“Lady Godiva was a freedom rider; she didn’t care if the whole world looked. Joan of Arc with the Lord to guide her; she was a sister who really cooked! Isadora was the first bra-burner; ain’t ya glad she showed up? (Oh yeah!) And when the country was fallin' apart, Betsy Ross got it all sewed up…AND THEN THERE’S”— Oh, sorry, I didn’t see you there. Looks like you caught me singing the iconic theme song from the Bea Arthur-led sitcom Maude.
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If it wasn’t apparent already, I adoreTV sitcoms. I love the live studio audiences, the one-liners, the earworm theme songs, all of it. The last time I wrote about sitcoms, I dreamed up video games based on classic sitcoms. This time around, I’m flipping the script. Instead, I’ll look at some video game characters I think could lead their own sitcom.
4Chun-li
The Mary Tyler Moore Show proved that TV viewers love stories about independent career women. So why not make a show about an independent working woman avenging her father’s murder? Sounds like light television fare to me.
AChun-lisitcom would have all the charm of Brookln-Nine-Nine with twice the lightning-kicking action! Imagine a cold open that starts with an office prank on Guile and ends with a martial arts showdown against Bison’s dolls. And that’s all before the opening theme song.
Plus, haven’t you wonderedwhoChun-li’s co-workers are? Yes, she has working relationships with Guile and Cammy, but they aren’t Interpol agents. I want to know who Chun-li has to deal with daily, from the unpaid intern looking to catch a break to the cocky agent Chun-li gets reluctantly partnered with. There are so many storytelling possibilities there.
At the very least, it will fare better than The Legend Of Chun-li.
3Pac-Man
APac-Mansitcom is a no-brainer. Just look at that family photo! If that doesn’t scream “All-American Family That Appeals To The Fly-Over States,” I don’t know what does. Am I saying a Pan-Man sitcom would become the spiritual successor to Last Man Standing? Not really. This isn’t a sitcom trying to rock the boat. On the contrary, a Pac-Man sitcom would be so apolitical that viewers would project themselves onto the yellow pellet people like Rorschach tests.
If anything, the Pac-Man show is a descendant of sitcoms like Full House, with silly catchphrases, warm family dynamics, and a Danny Tanner-Esque speech at least once per episode. In short, this is a show for cheeseballs featuring characters that look like sentient cheeseballs.
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Plus, the Pac-Man show would dominate the realm of crossover episodes. With so many IPs under Namco’s belt, a new special guest star would pop up weekly. Jin Kazama is playing Pac-Jr’s History teacher,andthere will be a special performance by the Taiko drum-chans? That’s TGIF material right there!
2The Cast Of Animal Crossing
The mockumentary format often fosters excellent comedy. Consider breakout sitcoms like The Office, Parks And Recreation, Modern Family, and the latest hit mockumentary series, Abbott Elementary. These shows thrive by subverting expectations and ignoring traditional storytelling. For instance, characters break the fourth wall, reveal private thoughts in one-on-one interviews, and sometimes get caught in candid moments when they don’t know they’re being filmed.
Mockumentaries expertly explore the interplay of how we, as individuals, curate our lives to others compared to what the objectivity of the camera exposes. What you initially see is not always as it seems. Sounds a lot like neighborly life to me.
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AnAnimal Crossingmockumentary sitcom could add a satirical edge to the saccharine-sweet series by showing how our favorite island residents act in public vs. private spaces. For instance, does Isabelle ever lose her cool? What shady white-collar crimes is Tom Nook hiding? And have you heard about the affair between Raymond andLimberg?
Plus, with a vast ensemble cast, there’s no doubt viewers will find a villager they resonate with.
1Vincent And The Cast Of Catherine
Let’s examine the story behind Akira’s hit puzzle game,Catherine. Vincent Brooks spends each night at the local bar, The Stray Sheep, confiding in his friends and other bar patrons about their lives. But, outside of his nightly drinking exploits, he struggles to manage a love triangle full of misunderstandings between his longtime girlfriend and a hot young succubus, both named Catherine (one with a C, the other with a K).
So, let’s do the math. Friends who are bar regulars; that sounds a lot like Cheers. An MFF threesome full of misunderstandings; that echoes Three’s Company to me. That’s two hit sitcoms in one show. And we haven’t even touched on the Pushing Daisies-Esque supernatural aspect of the game. So, a Catherine sitcom adaptation doesn’t sound that far-fetched.
Still, Catherine deals with many explicit sexual and violent themes (My mind is still scarred from getting chased by that evil baby). So a sitcom of this ilk is premium cable material. I would guess HBO or Showtime. A streaming service like Netflix or Hulu is another possible avenue. No matter who airs it, the Catherine show would be the perfect single-cam dark comedy for people who ‘don’t like sitcoms.’ An anti-sitcom, if you will.
Next:Every Upcoming Video Game Movie And TV Adaptation
