For the second time in three years, HBO’s Sunday lineup will be drama-free in January, with the return of “Girls” and “Looking” and the debut of Jay and Mark Duplass’ “Togetherness.”
All three will premiere on Sunday, January 11, with “Girls” beginning its fourth season at 9 p.m., “Togetherness” – starring Mark Duplass, Melanie Lynskey, Steve Zissis and Amanda Peet as two couples living under one roof – starting its first at 9:30 and “Looking” returning for its second at 10.
It is, I believe, the first time HBO has scheduled three scripted comedies on the same night(*), though it’s not the first time even in recent years that HBO has had to go without a drama series on its signature night.
(*) Your mileage will vary on whether you classify either “Girls” or “Looking” that way, and of course HBO had “Silicon Valley” and “Veep” leading into “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” which is a comedy of a very different sort, earlier this year.
Two years ago, “Girls” was paired with “Enlightened,” on a night that was originally also earmarked for the return of “Luck,” the horseracing drama that was canceled early in production of its second season due to the death of another horse. Last January, “Girls” and “Looking” were preceded by the first season of “True Detective,” but the second season hasn’t even officially cast all its lead roles yet, let alone started filming, and nothing else is ready to air in that window. (Presumably, “Game of Thrones” will be back in its usual March/April slot, and “The Leftovers” will be back in summer, though that could also be a place where “True Detective” 2.0 winds up.)
So mark your calendar, folks, and enjoy these last two months before we get to once again debate the continued existence of both “Girls” and Lena Dunham’s career! I know I can’t wait for all of that…