Best tv shows like 8 Simple Rules
Last updated March 2024
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Plot Summary:
What happens to a loving, rational Dad when his darling, pliable daughters morph into hormonally-challenged, incomprehensible teenagers? If he's Paul Hennessy, he reacts in ways even he finds crazy. Thank God he has a 13-year-old son who still speaks his language.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 27000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, sitcom, touching, realistic, witty, hilarious, not serious, nostalgic
Best tv shows and movies like 8 Simple Rules (2002):
Similar in 80%
Kath & Kim (2008)
Plot Summary:
Kath & Kim is an American version of the Australian television comedy series of the same name starring Selma Blair and Molly Shannon. The series premiered on NBC on October 9, 2008. The Australian version was created by its original stars, Jane Turner and Gina Riley, who also serve as executive producers and consultants on this version as well, which is co-produced through Reveille Productions and Universal Media Studios. Its first episode premiered in Australia on Sunday, October 12 on the Seven Network and its Australian broadcast was cancelled after the second episode the following week. The series was then pushed to a graveyard slot of 11pm Mondays, and then pre-empted for the 2009 Australian Open after the first-run airing of episode 9, "Friends". Although the show initially garnered unremarkable ratings and mixed reviews from critics, NBC picked up Kath & Kim for a full season order of 22 episodes on October 31, 2008. On January 15, 2009, NBC cut the episode order from 22 to 17 episodes. The show's season finale aired on March 12, 2009. On May 19, 2009, NBC confirmed the series cancellation.
IMDB Rating: 4.9
IMDB Votes: 2000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA, Australia
Duration:
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, not serious, sincere, realistic, witty, tv series pilot
Similar in 75%
Still Standing (2002)
Plot Summary:
After 18 years of marriage, high school sweethearts Bill and Judy Miller still make each other laugh and try to keep their marriage intact, even when their family pulls them in different directions. Since Bill has a far more immature approach to marriage and raising their three children than Judy does, they work at striking a balance and remembering why they love each other, quirks and all.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Comedy, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, sentimental, touching, humorous, semi serious, realistic, black comedy
Similar in 79%
The War at Home (2005)
Plot Summary:
The War at Home is an American sitcom created by Rob Lotterstein that ran from September 11, 2005 to April 22, 2007 on Fox. It follows the antics of a largely dysfunctional Long Island family. The show lasted for two full seasons but was not renewed for a third season.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Comedy, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, witty, semi serious, light, entertaining, funny, romantic, feel good, captivating
Similar in 82%
Grounded for Life (2001)
Plot Summary:
Right out of high school, Sean Finnerty got his girlfriend Claudia pregnant. Now she’s his wife, and at just 32, he’s somehow found himself with 14-year-old daughter Lily, two little boys, and a constant struggle between his need to be responsible and his desperate desire to be irresponsible. His judgmental father Walt and devil-may-care brother Eddie are no help at all. When they all get together, stories always start to fly. Of course, Sean’s family will never let him finish a story; they interrupt, they debate, they derail, they defend themselves; just like any good family would.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: sitcom, funny, feel good, humorous, realistic, witty, entertaining, light, captivating, not serious
Similar in 81%
Sons & Daughters (2006)
Plot Summary:
Family is always unpredictable, so why write a family comedy when you can live dangerously and improvise instead? Like real families, you never know what will happen when you give characters total freedom. Adult siblings Cameron, Sharon and Jenna have many years of shared history in this small town. Like every other family on the planet, their history includes many mistakes. This is proven by the multiple marriages and many children in their close extended clan.
IMDB Rating: 8.4
IMDB Votes: 532
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: humorous, semi serious, realistic, sitcom, light, sexy, feel good, sexual
Similar in 89%
Surviving Suburbia (2009)
Plot Summary:
Surviving Suburbia is an American sitcom starring Bob Saget and Cynthia Stevenson that aired on American Broadcasting Company from April 6 to August 7, 2009. The series originally aired at 9:30 PM Eastern/8:30 PM Central following Dancing with the Stars, before moving to Fridays at 8:30 PM Eastern/7:30 PM Central for its remaining episodes. It was the first program starring Saget to air on ABC since he left America's Funniest Home Videos in 1997. On August 8, 2009, ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson announced that Surviving Suburbia, along with The Goode Family, had officially been cancelled due to low ratings.
