What makes a comedy series a sitcom?

What makes a comedy series a sitcom? - People at Theater

What exactly is a sitcom? In particular: what distinguishes sitcoms among the (presumably) broader category of comedy series?

It's easy enough to give classical examples of sitcoms. They tend to have several common features: usually there is a recurring set of characters who are put in comical situations, often there is a laugh track, usually it's pure comedy (as opposed to comedy + action, or comedy + fantasy, etc.), usually plot progression is relatively slow.

I'm curious which features are essential for a series to be considered a sitcom. This question arose from an attempt to figure out if The Good Place is a sitcom; it seems to be something of an edge case. However, I'm more interested in a general answer.



Best Answer

Situational Comedy

A sitcom, short for "situation comedy", is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use new characters in each sketch, and stand-up comedy, where a comedian tells jokes and stories to an audience. Sitcoms originated in radio, but today are found mostly on television as one of its dominant narrative forms. This form can also include mockumentaries.

A situation comedy television program may be recorded in front of a studio audience, depending on the program's production format. The effect of a live studio audience can be imitated or enhanced by the use of a laugh track. During filming productions, the laugh track is usually prerecorded.


I think we are seeing a lot more diverse definitions of comedy and comedy-drama over the years.

For instance, the TV series Chuck is sort of uniquely brilliant, because it takes two situational comedies with his family life being like Friends and his Buymore life being like Superstore (workplace comedy) and marries them with a spy action dramedy.

In terms of the Good Place, I could see how it is categorized as such, because of how it fixates on a particular place with mostly the same characters, even though I would agree it seems to touch drama and could almost be considered a fantasy situational dramedy




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How is a sitcom different from comedy?

Comedy movies are supposed to be humorous as well. Sitcom, however is a word that stands for the phrase "situation comedy," which is usually a TV show that depicts potentially real situations or circumstances with humorous outcomes. Shows such as Frasier, Seinfeld, Parks and Recreation are all examples of sitcoms.

What qualifies a show as a sitcom?

situation comedy, also called sitcom, radio or television comedy series that involves a continuing cast of characters in a succession of episodes. Often the characters are markedly different types thrown together by circumstance and occupying a shared environment such as an apartment building or workplace.

What does a sitcom include?

They can be loosely defined as a show with an ongoing storyline and comedic situations involving everyday life, often following the same group of characters. Sitcoms usually include episodes of 20 to 30 minutes in length and air on weekdays or weekends, primarily in prime time slots.

Which are the two types of sitcoms?

However, this term applies to all types of situation comedy, and, as I will show, there are three distinct types of sitcom. For clarity, I will substitute terms for each type: actcom for the action comedy, domcom for the domestic comedy, and dramedy for the dramatic comedy.



The Hidden Sitcom Formula




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