Sons & Daughters

When this show first started it had the rather lofty legacy left by Arrested Development to live up to, due to various comparisons made by TV critics. This proved fairly unfortunate considering the die hard fan base that surrounds Arrested Development, but at the same time it is not altogether unexpected.

Certainly the two shows bare many similarities. Both are about comical situations that arise from immediate and extended family relationships, and both have a large ensemble cast. Character roles are also very similar between the two shows, Don the struggling actor uncle is much like Tobius the struggling actor uncle, Carrie the sarcastic teen far more mature than her two parents is much like Maeby Funke, Henry the awkward teenager resembles George Michael, and in the center Cameron is relied upon to hold his family together much the same as Micheal Bluth did.

However, that being said co creators Fred Goss and Nick Holly still manage to create a show where every character feels original, realistic and sympathetic. The absurdity of the situation never outshines the emotions of the people within that situation, the humour of an episode never eclipses importance of the relationships between the members of the Walker and Fenton family.

The partially improvised scripting helps this show break away from the normal verbal patterns witnessed in other sit coms, where its generally just examples of feed line, punch line, pause for laughter, feed line, punch line pause for laughter, repeat ad nausea. instead their dialog flows more naturally, overlapping, stuttering and fumbling. Somehow it's truthful, relatable and still very funny.

As the first season nears its end it saddens me to think these characters probably wont be returning to TV screens, due to fairly poor ratings. 11 episodes is barely a blip on the radar for most shows, and its not nearly sufficient in the case of these characters who have so many more stories to tell and so much more history to reveal. If there's any justice in the world we will be seeing much more of Sons & Daughters, but unfortunately we live in a world where American Idol is the most watched show on TV, so justice clearly went out the window.

One of my favorite shows of all time, One of the biggest network crimes against the American public: cancellation of this show after not even airing the 13 episodes that were made. Up there with "Freaks and Geeks" and "My So Called Life" as shows you just can't believe didn't become a massive success. (Maybe I'd add "Firefly" to that list, but I'm a bit of a SciFi geek and that show maybe didn't have the scope...)

If you have not seen this show, it is a MUST SEE. No question. Every character is fantastic. The dialog is brilliant. The plots are bizarre and completely relatable at the same time. In a nutshell, it's the kind of show you wish you could have made.

Ugh. It just hurts me to think about this being canceled. What message does that send to the outrageously talented people that made it? Hang it up? If they can't succeed, WTF!?

-mark

I hate all the shows on free television, but this is a show I can watch. The show is about a family not for the family, and I think there are too many bad shows that are considered for the family. This show takes an unusual look at a dysfunctional family that is as real as Hollywood can get. I noticed in the first two episodes there were references too Cincinnati, and the bowling alley had Hamilton Bowl above the pins. I wonder if the family is supposed too be living in Hamilton, Ohio. Living in the Cincinnati area Hamilton, Ohio is only a 30 minute drive from Cincinnati, Ohio. I love this show and I didn't think I would ever say that about a show on any network channel. Long Live South Park! and Howard Stern

I was a fan of "Significant Others" which was broadcast on Bravo a couple of years ago and which had Fred Goss in the cast. I found that show very entertaining due to it's talented cast, witty writing and lack of a laugh track. I like this show even more. While some viewers seem to find Goss irritating, I think he's great. What a pleasure to see Max Gail again! As a matter of fact, I think the whole cast is superb. Their facial expressions are spot on and the dialogue (either written or improvised) is head and shoulders above the usual sitcom fare. I remember reading somewhere that this show is just a placeholder for something else on ABC which means its lifespan could be pretty short. That would be a shame since this the best thing to come down the pike since Arrested Development and we know what happened to that worthy effort.

This series was excellent. Never in recent years ,has there been another network sitcom where the cast of characters were so genuinely quirky and not forced.The actors were very good at owning their characters in such a short time. The writing was unique, because the punch-lines and timing were not typical. Maybe it was canceled because there was no laugh track. Some might say that it was a failure. I would say not because every episode was well crafted. Their is an assumption that Americans need another dumbed down formulaic situation comedy. This should make any human being with more than two Gray cells to spark together very sad. If an audience were looking for a show that had wit ,great writing,good acting,improvisation and comic timing,this was it. Given time, this could have been another Seinfeld. It is my hope that they at least release the season on DVD. One of these networks might get the idea some day ,of testing some of their shows that are on the fence, by putting them on their websites and see how many hits they get. Time will show just how good this show really was. maybe our sons and daughters will appreciate it.