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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 5, 2014 23:18:46 GMT
Excellent display of black humor. The reflex of a society but only funnier. 10/10 After season 4 this sitcom looked like it had potential to become one of the best comedies ever created. Sadly, in the mid 90's "Married..." turned into a cheesy black comedy with Al Bundy as a super hero. Still , the series ended decently and still is considered one of the best.
"Married..." has reached a t.v. series cult status and has generated thousands of passionate fans. It's really impressive to see how this sitcom has left it's own trade on t.v. history. None other comedy like this has been produced. This is a sui generis t.v. show. Al Bundy is a hero for many people and one of the most beloved t.v. characters in history.
The series made fun of feminism, white trash, an economic lower class, sex, homosexuality, machismo, etc. but in a black comedy way. The first seasons were more raw and with heavy sex jokes that were later toned down. The creativity of the original writers was excellent and set a way to black comedy t.v. series.
The cast was simply great, there was an excellent chemistry between all of them. Ed O'Neill and Katey Sagal are easily the best married couple on t.v. They could insult each other but you knew there was a lot of love and sexual tension between them. Both are excellent actors and it's beyond reason why they didn't receive an Emmy for their performances. Amanda Bearse did a great job as Al's number one enemy but you could feel that both actors had excellent chemistry between them. The same goes for Bearse and Ted McGingley, an underrated comedy actor. David Faustino and Christina Applegate were excellent in their roles and their brother-sister relationship is hilarious.
Please, watch the re-runs of this show because it's a part of pop culture. The lines of the show are pure genius and it displays a magnificent use of sarcasm and irony. The show did get cheesier by the last seasons but still it was funny. Too bad that there isn't a real ending to this legendary and beloved show.
Thanks "Married..." for growing with me and always managed to make me smile (or lough out loud) when I really needed it. It's my personal favorite sitcom of all time but objectively, this is one of the best comedy series ever created.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 16:53:27 GMT
Greatest T.V show ever!! 10/10 This show is all that T.V should be. It's black comedy for the adults along with plenty of sex jokes and just enough slap stick for the kids. That is why I loved this show. It is one of the few things that me and my dad ever agreed upon that had to do with T.V. We loved this show. I'm sure that from the time it first aired in 1987 that I watched all the way through. I don't remember the early episode broadcasts as I was only born in 1985 and would have been two when the show first starter but about the fourth or fifth seasons I became a fan and still am to this day. I own the first five seasons on DVD and can't wait for the sixth. Please God let them get all eleven seasons out on disc. This show holds so many happy memories for me as a child and I relish reliving them when I go through the DVD's the 90's were truly happier times.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 16:56:16 GMT
Al Bundy: The Last American Hero 10/10 What else can I add to the magnificent Al Bundy & Co., about whom everything possible has already been said? Just that my life would never be the same again, since the day Al Bundy happened to me!
Al Bundy marriage, just like a carriage: Al Bundy gives me company in my lonely, desolate evenings and carries me to the land of dream every night. Al Bundy is my hero, my savior, my messiah. I do not care how biased Fox 11 news is; I do not give a damn as to how many paranoid TV shows, such as "Cops", Fox 11 broadcasts; as long as my hero, Al Bundy, is with Fox 11, I'm with Fox 11.
Al Bundy: What a guy! Who won't like to be like him. He is my hero. Al Bundy, the last American hero.
Al Bundy loves Psycho Dad. Actually, he is the Psycho Dad without the gun, the Dad who would have taken Peggy Bundy out, had it not been a federal offense! Al Bundy overshadows Hondo, or even the "great" Al Capone. Al Bundy is Chicago the windy city, and Al Bundy is what sitcom is. What superb dialogs, what acting, what facial expressions, what a depiction of a decadent family. Al Bundy Show: the greatest American TV show ever and possibly the greatest show on earth!
Al Bundy: It's like what Van Gogh said "Paris is Paris; there is but one Paris"; the same can be said of Al Bundy.
God bless Al Bundy. May his tribe increase!
__________ ____________ ______________ ______________
Postscript written in sadness: I read that the real Al Bundy (there ain't nobody named Ed O'Neill nowhere; it's only Al Bundy) is a nice, decent, soft-spoken gentleman; what a let down!
