New Comedies Are A Mix of Yuk and Yuck

摘要

Several comedies unveiled during the TCA summer press tour in Beverly Hills stretched the concept of sitcom in any number of directions. What constitutes comedy is more of a wholly subjective debate than ever before. New shows include Amazon's One Mississippi, which sees comedian Tig Notaro saddled with cancer and gastrointestinal distress, visit her dying mother; and FX's Better Things, about a divorced mother, featuring frank talk about porn, abortion and other taboo topics. They infuse the conventional TV comedy with gloom, doom and a dash of dramatic flourish.