotional social physical and psychological issues that alcoholics and drug abusers must face including overdoses suicide relapses selfloathing and the despair that comes with the realization that oneamp8217s child is experimenting with drugs and alcoholWeek after week Mom is actually about reallife challenges amp160Regardless of the storylines the bad things in the charactersamp8217 lives are never far away and when they suddenly push aside the humor and bite the impact is profound With the exception of FXamp8217s Atlanta and Showtimeamp8217s Shameless which is technically a comedy but should really be reclassified as a drama how many other sitcoms can say thatThe pitch for Mom must have been stupendous in itself because this is a show that sounded doomed from the start as there is simply nothing funny about addiction amp160And yet the writers and directors and the uniformly spectacular cast have managed to make it one of televisionamp8217s funniest shows without shying away from the urgency and dangers of the subject matter at handAnna Faris as indefatigable and sober Christy Plunkett and Allison Janney as her irrepressible and not always sober mother Bonnie have over the course of four seasons evolved into one of the great female comedy duos of all timeamp160 Indeed Christy and Bonnie are now right up there with Lucy and Ethel Mary and Rhoda and Laverne and Shirley Itamp8217s a very short list isnamp8217t it Janney has the Emmys to prove it Maddeningly the flawlessly funny Faris who makes Christy as ferocious as she is fragile doesnamp8217t seem to get any recognition at allamp160 That has to change sheamp8217s beyond brilliantThe supporting and recurring cast on Mom is similarly sublime especially Mimi Kennedy as Marjorie Jaime Pressly as Jill and Beth Hall as Wendy the partners in sobriety to Christy and Bonnie William Fichtner as Bonnieamp8217s new beau Adam has been a great recent addition to the showMom has become an essential showcase for great guest stars as well including Ellen Burstyn Linda Lavin Octavia Spencer Rosie Oamp8217Donnell Justin Long and Joe Manganiello among many others who have appeared through the yearsamp160 Up next on January 19 is Farisamp8217 husband Chris Pratt in a sidesplitting turn as Marjorieamp8217s nephew whose instant lust for Christy is surpassed only by her hots for himamp160 On screen as in real life they are great togetherWith or without great guest stars Mom is a marvel Not to be inappropriate but Iamp8217m addicted to this onePreviously in the Top 25 CountdownNo 9 amp160 Stranger Things HappenedNo 10 Family Comedies on ABCNo 11 Samantha Bee and Seth Meyers Blow UpNo 12 The Women of The CWNo 13 House Hunters and All Things HGTVNo 14 Grease Live and Hairspray LiveNo 15amp160BBC America39s London SpyNo 16 American Idol Bids Farewell For NowNo 17 Colorized Classics on CBSNo 18 James Corden39s Carpool KaraokeNo 19 South Park Takes on Donald TrumpNo 20 Bates Motel PsychodramaNo 21 Return of The ExorcistNo 22 Tosh0 is Still TV39s Funniest ShowNo 23 Kelly Ripa39s Cavalcade of CoHostsNo 24 Sarah Paulson Kate McKinnon on NBC Late NightNo 25 Hallmark39s Happy Yule LogClick the social buttons above or below to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this article are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated bloggers

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“Mom” Becomes Broadcast’s Best Comedy: The Top 25 Shows of 2016, No. 8

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Ed Martin

"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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“Mom” Becomes Broadcast’s Best Comedy: The Top 25 Shows of 2016, No. 8

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Ed Martin

"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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