IMDB Rating: 5.6
IMDB Votes: 543
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, feel good, light, captivating, realistic, witty, not serious
Similar in 84%
Everybody Loves Raymond (1996)
Plot Summary:
Everybody Loves Raymond is an American television sitcom starring Ray Romano, Patricia Heaton, Brad Garrett, Doris Roberts, and Peter Boyle. It originally ran on CBS from September 13, 1996, to May 16, 2005. Many of the situations from the show are based on the real-life experiences of Romano, creator/producer Phil Rosenthal and the show's writing staff. The main characters on the show are also loosely based on Romano's and Rosenthal's real-life family members. The show reruns in syndication on various channels, such as TBS, TV Land, and in most TV markets on local stations. From 2000 to 2007, KingWorld distributed the show for off-network syndication and Warner Bros. Television Distribution handled international distribution. In 2007, CBS Television Distribution took over King World's distribution. CBS only owns American syndication rights; ancillary rights are controlled by HBO and Warner Bros. Television.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 76000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, feel good, not serious, realistic, funny, hilarious, fun, odd, nostalgic
Similar in 88%
Soap (1977)
Plot Summary:
Soap is an American sitcom that originally ran on ABC from 1977 into 1981. The show was created as a night-time parody of daytime soap operas, presented as a weekly half-hour prime time comedy. Similar to a soap opera, the show's story was presented in a serial format and included melodramatic plot elements such as alien abduction, demonic possession, murder, and kidnapping. In 2007 it was listed as one of Time magazine's "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME," and in 2010, the Tates and the Campbells ranked at number 17 in TV Guide's list of "TV's Top Families". The show was created, written, and executive produced by Susan Harris, and also executive produced by Paul Junger Witt and Tony Thomas. Each returning season was preceded by a 90-minute retrospective of the previous season. Two of these retrospectives were made available on VHS in 1994. The show aired 85 episodes over the course of four seasons. The final four episodes of the series aired as one-hour episodes during the original run on ABC. These hour-long episodes were later split in two, yielding 93 half-hour episodes for syndication. All episodes are currently available on region 1 DVD in four separate box sets. In the past, the series has rerun on local syndicated channels as well as on cable on Comedy Central and TV Land. It ran on over-the-air television on Antenna TV, until December 30th, 2012.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: parody, sitcom, humorous, clever, witty, not serious, offbeat, soap opera, cliffhanger, retro
Similar in 77%
According to Jim (2001)
Plot Summary:
According to Jim is an American sitcom television series starring Jim Belushi in the title role as a suburban father of three children. It originally ran on ABC from October 1, 2001 to June 2, 2009.
IMDB Rating: 6.5
IMDB Votes: 38000
Genere: Comedy, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, feel good, realistic, not serious, funny, hilarious, fun, situational comedy
Similar in 82%
Married... with Children (1987)
Plot Summary:
Married... with Children is an American sitcom that aired for 11 seasons. It featured a dysfunctional family living in a fictional Chicago, Illinois, suburb. The show, notable for being the first prime-time television series to air on Fox, ran from April 5, 1987, to June 9, 1997. The series was created by Michael G. Moye and Ron Leavitt. The show was known for handling nonstandard topics for the time period, which garnered the then-fledgling Fox network a standing among the Big Three television networks. The series' 11-season, 259-episode run makes it the longest-lasting live-action sitcom on the Fox network. The show's famous theme song is "Love and Marriage" by Sammy Cahn and Jimmy Van Heusen, performed by Frank Sinatra from the 1955 television production Our Town. The first season of the series was videotaped at ABC Television Center in Hollywood. From season 2 to season 8, the show was taped at Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood, and the remaining three seasons were taped at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City. The series was produced by Embassy Communications on its first season and the remaining seasons by ELP Communications under the studio Columbia Pictures Television.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 109000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, hilarious, parody, light, feel good, funny, retro, psychedelic, deep
Similar in 80%
Roseanne (1988)
Plot Summary:
A working-class family struggles to get by on a limited income in the fictional town of Lanford, Illinois.
IMDB Rating: 7.0
IMDB Votes: 46000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 21 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, funny, realistic, witty, cynical, biting, suspense, iconic
Similar in 82%
Greetings From Tucson (2002)
Plot Summary:
In this autobiographical family comedy, based on the life of series creator Peter Murrieta, life is seen through the eyes of 15-year-old David Tiant as he faces the challenges of growing up in an ethnically mixed, upwardly mobile family.
IMDB Rating: 7.4
IMDB Votes: 152
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: touching, humorous, semi serious, sitcom, realistic
Similar in 88%
Parenthood (2010)
Plot Summary:
Parenthood is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Jason Katims. Loosely based on the 1989 film of the same title, Parenthood tells of the Braverman clan which consists of an older couple, their four children and their families.
IMDB Rating: 8.3
IMDB Votes: 37000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: humorous, realistic, touching, semi serious, sincere, captivating, sitcom
Similar in 79%
Life Unexpected (2010)
Plot Summary:
Life Unexpected is a coming-of-age family drama that centers around 16-year-old Lux, who was given up for adoption at birth but never adopted. When she is put back into the custody of her estranged-since-high-school birth parents, Cate and Baze, the three form an unlikely family.
