We like to rip on Fox for canceling shows, because obviously, but the network has done a pretty good job in the past few months of keeping their series on the air. In fact, the network is confident enough in freshman comedy Grandfathered that it’s not only keeping it on the schedule, but it’s also giving the show an additional nine episodes, thus finally making it a full season order. Huzzah!
Interestingly, Fox announced Grandfathered’s promotion on the week when it didn’t even air a new episode, thanks to the World Series. The John Stamos-starring comedy was apparently always meant to get a full set of episodes ordered, but there were some rights issues due to the fact that the show is a co-production between 20th Century Fox TV and ABC Studios. No more waiting until we’re all grandfather-aged for an update, though.
Here’s what Fox Broadcasting Company’s president David Madden said about the renewal.
Grandfathered had the Herculean task of self-starting on what is an incredibly competitive Tuesday night, and the series has proven itself up to the challenge. Since the very beginning, we knew this show would be that rare commodity – a genuinely original family comedy. The remarkable John Stamos, Josh Peck, Paget Brewster and the entire cast have sparkling chemistry, and the show’s creative team has delivered fantastic scripts that keep these great characters moving. We know fans are going to love the surprises in store for the rest of the season.
Oh man, what if one of those surprises is that Stamos’ Jimmy Martino has like 17 other grandchildren sprinkled around the country, and he goes on a road trip to meet each of them. Wait, that’s too much like Delivery Man. Scratch that idea.
While Grandfathered’s ratings haven’t been through the roof, it’s still doing a lot better than whatever was airing on Fox last year in the same timeslot. The show premiered to 5.3 million viewers on the night, and the past three episodes have brought in between 3 and 4 million. As far as the Live+7 ratings go, the show has achieved a 2.1 rating in the key 18-49 demographic, which is pretty good for a show with this name. I’m betting when it starts bringing out Full House stars like Bob Saget and Dave Coulier, those ratings might jump up a bit.
News of more Grandfathered comes in the same week that the network gave a similar promotion to Rob Lowe’s The Grinder. And other than the live-action Sunday night comedies Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Last Man on Earth, the only other comedy Fox has is New Girl, which will bring Season 5 around next year. So it’s good to see the network finding success in that genre again.
You can catch Grandfathered every Tuesday night on Fox. At least, when there’s not a World Series or some other sports championship to preempt it.
