Since the halcyon days of Seinfeld and Friends, NBC has failed to develop sitcom ratings winners like CBS’ Everybody Loves Raymond, Two And A Half Men, and The Big Bang Theory. Instead, shows like, The Office, 30 Rock, Parks And Recreation, and Community have all fallen into the cult-favorite and critical darling column while earning mostly respectable numbers. Lately, however, the network hasn’t been able to develop those kinds of comedies either. A decision not helped by their rejection of The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt and the relatively quick cancelations of promising newcomers like Go On and Up All Night. Thankfully, though, the network seems to be learning from its mistakes. First, they brought back the critically lauded Carmichael Show for a second season and now they’ve done the same with Superstore.
Superstore impressed me in our review of its debut and kept moving in the right direction through Monday night’s season finale thanks to a stellar ensemble cast (whose chemistry has only grown over the course of the first season) and storytelling that really nails the absurdity of the micro-dramas that break out in a retail environment. Other critics have noticed as well. However, according to THR, the second season order is only for 13 episodes. Which is unfortunate in that the show will have to go somewhat station-to-station to secure a full-season order despite its solid ratings performance (2.1 in the 18-49 demo and almost 7 million viewers). Unless, of course, the show is, again, slated for midseason. All that will depend on NBC’s pilot commitments and how much they want to lean on comedy as a staple of their lineup after pulling back to the minimum over the last few years. On the plus side, Superstore fans should take heart in the knowledge that they aren’t still waiting around while staring at the guillotine like Telenovela fans are, at least.
(via THR)
