Busted

I really like sitcoms. I think it’s because you can describe them, in most cases, with one sentence. And that translates to how the show operates. You’re really just creating a loose construct where your characters can interact with each other. It doesn’t need to be complicated. And the characters can’t be so constricted early on that they can’t grow or adapt. Predictable characters will sink a sitcom. And yet they need to be predictable enough that they don’t find themselves outside of your original design. It is a fine, fine line.

If it takes too much time to explain a show, it isn’t going to be good. I mean, look at the most successful ones and how they can be described: black family, friends at a bar, friends in New York, Jewish friends in New York. Five words at the most? Those aren’t even sentences! Now, some of the most successful ones have more intricate plots, which I will ignore because it doesn’t prove my point. And it also opens a debate as to whether longevity equals success. I’m talking to you, Will & Grace. In this case, success equals whether or not I liked the damn thing. I feel like you could have a show described to you and from that briefest of exposures, you should be able to make a reasonable guess as to whether you’ll enjoy it or not.

None of that is the idea. The idea is for an actual sitcom. One I’ve refined to the following description, largely because of the above argument: friends in Las Vegas. You don’t need to say they work in Las Vegas, that should be assumed. But here are some more plot details for you to get excited about. The show is called “Jacks or Better” and follows two twenty-something blackjack dealers in Las Vegas. They have cocktail waitress female friends. They have an over the top pit boss who is way past his prime and all about scoring chicks. I think I worked in a foreign neighbor at some point. Maybe he was the mailman. I don’t remember. It doesn’t matter.

The thing is, this show would never work. Not as I see it. You might get a pilot out of it, but already everything is too specific. It was better off with that first four word description. My idea is still for “Jacks or Better”: friends in Las Vegas. But a sub-idea to today’s idea is the fact that maybe, on occasion, every once in a while, simple is much better.