IMDB Rating: 7.5
IMDB Votes: 15000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA, Canada
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: sentimental, feel good, semi serious, touching, humorous, sincere, captivating, teen, realistic, teen comedy
Similar in 81%
Family Ties (1982)
Plot Summary:
Former 1960s flower children Steven and Elyse Keaton raise their conservative son Alex, daughters Mallory and Jennifer, and later, youngest child Andrew.
IMDB Rating: 7.3
IMDB Votes: 20000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, witty, semi serious, atmospheric, iconic, vintage
Similar in 86%
Good Luck Charlie (2010)
Plot Summary:
Good Luck Charlie is an American television sitcom, which premiered on April 4, 2010, on Disney Channel. The series was created by Phil Baker and Drew Vaupen, who wanted to create a program that would appeal to entire families, as opposed to only children. It focuses on a Denver family, the Duncans, as they try to adjust to the births of their fourth and fifth children, Charlotte "Charlie" Duncan and Toby Duncan. In each episode, Teddy Duncan creates a video diary containing advice for Charlie about their family and life as a teenager. Teddy tries to show Charlie what she might go through when she is older in the video diaries for future reference. Each video diary ends with Teddy saying the eponymous phrase, "Good luck, Charlie". Among other decisions, executives included adult-centric scenes and changed the series title from Oops to Love, Teddy and finally to Good Luck Charlie in order to ensure the series would appeal to all family members. Good Luck Charlie premiered on Disney Channel in the United States on April 4, 2010. It premiered in Canada on April 5, 2010, the United Kingdom and Ireland on May 14, 2010, and in Australia and New Zealand on July 23, 2010. Good Luck Charlie was renewed for a second season, with production beginning in August 2010 with a season premiere on February 20, 2011. A feature-length Christmas Disney Channel Original Movie based on the series entitled Good Luck Charlie, It's Christmas! began production in March 2011 for a December 2011 premiere.
IMDB Rating: 7.1
IMDB Votes: 24000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: sitcom, feel good, humorous, witty, sentimental, realistic, semi serious, funny, fun, nostalgic
Similar in 82%
Full House (1987)
Plot Summary:
Full House is an American sitcom television series. Set in San Francisco, the show chronicles widowed father Danny Tanner, who, after the death of his wife Pam, enlists his best friend Joey Gladstone and his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis to help raise his three daughters, D.J., Stephanie, and Michelle.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 62000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, sentimental, touching, realistic, feel good, semi serious, captivating, game show, sensitive
Similar in 78%
See Dad Run (2012)
Plot Summary:
The story of David Hobbs, who has spent the last decade playing the perfect father on one of TV’s biggest sitcoms. But when the series ends and his wife resumes her own television career, he finds himself cast in his most challenging role to date: handling the day-to-day needs of three kids who've grown accustomed to not having him around. David soon learns that playing a dad on TV is child’s play compared to the real thing.
IMDB Rating: 5.0
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 23 min
Plot tags: humorous, not serious, light, sitcom, funny, feel good, captivating, entertaining, realistic
Similar in 78%
Better With You (2010)
Plot Summary:
Better with You is an American romantic sitcom TV show starring Joanna Garcia Swisher and Jennifer Finnigan. The series aired on Wednesdays at 8:30 pm Eastern/7:30 pm Central on ABC and ran from September 22, 2010 to May 11, 2011. The series was officially canceled on May 13, 2011 by ABC.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 3000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, feel good, not serious, light, hilarious, realistic, witty
Similar in 79%
Reba (2001)
Plot Summary:
After her dentist husband of 20 years leaves her for his dental hygienist, Reba Hart's seemingly perfect world is turned upside down..
IMDB Rating: 6.7
IMDB Votes: 17000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, feel good, semi serious, realistic, inspirational, game show
Similar in 82%
One Day at a Time (1975)
Plot Summary:
One Day at a Time is an American situation comedy that aired on the CBS network from December 16, 1975, until May 28, 1984. It starred Bonnie Franklin as Ann Romano, a divorced mother who moves to Indianapolis with her two teenage daughters Julie and Barbara Cooper with Dwayne Schneider as their building superintendent. The show was created by Whitney Blake and Allan Manings, a husband-and-wife writing duo who were both actors in the 1950s and 1960s. The show was based on Whitney Blake's own life as a single mother, raising her child, future actress Meredith Baxter. The show was developed by Norman Lear and was produced by T.A.T. Communications Company, Allwhit, Inc., and later Embassy Television. Like many shows developed by Lear, One Day at a Time was more of a comedy-drama, using its half-hour to tackle serious issues in life and relationships, particularly those related to second wave feminism. The earlier seasons in particular featured several multi-part episodes, serious topics, and dramatic moments. As in other Lear shows of the era, the show was shot on videotape in front of a live audience, giving it a sense of immediacy, and close-ups were often employed during dramatic scenes. As the social climate changed in the 1980s, the show's writing became less edgy, and as the girls became adults, the innovation of the original premise — a divorced mother raising teenage children — was lost. The show's nine years give it the second-longest tenure of any Lear-developed sitcom under its original name, after The Jeffersons.
