"I would start there even before 49, though I can't really explain why."

To quote the great Jack Handey:

Yeah, Fawlty Towers is the truest descendent of the (French) stage farce that TV ever had.  And if any later show is indebted to it, it's more Frasier than Seinfeld, though I see the connection of unpleasant characters. I think the only real farce still in existence on TV is Curb Your Enthusiasm.

@avclub-7d7c6bd4c7fa42d65cdcea5d1015a8d8:disqus Dabney Coleman could've done it.

I never thought about it before, but The Monkees would make for an amazing TV Club entry. Can you imagine a recap for "The Frotus", for example?

More Larry Sanders (!!), More Monty Python, Freaks and Geeks, SNL's
first season! Wonderfalls?!  You have made this comedy nerd very happy. Thanks!

He does the best impressions of all time.

re: fans ruing things - You could try, say, being selective about what you read and don't read on the internet? But I understand where your coming from. The collective fan babbling does have great power that can be used for evil. Another reason I try to avoid it sometimes.

That South Park episode raped my ability to judge a movie for myself!

"Keep the expectation level for the new AD at around that of those sitcom reunion movies they used to do"

I always thought Dan Lauria did the most realistic depiction of a father on television. He had that mix of good and bad traits. Most TV dads were whitewashed, but he had that temper (without being abusive) and exhausted feel that reminded me of a lot of real-life dads, including my own, at times.

Biological family: How about Sanford and Son? Sure, they never had any money, but I'd get to watch Redd Foxx insult Aunt Esther and Lamont all day. Plus, Grady! Everybody loves Grady!

Yes. A Shot in the Dark (2nd one) is way better than the original Pink Panther.
And they got much wackier as they went along. You're probably thinking of Pink Panther Strikes Again,  the other high point of the series IMHO. That's the one where Dreyfus has finally gone batshit and is holed up in a castle, turned into…

Special guest appearance by the ghost of Danny Thomas?

Thus far he's somehow figured out how to work the internet using just an astrolabe. Impressive.

The best episode is the one where there's a comical misunderstanding, and John Cleese has to keep running back and forth between all the rooms of the hotel while yelling at his wife and the waiter. Then at one point he gets SO frustrated he starts jumping around in an VERY exaggerated fashion.

Exactly. And the hero has to have daddy issues so that he can fit properly into the same Joseph Campbell myth arc that Hollywood tries to stuff every script into, because there's just no way a movie could be good unless the hero "crosses the threshold" and whatnot.

Something about Larry David and classic rock just doesn't mix. He's such a showtunes guy.

The racing footage in Grand Prix is unquestionably awesome, but the non-racing stuff is pretty meh - has to be on the weak end of anything Frankenheimer ever did.

Agreed. The 70s vibe is full-on in that one, simultaneously cheesy and philosophical. The idea of a soul brother radio DJ as his guiding voice and protector is pretty genius.