Night Court which began and ran on NBC from 1984-1992 was never one of the all time greatest sitcoms but it was a fun and very entertaining show nonetheless that was always fun to watch reruns of years after it ended.
What made it a good sitcom was the chemistry of its cast. Harry Anderson, Markie Post, Richard Moll, Charles Robinson Marsha Warfield and standout John Larroquette all made the show entertaining with their chemistry and comic timing together.
After Markie Post's passing two years ago I rewatched some old episodes of the original series and while a few things are dated it surprisingly holds up well for a sitcom over 30 years old.
It was also then that this sequel series had been announced with Melissa Rauch from Big Bang Theory playing Judge Stone's daughter and Larroquette returning as Dan Fielding along with some new characters.
With Rauch and Larroquette in the mix I figured it had to be watchable at least with the two of them.
The good news is their performances make the show watchable and they are good, but the rest is very average.
The problem I feel is this sequel series is ten years too late.
This might have been funny ten years ago with a majority of the cast still alive but it seems like the creators have forgotten that Anderson, Post, and Robinson have since passed away and Warfield and Moll aren't in the mix so with only Larroquette as the surviving cast member from the original participating in the sequel he just isn't enough to carry the series along with Rauch.
Larroquette to me was the best part of the original series in my opinion but his supporting cast truly made him shine.
He and Rauch don't have the same chemistry of the original program and neither do the underdeveloped other characters.
If they had done this as a miniseries 10 or so years ago with the main cast of the original back for a reunion this probably would have been very funny, but the whole point of a good revival is mixing characters we loved from the original along with new fresh characters.
I think this could work ok as a miniseries and small sequel to a good show, but I don't think unless things dramatically improve it will be successful as a long-running series like it's predecessor was.
Get back more surviving original cast members. Bring back Moll, Warfield and even Ellen Foley who was only on in season 2 and you may have something.
Rauch does a nice job and captures Harry Anderson's spirit very well and she is charming but her charm is just not enough to sustain a long running series.
Larroquette is a welcome presence and seeing him back as the self-centered Fielding is enjoyable but he doesn't seem to have the spark or energy that he did on the original show. I think this is attributed to the fact he is now acting alongside actors who are young enough to be his grandchildren, and lest we not forget the guy has hardly done anything noteworthy since the original Night Court ended in 1992.
He did Richie Rich a forgotten Macaulay Culkin flop, he had a sitcom of his own that lasted three years with low ratings, a few Hallmark movies and some appearances on Boston Legal. But in 30 years that is not much activity and his lack of anything noteworthy since the original Night Court ended has definitely caught up with him. He has always been a good actor and I find it hard to believe he hasn't been in anything truly noteworthy in the last three decades. He can do more than Dan Fielding and should have in between the years from the original to sequel series.
I would like to see this show succeed but I think it will be forgotten after a few episodes and cancelled unless more original cast members come back and if they focus more on the eccentricities of the courtroom itself rather than just depending on Rauch and Larroquette's presence to solely carry the show.
It has potential but it definitely needs some stronger writing and a few more standout characters if it will truly work in my opinion.
What made it a good sitcom was the chemistry of its cast. Harry Anderson, Markie Post, Richard Moll, Charles Robinson Marsha Warfield and standout John Larroquette all made the show entertaining with their chemistry and comic timing together.
After Markie Post's passing two years ago I rewatched some old episodes of the original series and while a few things are dated it surprisingly holds up well for a sitcom over 30 years old.
It was also then that this sequel series had been announced with Melissa Rauch from Big Bang Theory playing Judge Stone's daughter and Larroquette returning as Dan Fielding along with some new characters.
With Rauch and Larroquette in the mix I figured it had to be watchable at least with the two of them.
The good news is their performances make the show watchable and they are good, but the rest is very average.
The problem I feel is this sequel series is ten years too late.
This might have been funny ten years ago with a majority of the cast still alive but it seems like the creators have forgotten that Anderson, Post, and Robinson have since passed away and Warfield and Moll aren't in the mix so with only Larroquette as the surviving cast member from the original participating in the sequel he just isn't enough to carry the series along with Rauch.
Larroquette to me was the best part of the original series in my opinion but his supporting cast truly made him shine.
He and Rauch don't have the same chemistry of the original program and neither do the underdeveloped other characters.
If they had done this as a miniseries 10 or so years ago with the main cast of the original back for a reunion this probably would have been very funny, but the whole point of a good revival is mixing characters we loved from the original along with new fresh characters.
I think this could work ok as a miniseries and small sequel to a good show, but I don't think unless things dramatically improve it will be successful as a long-running series like it's predecessor was.
Get back more surviving original cast members. Bring back Moll, Warfield and even Ellen Foley who was only on in season 2 and you may have something.
Rauch does a nice job and captures Harry Anderson's spirit very well and she is charming but her charm is just not enough to sustain a long running series.
Larroquette is a welcome presence and seeing him back as the self-centered Fielding is enjoyable but he doesn't seem to have the spark or energy that he did on the original show. I think this is attributed to the fact he is now acting alongside actors who are young enough to be his grandchildren, and lest we not forget the guy has hardly done anything noteworthy since the original Night Court ended in 1992.
He did Richie Rich a forgotten Macaulay Culkin flop, he had a sitcom of his own that lasted three years with low ratings, a few Hallmark movies and some appearances on Boston Legal. But in 30 years that is not much activity and his lack of anything noteworthy since the original Night Court ended has definitely caught up with him. He has always been a good actor and I find it hard to believe he hasn't been in anything truly noteworthy in the last three decades. He can do more than Dan Fielding and should have in between the years from the original to sequel series.
I would like to see this show succeed but I think it will be forgotten after a few episodes and cancelled unless more original cast members come back and if they focus more on the eccentricities of the courtroom itself rather than just depending on Rauch and Larroquette's presence to solely carry the show.
It has potential but it definitely needs some stronger writing and a few more standout characters if it will truly work in my opinion.