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 16:58:18 GMT
the greatest TV show ever. 10/10 This is the story of Bundys. The Bundys are a chaotic white trash family. They live in a one-family house in Chicago. Al is married to Peggy for years. They have two children: Kelly and her younger brother Bud. They also have a dog. The Bundys live next to Marcy and her husband. Ostensibly the Bundys don't really like each other, but they will always stay together, or as Al says: "Love, hate, look, we're a family, what's the difference?" (episode 501). Their life is dominated by failure, but their lives go on, or as Al says: "Bundys are losers, not quitters" (episode 708). Peggy and the kids blame their miserable life to Al. Therefore Peggy asks Bud & Kelly to thank their father in an ironic way if something bad happens, and they go "thanks Dad". But the Bundys also enjoy each other's failures. However, they also have joyful moments where they like to do the Bundy cheer. Their family car is an early 70s Dodge.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 16:59:28 GMT
The greatest American sitcom ever made. 8/10 The only reason why I can't give 10 points to "Married with Children" is the laugh-track. However the show is so good that even laugh-track can't totally ruin it. Well acting isn't very good, except for Ed O'Neill. He's almost phenomenal as a relaxed yet sort of depressed family dad. Surely Christina Applegate is beautiful, but is that enough.
"Married with Children" has lots of good and funny moments unlike most American sitcoms. It's also witty and satiric. There's a wife who does simply nothing and two teenagers, the other is normal and the other is stupid and slutty. And of course the dad/husband who owns a shoe shop and has to deal with his wife's constant nagging. "Married with Children" may seem like regular Yankee comedy, but it really isn't. Why? Well - it's funny and it criticizes the all-American way of living and gets most of it's humor from that. No this is no "Monty Python goes to America", but as an American comedy this one of the greatest.
As summary I just say that "Married with Children" is a great show, but laugh-track reduces points.
(Again - it's hard to put all the stuff into words because of the language barrier.)
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 17:22:53 GMT
Comedy -- at it's best low brow! 10/10 Years ago, a little fledgling network called 'Fox' experimented with several pieces of programming which are now - legendary. No one thought this network would make it past a year, but it went straight for new, young and different shows than the other BIG networks were showing. In the beginning "The Tracey Ullman Show", "The Ben Stiller Show" are little known gems that come to mind - but "The Simpsons" and "Married WIth Children" put Fox on the map.
This show was ridiculously funny! It's blue collar, lowbrow, loads of fun! Many critics predicted it's demise after just a few episodes but the ensemble cast and the warped situations made this show a cut above many at it's time, even against the big network programming. And it had an audience - still does. Now it's in syndication and still is funny as all get up.
There are many episodes that are classics but they all revolve around one premise: a shoe salesman (Al Bundy) who can never reach that top break. He's your everyman, works for minimum wage but with his stay at home wife (Peggy Bundy), you'd never know! She spends his little money like buckets. His son (Bud Bundy)is academically brilliant, but he can't get a girl - his daughter (Kelly BUndy) is academically challenged, but is very pretty and that always puts her in demand with men and boys.
The initial seasons had a the perfect yuppie couple move next door (Steve and Marcy)who were the complete opposite of this family. They were greedy, money hungry and snotty. This also provided a great contrast to this lower income family. That was until in later seasons, the husband walked out on the wife, and she woke up married to a gigolo (Jefferson Darcy) - in complete contrast to all of her hopes and desires.
There's only one thing I did not like about the series - and that is when they tried to make a spin-off. Ruined it for me, the characters were annoying right from the start and didn't have the on sceen charisma as the Bundy's had - they were trying to hard to BE the Bundys. We already had one, no need for more.
Every actor played their parts well - so well that type casting came quick and folks forgot that everyone one of them had careers before this show and were versatile in their craft - such as Ed O'Neill. But to his credit, he created an icon - "Al Bundy" and will forever be associated with it, because he did it so well.
Funny, rude, crude, many jokes about "fat" women that even made some fat women chuckle at (and some jokes about fat women, yes they did go TOO far) but everyone was a target at one point or another on this show. A great cornerstone for FOX, a funny comedy about the most dysfunctional family ever (note: no cursing, just serious punch lines!) one of the best comedies of the 20th Century.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 17:45:20 GMT
It just makes you feel so good... 10/10 It's hard not to fall in love with this show. It's not terribly deep, yet still there's something about it. The main reason is because the characters are pretty entertaining:
* Al Bundy: politically incorrect, "sexist" (so to speak), bitter, he's the lovable dad. But not lovable in the same sense Peter Griffin and Homer Simpson are lovable (fat, dumb & nice), Al is actually fit, fairly intelligence and rude at times. But that's why we love him: he's not rude because of a sinister intent, he's rude because his life is screwed up enough to kill any desire he might have to be polite or diplomatic. And why wouldn't he be so bitter? He's in his 40's, he's a shoe salesman in a forsaken mall, his pay is next to nothing (worse yet, he gets paid in Pesos), he has a lazy, useless, nagging wife who always puts him down, a viciously stupid blonde daughter who's promiscuous and nearly proud about it, his son is smart but he's kinda short and is a miserable failure in his love life, yet the son is always confident in his abilities to get girls. Not only that, but he seems to have the worst luck in the world. He just can't get a damn break. To top it all off, his neighbors annoy the hell out of him. Al is revered and loved by every guy on Earth, and loathed and feared by every woman.
