[March Madness] Classic Sitcom Showdown!

Troy McClure: Your Guide to Sitcoms

Hello again, sports-fans!

Er… well… not necessarily “sport” fans, are we?

You see, every year around this time Americans unite in the traditional watching, scoring, and screaming-at-the-tv that comes with collegiate basketball’s March Madness. Also every year at this time, nerds, dweebs, and geeks feel a little left out. After last year’s absolutely amazing Cult TV March Madness special, we here at NonPro can’t wait to jump the shark with it again this year! Only this March we have a full 64 shows competing and it’s strictly sitcoms only!

Admit it, you’ve always wanted to know who’d win in a fight between ALF and Mrs. Garrett, and this year NonPro will give you the opportunity to find out! Like last year, most of the voting will be held over at our Facebook page, but we’ll give you amble room to sound off on our own site (for all you sub-social miscreants). Keep your eyes and rss-readers peeled for articles from every damn show on the network in the coming month!

What We Did:

We gathered 16 of the best sitcoms we could think of for each of the last four decades of the 20th century, ranked them, seeded them, allowed them to nurture, then plucked them out and created a bracket system that is at least as arbitrary as it is pointless. Now you get to vote on your favorite show per match, with the winner of the most votes going on to the next round. Simple right?

Shows were placed based on when they began (what decade) and shows needed to be off the air by the 21st century to be considered.

How to Vote:

A couple of ways. Leave a comment on any related article as the rounds progress, or answer one of our facebook page questions as the game goes on. Cheat! Vote often!

Round One

Here are all the contests of Round One. It’s a long list of matches, so vote carefully (not like you voted for the last presidential election).

Growing Pains (1985) vs. Full House (1987)
Disgustingly functional families fight off!

The Jeffersons (1975) vs. The Fresh Prince of Bell-Air (1990)
A rags to riches showdown!

The Nanny (1993) vs. Happy Days (1974)
The most annoying accents per battle right here.

The Secret Diary of Desmond Pfeiffer (1998) vs. The Cosby Show (1984)
Riptide vs. Dr. Who, round 2.

ALF (1984) vs. Chico and the Man (1974)
I would pay actual money to see this as a real fight.

The Bob Newhart Show (1972) vs. Diff’rent Stroke (1978)
A battle across generations!

Mister Ed (1961) vs. The Beverly Hillbillies (1962)
So many funny images spring to mind…

Maude (1972) vs. The Flintstones (1970)
Two catchy theme songs, only one survivor.

The Facts of Life (1979) vs. The Golden Girls (1985)
Cat-fight!

Mr. Belvedere (1985) vs. The Andy Griffith Show (1960)
We got to nip that Wesley in the bud!

Three’s Company (1977) vs. The Critic (1994)
Oh the sexual misunderstandings that would occur!

Caroline in the City (1995) vs. Car 54, Where Are You? (1961)
Caroline in the City Jail. Loitering.

Harry and the Hendersons (1991) vs. I Dream of Jeannie (1965)
Do genies count as cryptids?

The Adams Family (1964) vs. The Munsters (1964)

SWEET TAP-DANCING CHRIST THIS IS AMAZING!

Charles in Charge (1984) vs. Newhart (1982)
Were you a kid in the 80s, or an adult?

The Flying Nun (1967) vs. Hogan’s Heroes (1965)
The mash-up that we’ve all been waiting for!

Step by Step (1991) vs. Get Smart (1965)
If the little blonde nerdy boy grew up to be a secret agent…

Mork & Mindy (1978) vs. Living Single (1993)
Correction: THIS is the mash-up we’ve all been waiting for!

Home Improvement (1991) vs. The Partridge Family (1970)
Best home improvement: trade the house in for a technicolor bus.

Seinfeld (1989) vs. Coach (1989)
Craig T. Nelson versus the show about nothing.

All in the Family (1971) vs. Unhappily Ever After (1995)
Dysfunctional family feud!

Blossom (1991) vs. Green Acres (1965)
A sitcom that wasn’t afraid of doing serious episodes versus the sitcom with Joey Lawrence. Wait…

Married… with Children (1987) vs. Dinosaurs (1991)
Two trend setters, only one trend died young.

Benson (1989) vs. Gilligan’s Island (1964)
Will Benson’s experience fighting incompetence help him deal with Gilligan?

Mad About You (1992) vs. The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1977)
More estrogen than the entire first season of Golden Girls.

Bewitched (1964) vs. F Troop (1965)
The Salem Witch trials part 2!

Get a Life (1990) vs. The Adventures of Pete and Pete (1993)
Battle of the Cult Classics!

Clarissa Explains It All (1991) vs. Family Matters (1989)
Even Clarissa would have trouble explaining Erkel.

Perfect Strangers (1986) vs. Cheers (1982)
This is the contest to watch in Round One, mark our words!

Sanford and Son (1972) vs. Greatest American Hero (1981)
Frank’s fanfic where the instructions for the super-suit wind up in the junkyard will go unread for another year.

The Love Boat (1977) vs. The Dick Van Dyke Show (1961)
Classic Camp versus Classic Comedy.

The Brady Bunch (1969) vs. Alice (1976)
Alice the waitress, not Alice the maid. Although that would be awesome!