IMDB Rating: 6.6
IMDB Votes: 5000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, touching, semi serious, sexual, sexy
Similar in 84%
Blossom (1990)
Plot Summary:
Blossom is an American sitcom broadcast on NBC from January 3, 1991, to May 22, 1995. The series was created by Don Reo, and starred Mayim Bialik as Blossom Russo, a teenager living with her father and two brothers. It was produced by Reo's Impact Zone Productions in association with Witt/Thomas Productions and Touchstone Television.
IMDB Rating: 6.1
IMDB Votes: 9000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, touching, witty, semi serious
Similar in 76%
Yes, Dear (2000)
Plot Summary:
A comedy about two young couples and their outrageously contrasting views on parenting. Greg and Kim Warner struggle on a daily basis to become perfect at the job. Kim is a neurotic, stay-at-home mother, and although her husband, Greg, is a success in his career, his more difficult job is keeping his wife calm as they raise their two young children. While Kim is determined to be the perfect mother and perfect wife and to raise the perfect children, her sister, Christine Hughes, a very down-to-earth mother of two, continually reminds her that life will never be perfect. Christine's husband, Jimmy, often feels compelled to share with his brother-in-law his philosophy about being a husband and a parent while still remaining a man.
IMDB Rating: 6.9
IMDB Votes: 8000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, not serious, entertaining, funny, light, feel good, captivating, game show
Similar in 87%
Quintuplets (2004)
Plot Summary:
Quintuplets is a quirky ensemble comedy about the trials and tribulations of two parents raising 15-year-old quintuplets in a three-bedroom home.
IMDB Rating: 6.8
IMDB Votes: 1000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 84%
Raising Dad (2001)
Plot Summary:
Raising Dad is an American television series that aired on the WB from September 2001 until May 2002. The series starred Bob Saget, Kat Dennings, Brie Larson, Riley Smith, Beau Wirick, and Jerry Adler, and was produced by Albion Productions in association with Paramount Television.
IMDB Rating: 5.8
IMDB Votes: 345
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Duration: 30 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, semi serious
Similar in 78%
That '70s Show (1998)
Plot Summary:
Crank up the 8-track and flash back to a time when platform shoes and puka shells were all the rage in this hilarious retro-sitcom. For Eric, Kelso, Jackie, Hyde, Donna and Fez, a group of high school teens who spend most of their time hanging out in Eric’s basement, life in the ‘70s isn’t always so groovy. But between trying to figure out the meaning of life, avoiding their parents, and dealing with out-of-control hormones, they’ve learned one thing for sure: they’ll always get by with a little help from their friends.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 187000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, sentimental, realistic, not serious, funny, mystical, parody, light, atmospheric
Similar in 87%
Six Feet Under (2001)
Plot Summary:
A darkly comic look at members of a dysfunctional L.A. family that run a funeral business. When death is your business, what is your life? For the Fisher family, the world outside of their family-owned funeral home continues to be at least as challenging as--and far less predictable than--the one inside.
IMDB Rating: 8.7
IMDB Votes: 145000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 60 min
Plot tags: emotional, surreal, clever, captivating, dark comedy, tense, contemplative, dramatic, psychological, spiritual
Similar in 82%
Modern Family (2009)
Plot Summary:
The Pritchett-Dunphy-Tucker clan is a wonderfully large and blended family. They give us an honest and often hilarious look into the sometimes warm, sometimes twisted, embrace of the modern family.
IMDB Rating: 8.5
IMDB Votes: 469000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Country: USA
Duration: 22 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, funny, mockumentary, entertaining, hilarious, teen, realistic, exciting, feel good
Similar in 87%
Gilmore Girls (2000)
Plot Summary:
Set in the charming town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut, the series follows the captivating lives of Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, a mother/daughter pair who have a relationship most people only dream of.
IMDB Rating: 8.2
IMDB Votes: 143000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Duration: 44 min
Plot tags: realistic, feel good, humorous, witty, talky, semi serious, light, satirical, deep, comedy drama
Similar in 89%
Boy Meets World (1993)
Plot Summary:
Boy Meets World is an American television sitcom that chronicles the coming of age events and everyday life-lessons of Cory Matthews, a Philadelphian who grows up from a young boy to a married man. The show aired for seven seasons from 1993 to 2000 on ABC, part of the network's TGIF lineup. The entire series has been released on DVD, as well as on iTunes.
IMDB Rating: 8.1
IMDB Votes: 46000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Family
Country: USA
Duration: 23 min
Plot tags: sitcom, humorous, realistic, feel good, semi serious, touching, sweet, teen comedy, nostalgic