* Peggy Bundy: enormous red hair, constantly-worn high heels (causing her to walk funny), super lazy, can't cook, can't do dishes, can't do laundry, can't do anything at all. Or doesn't want to. Either way, her main hobby (other than sitting in front of the TV all day watching Opera and Soap Operas) is to put Al Down about his lousy job, laughable income, crappy car and miserable life. Al is always down on himself and fed up with life, so he doesn't have time for her, thus she's almost always in heat. But Al does not desire women anymore (well, not the ones who are married to him, at least), so he always finds ways to circumvent those requests of hers, even though Peggy *is* one helluva gal: sexy, fit and beautiful.
* Kelly Bundy: a legendary TV character, Kelly is worshiped by guys all over the world. She's the epitome of sexiness: glaringly bright blonde hair that flows like a platinum-gold waterfall, a curvy, staggeringly sculpted body, creamy-white, silky skin, and killer legs, topping it all off with an angelically beautiful face of luscious red lips, dazzling white teeth with a cute little gap in the front and mesmerizing eyes. Kelly (played by Christina Applegate) is the dream of every guy, every age, any taste. Despite her physical credentials, she's horribly stupid, to much of the agony of her dad, seeing how her idiocy comes at the worst possible times (she was a witness once for her dad). One of the reasons to watch the show. Of course, many other shows have had (and will continue to have) characters that might come close, but there will always be one Christiana Applegate. Those who saw Christina only in recent work (Anchorman, etc.) will be shocked to see how even MUCH sexier she was back then. Cracks non-stop jokes about her brother's lousy love life and bad skin.
* Bud: cracks non-stop jokes at his sister's promiscuity. He'd joke about her stupidity too, but doesn't, knowing she won't get them. Bud is pretty damn funny with sarcastic comments and endless trainwreck relationships.
The interaction of these characters, the situations they put themselves in, the crap that life throws at Al, all reasons to get addicted to the show. I still watch reruns and taped episodes.
The one big flaw of this show came later on: the audience. The laughter is alright, but they applauded EVERY character, EVERY episode. Every time a character walks in, they applaud. It's a waste of time. First it was Al and Kelly (which is just fine by me, I still applaud them every time), then it extended to the rest of the family, THEN the neighbors (Steve and Marcy, then Marcy and D'arcy). It was pretty damn annoying. Another smaller annoyance is 'talking' for Buck the dog. WTF? The human characters are fine, thank you very much. But those are more annoyances than they are problems. Four words sum up this show: thoroughly enjoyable, hopelessly addictive. You'll fall in love with this show in no time.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 17:51:57 GMT
Nothing else like it 10/10 This was truly a unique show. It was also the funniest sitcom I have ever seen - unlike almost all sitcoms, it was hilarious throughout every single show. And unlike almost all sitcoms, there almost never was a "moral to the story," (which writers seem to want to put into all their shows).
By exaggerating various character-types, the writers of this show were able to parody American life - and especially, parody the theme that formed the basis of family-based sitcoms up to that time - that conflicts, especially family conflicts, can be resolved within 1/2 hour. During the 1980's, there were some popular sitcoms that were supposed to be funny, but really were not - especially Family Ties. It mocked a lot of questions that were brought up in TV sitcoms the previous three decades. By using sleazy characters, and extremely obviously unrealistic situations(a shoe salesman is able to afford a three-story house in the suburbs, but never has food around the house, the husband never wants to have sex with his wife, an extremely dimwitted daughter) to deal with absolutely idiotic topics each episode, the writers of the show were able to bring parody to it's highest level possible - in terms of quality and effect this exceeds anything that is considered "highbrow" humor.
Married...with Children was so good, in fact, that it has raised expectations as to what is an acceptable level of humor. Excepting sports and education channels, I have watched very little since it went off the air.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 17:54:35 GMT
never anything else like it! 10/10 Ahhh.. I don't think there will ever be another show like this one. At least not for me. I was only a kid when it was airing, but I never missed an episode. It was like a family tradition to gather around the living room and laugh at the Bundys.
