#Will and grace season 1 pilot tv#
From then until the end of its run in 2006, Will & Grace was a linchpin of the network’s comedic firewall, spending more time in the popular Must See TV block than any sitcom other than Friends.
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It likely would have joined this Thursday lineup permanently if not for the two-year commitment NBC then had with Frasier, which delayed Will & Grace’s move to Thursdays until its third season (2000-‘01). Although initially slotted in a terrible Monday berth, Will & Grace moved up the ranks twice within its first year, graduating to Tuesdays (“MSTV-B”), and then, in the spring, to the hammock spot between the network’s top laffers: Friends and Frasier.
#Will and grace season 1 pilot series#
More later, though… First, I want to talk about another aspect of the show’s identity - something often ignored because, well, it’s not all positive: the way the series reinforces its status as a staple of NBC’s Must See TV Thursday lineup. Their sexual orientations, a tenet of their identities, is part of this - but it’s an ingredient, if you will not the whole meal. To that last point, Will & Grace is worthwhile because it has well-defined characters who earn emotional investment and inspire regular laughter. Yet I aim to avoid the framework that too often surrounds the series and focuses on the importance of the leads’ depicted sexuality, for while this certainly addresses some of the show’s appeal and has indeed become its guiding raison d’être, this ignores core big picture concerns: how the series managed to exist and even thrive during this turn-of-the-century era and why it’s worthy of discussion as a great sitcom. It’s relevant to both popularity and even perceptions of quality. Now, much has been made since the series’ premiere of its cultural legacy - gay regulars in primetime was both a novelty and a risk, especially after the recent failure of Ellen - and our commentary here can’t ignore how much of the show’s identity is shaped by the sexual orientation of its two male leads. So, let’s go back to 1998 and stay thereabouts, for Will & Grace is very much a product of that era…. Its finale is its finale, and that’s as far as I’m going to let our hindsight bias take us over these next eight weeks…. The original eight-season run is a narrative work unto itself - it’s got its own beginning, middle, and end, and it exists without any knowledge of the future. So much so, in fact, that the 2017 revival - currently in its third and final season at the time of this publication - is perhaps the least aesthetically jarring comeback from this recent wave of ‘90s reboots… But I don’t want to talk about the revival now - I’ll cover it sometime next year, once it’s concluded - and, actually, I’m even going to ask that you pretend the revival doesn’t exist, for despite their creative similarities, these are two different series. Not only does it embody so much of what we’ve been examining these past few years - particularly in NBC’s Must See TV Thursday shows - but it also reflects many of the themes that would develop in the genre during the first two decades of the 21 st century. It’s proven to be the perfect series on which to end our Sitcom Tuesdays look at the ‘90s/turn-of-the-century. Let me start by thanking everyone who voted for Will & Grace. Will & Grace stars ERIC MCCORMACK as Will Truman, DEBRA MESSING as Grace Adler, SEAN HAYES as Jack McFarland, and MEGAN MULLALLY as Karen Walker.
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Welcome to a new Sitcom Tuesday! This week, we’re launching coverage on the best of Will & Grace (1998-2006, NBC), which is available on DVD and streaming!