The Big 200: Sitcom Heavyweights – Part 3

LAST OF THE SUMMER WINE -289 EPISODES
Although not exactly down with the kids Last of the Summer Wine (or Three Blokes Being Old as we like to call it), would you believe it, is the longest-running sitcom in the world!

A staggering 30 series have been churned out (the 31st and final series airs this summer) since its creation in 1973 yet only 298 episodes have been made.

You’d think after 30 series they’d have a higher episode count but when most of your cast are near death’s door you can’t hurry the lovies can you…or jump out at them..!

Written by Roy Clarke and featuring a trio of elderly men getting up to no good geriatric antics, Last of the Summer Wine celebrates getting old in style.

Many past Sunday evenings have been spent watching Compo lusting after Nora Batty’s wrinkled stockings, seeing the lads slide down a hill in a bathtub or egging on  Howard and Marina in their eternal adulterous quest with eagle-eyed Pearl always hot on their heels.

But not only does Last of the Summer Wine deserve a place in our sitcom heavyweights, we think a special mention should really go out to Peter Sallis for simply just still being alive!

CHEERS – 275 EPISODES
So we come to the place where everybody knows your name…And we knew all of their names after 275 episodes!

Some would say a recovering alcoholic running a bar was a recipe for disaster but Cheers ran for eleven seasons between 1982 and 1993 and it notched up a whopping 28 Emmys in its time.

Starring Ted Danson as said bar owner with a taste for the ladies, Cheers also featured Shelley Long, Kirstie Alley, Woody Harrelson, Kelsey Grammer and John Raztenberger (i.e. the guy that voices the pig in Toy Story) as the workers and drinkers of the small Boston drinkery.

Not only did Cheers spawn Frasier the most successful sitcom spin-off ever, it was so popular that there’s even a real-life replica bar across the Atlantic in London’s Regent Street.

Sitcom heavyweight?  You betcha.

ROSEANNE – 222 EPISODES
Starring comedienne Roseanne Barr, John Goodman, Sara Gilbert and The Big Bang Theory’s Johnny Galecki Roseanne was at one point the most watched television programme in the U.S.

Nine seasons and 222 episodes were made of the sitcom that didn’t shy away from tackling the taboo and that was probably one of the reasons behind its success despite it having a main character with a fog horn for a mouth.

Regarded as a fairly feminist show, Roseanne tackled subjects that other shows at the time were too scared to portray including drug abuse, teenage pregnancy and homosexuality.

With 4 Emmys and 3 Golden Globes under its belt, the success of Roseanne gave television networks faith to offer sitcom deals to stand-up comedians – a trend which continues to this day!

SOUTH PARK – 200 EPISODES AND COUNTING!
And so to the inspiration for this whole feature – South Park.

The fifth episode of the latest season of South Park sees the animated comedy hit the ‘Big 200’.

From the twisted minds of Matt Stone and Trey Parker South Park has been telling the everyday lives of Cartman, Stan, Kyle and Kenny in the most crude and foul-mouthed way possible since 1997.

With a list of controversies as long as its proverbial arm, South Park prides itself on causing a storm episode upon episode.  And the great thing is…they don’t care.

They even set a record for the highest amount of profanity in 2001 for saying the word sh*t 162 times in one episode!

One day an episode of South Park can a political commentary on the global economy and the next a completely inane tale of devil-worshipping woodland critters!

Made in just six days from conception to delivery, every episode of South Park is guaranteed to be as topical as physically possible ensuring every gag hits the spot every time.

Celebrities are the biggest target for Matt and Trey.  In the past South Park has famously targeted countless celebrities including Kanye West, Tom Cruise, Michael Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, The Jonas Brothers, Britney Spears, Paris Hilton and even the Queen!

And so far this season Tiger Woods, Charlie Sheen, Sarah Jessica Parker, the Kardashians and Barack Obama have already been ‘immortalised’ in South Park glory.  Who next?!

We’ve been promised an all star ‘who’s who’ for the 200th episode – could another banned episode of South Park be on the horizon?  Matt and Trey will certainly try their hardest…

NEARLY MADE IT! SEINFELD + BEAVIS & BUTT-HEAD

If you’ve made it this far then we commend you!  Here’s a couple surprise shows that didn’t make 200…

Seinfeld – 180 Episodes
We were surprised to see that the “show about nothing” didn’t make it to a bi-centenary, seeing that it lasted for nine glorious seasons.

Criminally overlooked by the British public (shame on you), Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David’s peerless comedy saw the former playing himself, a successful comedian living the bachelor’s dream.

Jerry spent all day in his flat or local coffee shop with school friend George (arguably one of the greatest comedy characters ever), flakey ex-girlfriend Elaine and insane neighbour Kramer for 180 episodes of unbridled genius.

With episodes like The Contest, The Soup Nazi or The Puffy Shirt, the groundbreaking show became a US phenomenon; when the last ever episode was broadcast, other channels changed their scheduling so not to compete!

Far from being about nothing as the media would have it, Seinfeld was actually about everything and was a truly unique show that has not been bettered. Greatest ever sitcom? Possibly…

Beavis & Butt-Head – 199 Episodes!! So close!
A snapshot of the ‘MTV generation’, Beavis & Butt-Head was an iconic cartoon of the 90s.

Beavis and Butt-head - so close

Created by King of the Hill’s Mike Judge this animated sitcom depicted two dumbass high-school students generally monging out (that’s the technical term) in front of the television watching music videos all day.

Despite their massive craniums the pair barely shared a brain cell between them and the pair usually got up to no good antics and had their fair share of controversy.

But the magic stopped as the pair high-fived their 199th episode – one short of 200!

HOWEVER the pair did star in their own movie Beavis & Butt-Head Do America so if you count the movie it’s 200!

SHOWS ON COURSE FOR THE ‘BIG 200′

Scrubs – 182 Episodes and counting…
It’s so close but yet so far!  Scrubs has been going since 2001 but nine seasons and 182 episodes later, the original cast have departed the show and its popularity is waning.

Scrubs followed JD, Elliot and Turk’s journeys as interns, residents, co-chief residents and attending physicians throughout their time at Sacred Heart hospital and eventually parted ways with the old cast and to welcome a new band of med students.

Creator Bill Lawrence even said he felt Scrubs ended in 2009 and considers the latest series more of a spin-off.

Zach Braff posted on his Facebook page that Scrubs was over but NBC have yet to formerly announce its cancellation.

Can they pull 18 more eps out of the bag?  Stay tuned!

Two and a Half Men - on course

Two and a Half Men – 161 Episodes and counting…
There’s no doubt that Two and a Half Men is one of our favourites here at Comedy Central.  We love it.  Almost as much as that video of that cat being tickled on the Internet!  Almost…

After seven seasons Alan is still living with his big brother Charlie, Evelyn is still an evil mother and Jake is still as slobbish as ever (although about a foot taller now) and the jokes are still coming thick and fast.

By the end of Season 7 there’ll be celebrating 161 episodes and America’s top sitcom has been commissioned for a further two seasons but as for Charlie Sheen’s involvement, well who knows.

Come July we could be waiting a lot longer for any new Two and a Half Men if his assault case goes the wrong way…

Keep checking our Comedy News for the latest in ‘Sheen Watch’ and see if Two and a Half Men will make the ‘Big 200’.