The Ultimate TV Comedies Bracket -- The Top Two

Who needs the Kwik-E-Mart?

Is it any wonder that our Top Two of the Ultimate TV Comedies bracket has come down to two sitcoms with barflies? OK, it’s true, there’s actually…not a ton of similarities between our two finalists, but they did share some similarities and cast members.

And of course, as similar as they sometimes were, only one can be the true winner. Who’s ready to vote?

(1) Cheers vs. (2) The Simpsons: I’m voting for Cheers, first of all. Let’s not bandy about with any teasing on my end. Cheers is one of the very best ensembles in modern culture, hands down. I will not say that all of its gags hold up as flawlessly today as they did back in the 1980s, but of course, the same could be said of The Simpsons. (For a long time, that show had a remarkably deep well of characters courtesy of only a handful-plus actors, but that also meant you got Harry Shearer and Hank Azaria providing voices for a lot of non-white characters.)

Anyway, if this was a battle between specific seasons of these two shows, I think the argument could be made for The Simpsons, which had a few handfuls of the greatest episodes of situational comedy ever made, and more specific installment examples than Cheers did. But this is a battle between the entirety of both shows, and as much as I am awed by the fact that The Simpsons has been on the air for more than 30 seasons, that longevity works against it in a battle like this. It’s not that Cheers wasn’t a long-running show of its own, but we’re talking about a show that’s been off the air for decades, had an 11-season spinoff and that spinoff just aired a reboot. Longevity is one thing, but the quality of The Simpsons is arguably not as consistently strong.

Two great shows, yes. But I stick with the barflies from Boston.

How about you?

Cheers

The Simpsons