Yahoo Lifestyle 17 TV Shows With Shockingly Bad Premises That'll Have You Wondering Who Green Lit Them
TV shows with weird premises aren't always bad. Take, for example, WandaVision, which, before it premiered, had a lot of people wondering how the heck the plot would work and saying, "That sounds weird." It's not only one of the best things that Marvel has created but also one of the best TV shows of the 2020s period.
Another show with an admittedly bizarre premise was the '90s sitcom Dinosaurs. Initially dismissed as a kid-friendly knockoff of The Simpsons, the show proved to be surprisingly funny, packed with subversive storytelling, and ended with one of the darkest series finales in TV history. That said, not every show with a weird premise sticks the landing — some are just plain bad and probably should have raised some red flags when they were pitched. I rounded up a few that range from WTF? to "Who the hell approved that?!":
1.Aliens in the Family (1996)
Premise: The show, which was part of TGIF's lineup, revolved around a human father, Doug Brody, who gets abducted by a single alien mother, Cookie, and instead of him freaking the F out, he falls in love with her. The two get married and try to raise their children — both human and alien — under one roof like The Brady Bunch.
2.Hi Honey, I'm Home! (1991–92)
Premise: The series was about a 1950s-style sitcom family, the Nielsens, who were part of an old TV show — also called Hi Honey, I'm Home — that has been canceled. To adapt to the modern world, they were relocated to suburban New Jersey under the "Sitcom Relocation Program." Though they live in a black-and-white world, they use a remote to turn themselves into color. After they move to New Jersey, their old sitcom-loving teen neighbor discovers who they are, and Honey swears him to secrecy. The show also featured actors from old TV sitcoms reprising their roles (like Gale Gordon as Mr. Mooney from The Lucy Show, as seen in the photo above), visiting the Nielsens as they themselves were also part of the Sitcom Relocation Program.
3.Cop Rock (1990)
Premise: Created by Hill Street Blues creator Steven Bochco (who would go on to also create the critically acclaimed show NYPD Blue), the show followed the lives of LAPD officers and detectives as they tackled crime and corruption — however, the characters would spontaneously break into original Broadway-style songs along with fully choreographed dances. This one is just baffling, especially considering that movie musicals (outside of Disney animated movies) were not really popular in the '90s.
4.My Mother the Car (1965-66)
Premise: The show follows attorney David Crabtree (played by Jerry Van Dyke), who discovers that his recently purchased antique car, a 1928 Porter, is possessed by the spirit of his late mother, Gladys (who speaks with him through the car radio). She offers him advice, meddles in his life, and tries to protect him from the greedy car collector Captain Manzini, who wants to steal the Porter. This was filmed at a time when sitcoms filmed a lot of episodes a season, so despite this only lasting a season, there are 30 (!!!) episodes of this shit.
5.Out of this World (1987–91)
Premise: On her 13th birthday, Evie Garland discovers she is half-alien after discovering that she has special powers (initially, it was just stopping time). Her mother confesses that her father, Troy, is an alien and that she has a special prism that would allow her to talk to him like it was a phone. Fun fact: Burt Reynolds was the voice of Troy.
6.The Charmings (1987–88)
Premise: Snow White and Prince Charming think they killed her evil stepmother, the Queen, by throwing her down a pit. However, the Queen lived and cast a spell on them, making the Charmings fall asleep for 1,000 years. But the Queen also accidentally cast the spell on herself, the Magic Mirror, and one of the Dwarfs. They all wake up 1,000 years later in suburban LA and try to adjust to life in the '80s. Also, in typical '80s sitcom style, the Queen, the Magic Mirror, and the Dwarf move in with the Charmings, all living under one roof because why not? In case you're wondering, this lasted two seasons.
7.Struck by Lightning (1979)
Premise: Science teacher Ted, who is also unaware that he is a descendant of Dr. Frankenstein, inherits an inn in New England with a caretaker named Frank. Well, turns out that Frank is Frankenstein's Monster. However, he needs a special serum to keep him alive, which he begs Ted to make for him.
8.Manimal (1983)
Premise: The series revolves around Dr. Jonathan Chase, a wealthy British man who is also a college professor at New York University (why is he working if he is rich?), and has the secret ability to transform into any animal. He uses his power to transform into different animals to help the police solve crimes and bring criminals to justice (which, I guess, he does in his spare time from being a professor?).
9.The Ugliest Girl in Town (1968–69)
Premise: American Hollywood talent agent Tim Blair helps his brother do a photo shoot by dressing like a hippie. His brother sends the photos to the UK, where a modeling agent assumes that Tim is a woman, so he offers "her" a job. Tim realizes that by accepting this job, he will be able to be reunited with British actress, Julie Reinfeld, who he had dated while she filmed a movie in LA. So, Tim renames himself Timmie and dresses as a woman to go be a model in London to be close to Julie. And if you don't believe this was a real premise, you can watch the intro.
10.Holmes & Yoyo (1976—77)
Premise: A "buddy cop" comedy about a clumsy but well-meaning police detective, Detective Alexander Holmes, who is assigned a new partner — Yoyo a humanoid android designed to assist in law enforcement. And I guess two calculators glued onto a tin box passed for an android in 1976.
11.The Munsters Today (1988—91)
Premise: A direct sequel to the classic '60s sitcom (but with a new cast). The Munster family — Herman, Lily, Grandpa, Eddie, and Marilyn — accidentally put themselves into suspended animation due to one of Grandpa’s failed experiments, and wake up 22 years later, and like the Charmings, find themselves trying to adapt to living in the '80s.
12.Small Wonder (1985—89)
Premise: Ted Lawson, a robotics engineer who secretly builds a human-like robot named Vicki (Voice Input Child Identicant). Ted, his wife Joan, and their son Jamie, try to keep the fact that Vicki is a robot a secret, though it's difficult because she has robotic quirks, monotone speech, and superhuman strength. To be fair, I think this was a daytime sitcom aimed at kids, so its cheesy plot was the appeal.
13.Mr. Smith (1983)
Premise: Mr. Smith (played by an actual orangutan named C.J.) is a talking orangutan who gained genius-level intelligence after a lab experiment. He uses his intelligence to become a political consultant in Washington, D.C., offering his expertise to government officials.
14.Jennifer Slept Here (1983—84)
Premise: Jennifer Farrell was a glamorous movie star who died in 1978, after an ice cream truck she was chasing backed into her and now haunts her former mansion. When a wealthy new family — the Elliots — move from New York into Jennifer's house, only the teenage son, Joey, can see and communicate with her.
15.Teen Angel (1997—98)
Premise: The series, which aired as part of TGIF lineup, followed Marty DePolo, a teenage boy who dies after eating a 6-month-old hamburger on a dare. He is sent back to Earth to be the guardian angel to his best friend, Steve.
16.The Brady Bunch Hour (1976—77)
Premise: The series was a show within a show, and it followed the Brady family, who were selected to star in their own TV variety show. With the family now having their own show, Mike Brady gives up his architectural career and the entire family (including Alice) move into a beach-side home in LA. Each episode was a mix of scripted family moments, and elaborate musical and comedy performances with special guest stars. The show also featured all of the original Brady Bunch cast except for Eve Plumb (who played Jan).
17.Cavemen (2007)
Premise: The show was based on the popular '00s Geico commercials (yes, those Geico commercials) that featured anthropomorphized cavemen. In the series, three cavemen — who have physical features of prehistoric cavemen, but act like ordinary modern people — struggle to be accepted because of their appearance.
