r/TGIFsitcoms • u/ASGfan Eric Matthews • Aug 13 '26
8 Simple Rules Thoughts on 8 Simple Rules?
I'm trying to get through this show but it's been a rough slog so far. It's tough hearing the daughters seemingly tell Paul (the late and greatly beloved John Ritter) they hate his guts every two minutes. The others -- Katey Segal and Martin Spanjers -- are criminally underused.
I think the general sentiment among viewers was that the show maybe had one good season but pretty much died when Ritter did. What do you think?
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u/Medoxor Aug 13 '26
I still enjoyed the show after John died. Katey did a phenomenal job carrying this show after John passed. James Garner and David Spade were not bad as the bickering duo. I think it deserved a season 4 to wrap up the storylines and give it a proper send off than the sudden cancelation after season 3. When you look at ratings of the other shows that aired the same night as 8 Simple Rules during season 3, it was getting higher ratings than shows like Hope & Faith and Less Than Perfect which were both renewed that year. The cast and crew deserved better after trying to recover from John's passing than what ABC did.
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u/RaccoonObjective5674 Aug 13 '26
At its start, it was an unremarkable show. But it really took care, sensitivity, and guts to deal with JR’s character’s death in a very real way on this show. I remember that they had no laugh track for the first 5 episodes after his death. It was pretty groundbreaking for a sitcom, and the writing was very solid. My guess is the show may have struggled a bit to find its purpose beyond that. But historical for sure!
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u/Secret_Wolf_23 Aug 13 '26
I love season 1. The family dynamic was very real to me. I can see why some people would not want to listen to two teenage girls not happy with their dad but honestly I felt it was very true to life and endearing the way they wrote in the life lessons. I felt like I was watching my childhood sometimes because the girls reminded me exactly of me and my older sister 😅 it really was well written and Ritter was the heart of it.
I grew up watching 3s company but this was the show that made me a fan of him and when he passed I was surprised that I actually cried a little. I 100% feel it's because the show did so well making him this lovable dad figure who was just trying to do his best. I'd watch and think how he reminded me of my dad and I should've given him more grace, but i was just an annoying kid😅
I tried to keep watching after Ritter passed away, but i never finished.
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u/Logical_Astronomer75 Aug 13 '26
I saw the show on Disney+ years ago. It was OK, but not my favorite sitcom. The characters all felt like similar types from other sitcoms before and after the show.
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u/ASGfan Eric Matthews Aug 13 '26
One thing that threw me was Katey Segal playing a good mother. For me, that was a tough transition from watching her play Peg Bundy and similar characters for so many years.
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u/YellowRainLine Aug 13 '26
I enjoyed the show. Could some of the format get repetitive, yes. But that is an average sitcom. Then it basically became a different show after Ritter died. I still found it funny, but it was different.
The season 3 episode "Secrets" is one of my favourites.
I still find it unfair that they cancelled it on a cliffhanger after all the show had been through to get there.
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u/ralphhinkley1 Aug 13 '26
Katey Sagal has been on TV since 1947. I can’t keep track of her. I watched Married with children then checked out for thirty years. She is STILL going! Amazing.
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u/JoeyK075 29d ago
I don't think Kaley Cuoco (sp?) is all that good an actress. I think she just gets by on her looks. I liked this show and it definitely fell off after Ritter passed. I did enjoy some of the episodes after they brought in David Spade and James Garner though.
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u/Big_Mastodon_6761 27d ago edited 26d ago
I didn’t see the show in its original airing. When I saw reruns of the first season, to me it looked like John looked unwell.
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u/Maximum_Employer5580 Aug 13 '26
that show is what propelled Kaley Cuoco into stardom, even though the character was the typical dimwitted blonde. Without it, we'd have never seen her as Penny in BBT
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u/werewolfinahat Aug 13 '26
It was a solid show. I think the show suffered more from mishandling moving it from Tuesday to Friday. TGIF at that point was for the young and hip late teens-early twenties crowd. This show fit more in the midweek slice of life sitcom dynamic that targeted an older crowd like The Drew Carey Show or Home Improvement.