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Originally posted by Atticus Grinch
I should have put the poll in the re: line to avoid this confusion.
People, I said "ensemble sitcom." It's short for "situation comedy." The word "situation" is not superfluous. A sitcom consists of recurring characters in a format (usually a 30 minute show once a week) in which there are one or more story lines centered around a common environment, such as a family home or workplace. The characters remain largely static and events in the sitcom resolve themselves by the conclusion of the show. Wikipedia entry.
The Simpsons is a sitcom. Carol Burnett and Donnie & Marie are not sitcoms. Sha Na Na is not a sitcom. Hee Haw is not a sitcom. The Dukes of Hazzard is not a sitcom. All in the Family is a sitcom, but is not an ensemble sitcom, because Archie was the only funny character.
I would have said Northern Exposure is not a sitcom because it had a multi-season story arc --- the characters were evolving, as in a primetime drama or a soap opera. However, it's now de rigeur for sitcoms to have multi-episode plots that don't resolve on the half-hour (e.g., perpetual Friends cliffhangers). The traditional sitcom format returns the characters to the exact same position in which they started (now parodied by bringing Kenny back to life, killing Carl, or blowing up Sealab).
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Oh no! Three's Company won't qualify for at least two reasons: over time Jack pursued his interest in cooking and became a chef, and Chrissi (Chrissy, Chrissie, whatever) left and Terry came on! There might have been a third one too.
And I think on Alice the kid grew up, plus there was blond waitress turnover.