There may be fifty thousand television shows about dysfunctional families, but none as dysfunctional as this one. And none nearly as funny or original.
I've watched each episode at least 10 times and will watch each episode 10 more times and so on and so forth.
This show is about a married couple that always poke fun at each other and complain about how miserable they are, but they still love each other. And their children are just horrible. The daughter is no smarter than the dog (who sometimes "talks") and always brings around strange boys (who are even strange to her). And the son is the exact opposite, nearly a genius and desperate to get some action for SOMEONE.
Best comedy there will ever be. If you haven't seen this show then you should definitely catch the reruns on FX. You don't even need to buy the DVDs!
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 20:23:06 GMT
AL Bundy: The American Working Class Hero Meet Al Bundy. He works in the mall selling shoes. He's a nearly-do-well fellow once bound for glory on the Elysian fields of football but despite one shinning moment on the gridiron (which he constantly talks about) the opportunity slipped away.
Al has no hopes and dreams anymore. See he's MARRIED WITH CHILDREN, a dysfunctional family consisting of his self-centered wife, his precocious daughter and his nerdy son likely to follow in Dad's footsteps on the road to nowhere. The road to nowhere is Al's job in the mall selling women's shoes a job his children ridicule even though they aren't willing to provide for themselves.
A sharp contrast to Bundy's are the Rhodes, the dual income no kids couple right next door. The Rhodes are up and coming. Marcy Rhodes a young female executive career bound holds Al in especial contempt.
Christmas in the Bundy's house is a Bundy-Christmas often without presents.
Yet there if there is a decided look of mutual support, empathy or even commiseration in the way the Bundy's handle the daily hard grind, the up-and-coming smug Rhodes fare far worse. Steve Rhodes gets the heave-ho from Marcy when he loses his job. The Bundy's as dysfunctional as they are manage to pull through together.
Christmas may be a washout in the Bundy house. No harm done. Al's favorite holiday is Labor Day, which he calls Al Bun-Day, because in his view only he does any work. The old grill (never cleaned) is pulled out with last years embers and it's Peggy's turn to hide from Al, if she can.
The World According to Al Bundy You think I'm a loser? Because I have a stinking job that I hate, a family that doesn't respect me, and a whole city that curses the day I was born? Well, that may mean loser to you, but let me tell you something. Every day when I wake up in the morning, I know it's not going to get any better until I go back to sleep. So I get up. I have my watered-down Tang and my still-frozen Pop Tart. I get in my car with no gas, no upholstery, and six more payments. I fight honking traffic just for the privilege of putting cheap shoes onto the cloven hooves of people like you. I'll never play football like I wanted to. I'll never know the touch of a beautiful woman. And I'll never know the joy of driving through the city without a bag over my head. But I'm not a loser. Because, despite it all, me and every other guy who'll never be what they wanted to be, is out there, being what we don't want to be, forty hours a week, for life. And the fact that I didn't put a gun in my mouth years ago -- that little fact makes me a winner, baby!
I Care, by Al Bundy. When hooters jiggle around and I find nickels on the ground, I care. When a Mustang engine purrs and the bathroom is not hers, I care. When the pitcher's on the mound and the wife is underground, I care. But when I've been playing this for days, I will kill anyone who stays. I swear!
Peg, I don't wanna go to our high school reunion! Can't we just forget the good times and get on with our lives?
Even Al's arrogant neighbors do admit Al fires a good hamburger. Marcy may be snooty when she trades barbs with Al, but her choice of a second mate far exceeds any blunder a Bundy is capable of. Marcy Rhodes becomes Marcy Darcy after a three day drunk and for all Peg Bundy's merry indolence, Jefferson Darcy, Marcy's new beloved, is just a cheap fraud with a long record of flim0flams who now has won a life of ease at Marcy's expense.
Married with Children is the story of the people at the fringes of Reagan Glitz Kreig who served the festival of abundance in the mall but who are on the outside looking in. And taking a sharp look on the primary beneficiaries of the Great Bull Market, the Rhodes, one wonders if there is really any "inside" in the plastic world of sparkling trinkets to be envious of.
Though much criticized by women's groups for Al's crude behavior and sexist slurs, Married with Children was one of TV's most successful shows primarily because of the stunning acuteness of its social commentary.
It favourable compares to other TV shows and films in the Mall Genre and is most commendable for those interested in the study of mall culture. Other treats from the Silver and Small Screen on different aspects of the burgeoning science of Mallology films include: High Times at Richland High, Dawn of the Dead, Val Girl, One Hour Photo and the Charlton Heston Classic Omega Man.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 20:26:02 GMT
Best Sitcom ever 10/10 This is coming from someone who just adores the Simpsons, and family guy but the true classic of TV sitcoms is Married with Children. Every episode you will get unbearably funny witty lines, mainly from Al Bundy, but also some surprisingly funny stuff from Peg, Kelly, Bud and Marcy. You will get the best ones out of Marcy and Al who absolutely despise each other (they are neighbours by the way). Sitcoms now aday can't hold a candle to this classic and you rarely hear a line as witty, as insulting or as "OOOHHHH BURRRRRRN" type of funny. Please find clips on youtube or get duds if they are out... or better yet watch repeats, check your TV guide!!!
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 20:28:43 GMT
The show we all loved 10/10 Twenty years. Geez has it really been that long since we first met the Bundy family. I've seen lots and lots of sitcoms. Some are pure crap, others are decent and a selected few great. But "Married... with children" is no less than brilliant.
Why? On the top of my mind, it's because it isn't yet another sitcom dealing with some dimwitted, fat guy, who is married to a woman way too beautiful for him. The dysfunctional Bundy family is one of a kind on television, and the series was never afraid to deal with subjects the FCC and conservatives would like us to forget exists.
If you are to watch a classic comedy series, don't watch that Godforsaken Cosby show. Unrealistic crap. Watch "Married... with children". Eleven years after cancellation it still rocks!
PS: Recently I saw a rerun of "8 simple rules". A good comedy show, originally starring the late comedy legend John Ritter as Paul Hennessy. In one of the later episodes, taking place after the death of Paul/Ritter, his wife Cate Hennessy (Played by Katey Sagal) meets an old boyfriend, who is crazy about her... Played by no other the Ed O'Neil. It was a joy to see the two together again and this time as a more... well... ordinary couple
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 20:32:23 GMT
Pity it Ended I watch Married...With Children every week at 6:30 -- and even though we've might've seen on episode three times already -- it doesn't matter. This show is so hilarious that you'd think that it might've taken a miracle to come up with all of Al's jokes on Marcy to Kelly's ditzy reactions to the simplest thing (take Where's Waldo for those who've seen that one!) Simple description: the Bundy are like the hillbillies in a normal Chicago neighborhood. Al hates his life, his career selling shoes to fat women who think they're really a size 4, and anything else he can think of. He makes fun of his neighbor Marcy, calling her a chicken and making chicken remarks to her. Peggy is his redheaded, couch-sitting wife who eats bonbons and watches Oprah all the time. Their kids can't get any worse. Kelly is a living example to the term "dumb blonde" while Bud is just a desperate fellow looking for a girl to mess around with.
What makes this show so funny is how the Bundy family functions. It's a shame that this show stopped when I was only 6, but who cares as long as they keep the Bundy family living via TV!
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 20:35:03 GMT
Married with Children Got Better in The Later Seasons! Married with Children got BETTER IN THE LATER EPISODES. They were way more over the edge and more funny than the early seasons.
I feel that Jefferson also made the show. I can't believe he was in the later episodes of Happy Days (another show that tanked in the later seasons).
Married with Children will be considered one of the classic shows of the 90s along with Seinfeld Roseanne ans Saved By The Bell.
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Post by sbtbfanatic on Feb 6, 2014 21:00:28 GMT
Love & Marriage Begets Horse & Carriage 10/10 This show is an entertaining show because it never pretended to be anything but low brow hit in the gut humor. Early on it was there to help the FOX network fill space. From there it developed into something of a cult viewing.
The characters were well drawn and a lot of the humor came from throwing them together. Al Bundy became a cultural anti-hero. Peg, his wife, became a totally defined modern something that was there to aggravate Al. Bud Bundy became the most frustrated teen age son that ever existed because even when he did score it would somehow back fire. Christina Applegate(Kelly) is the eye candy daughter who would look good but who could be the kind of Satan that she would cross up everything.
Then there was Buck, the wonder dog who at times draws major laughs out of the most bizarre things happening around them. The neighbors headed by Ted McGinley & Amanda Bearse (Marcey & Jefferson) would manage a relationship with the ultimate dysfunctional family. This show pushed the adult humor border almost as often as The Simpsons but with wackier results.
There are times that the jokes hit the target and times they miss the target. The thing is to get great humor you have to throw things against the wall and see what sticks. With the Bundys, you throw up on the wall and the floor opens up & swallows your children. That is what Married With Children is really all about.
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