A brief history of musicals on TV
I love musicals. This is no secret. Itâs also no secret that musicals arenât the most popular, and granted, often not well-used medium. But today I wanted to talk a bit about the history of musicals (and musical episodes) on TV and my very favorites.
There was a time when there was almost an overabundance of music on TV. Remember Glee? Itâs crazy to think it only ended last year. The show used to be so popular that everyone jumped aboard the hype train, though not for long. Among them Smash, another musical TV show debuted shortly thereafter, and Fox also introduced a musical week in which shows like Greyâs Anatomy and Fringe all had musical episodes. The formerâs episode wasnât received very well though, and Fringeâs had mixed reactions.
In the same year, How I Met Your Mother ended one of their episodes with the original song âNothing Suits Me Like A Suitâ, which was the only song from that episode, but that one was popular and the only thing Iâd hear about for a while. I definitely remember replaying it a lot.
During the writerâs strike (which was actually before Glee), there was also Dr. Horribleâs Sing-Along Blog, which was a 42-minute web series divided into three parts.
Why musical shows are so rare
Glee is the only time Iâve truly ever known something musically on television being really popular. Thereâs a lot of musical episodes of âcultâ shows that are now very popular, but what I do find unfortunate is that it in general isnât really appealing to the general audience. When your favorite show has a musical episode, and that episode is somewhat decent, youâll most likely like it (if you donât outright hate musicals). Itâs different for shows in which every episode is a musical episode, since thatâs its entire premise.
Because musical shows arenât extremely popular and networks these days arenât willing to take risks anymore, Iâm still surprised that we have exactly two musical shows currently on TV: Galavant and Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Both are very different (in tone, setting, story) and therefore use the musical aspect of it very differently.
Galavant: absurd and joyful
Galavant is very explicitly silly, and doesnât attempt to explain all the singing. Itâs just part of the show and their world. Itâs also pretty meta, in that it recognizes that it probably wonât be on the air long (it even has a song about the Cancellation Bear!), and that the Emmys ignored their magnificent first season.
The songs are very much an essential part of the show, and if youâd take those away, the show would lose a lot of its charm. The story itself is not one to take seriously â the entire show is just huge balls of fun, and it doesnât need to be anything more than that, because it just works.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend: emotional and character-driven
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, on the other hand, uses its musical parts very differently. Rebecca has a pretty good life, at least on the outside. Sheâs incredibly smart and well-educated, has a great job, and is up for a big promotion â but sheâs very unhappy and depressed.
When she runs into Josh (her old camp crush), he tells her heâs moving to West Covina. She impulsively follows him there, hoping to recapture the happiness she once had. Thatâs when the singing starts.
The musical numbers donât happen in reality â theyâre an expression of how the characters feel or think. At first, only Rebecca sings. But gradually, others join in, and eventually even sing without her being present, showing how her presence has changed them too.
The show has 2 to 3 songs per 42-minute episode, and they only happen during important moments. The show would still work without music â but it wouldnât be nearly as powerful or entertaining.
Why no one is watching
As happy as I am about these two shows (and as great as I think they are), audiences simply arenât tuning in, which is a damn shame. Galavantâs second season was basically a miracle. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, meanwhile, had average ratings, and its future was uncertain for a while.
What it had going for it was award buzz. Rachel Bloom won a Golden Globe and a Criticsâ Choice Award, and that probably helped renew the show. The CW pays attention to that stuff. Soundtrack sales may also help its case.
With the success of Hamilton and The Wiz, musicals might become more popular again â but I fear this wonât extend to musical TV series, and weâll only get more live broadcasts instead.
The stigma around musical episodes
Musical episodes in non-musical shows are often dismissed before they air. People expect them to be cheesy, out-of-place, or just cringey. And sometimes they are â especially if the network forces it, rather than the creators actually wanting to do one.
It depends a lot on the show. If a show takes itself very seriously, a musical episode will rarely work. But if a show embraces weirdness or format shifts, it can work â and sometimes be brilliant.
Take Oz, for example. A gritty prison drama youâd never expect to pull off a musical episode. But apparently, it did!
So letâs talk about some of my favorite musical episodes â the ones that worked really well.
Community
Community had a Christmas/Glee parody musical episode in season three. The gang gets asked to replace the Glee Club after an âaccidentâ and reluctantly gets convinced, one-by-one, through songs.
The musical premise fits right in. Community is known for genre-hopping and experimental episodes, so a musical felt natural.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
You canât talk about musical episodes without Buffyâs iconic âOnce More With Feeling.â
Instead of being a one-off filler, this episode featured major plot and character developments. The musical premise is explained via a singing demon, and the stakes are real â if you sing too long, you burst into flames.
Buffy went all-in. Nearly all dialogue was sung, the intro was changed, and the songs were genuinely good. I played them daily for months.
Itâs Always Sunny in Philadelphia
In season four, Charlie writes and directs a musical called The Nightman Cometh. The gang plays bizarre roles: Dennis is the Dayman, Mac is the Nightman, Dee the princess, and Frank the troll.
Itâs awkward, chaotic, and perfect. There are songs like âTiny Boy, Little Boy, Baby Boyâ and âThe Troll Toll.â It ends with Charlieâs awkward marriage proposal.
They even toured the musical live afterwards with new songs. Iâve rewatched this episode more than any other IASIP ep.
That 70âs Show
This episode didnât have original songs, just covers â but it was still fantastic.
Fez stars in a musical and imagines his friends performing songs like âSo Happy Togetherâ and âThe Joker.â The characters act overly cheery in contrast to their usual selves, and itâs hilarious.
Scrubs
Scrubs is quirky and emotional, and already full of JDâs daydreams â so a musical episode felt right.
This time, itâs all in a patientâs head, and they try to figure out whatâs causing it. Everyone gets a song: JD and Turk sing âEverything Comes Down to Pooâ and âGuy Love,â Carla and Turk have a duet, and more.
They packed a full musical into 20 minutes. I couldnât stop smiling, and I rewatched the episode several times before continuing the series.
Psych
Psych tackled nearly every genre â including musicals.
The two-part musical aired between seasons 7 and 8 and featured 14 original songs. Plot-wise, itâs not the showâs best case, but the music was amazing. I still listen to âSanta Barbara Skies.â
It turns out that the musical is actually being pitched by Shawn and Gus in the episodeâs final scene, which retroactively explains the musical format.
So⊠whoâs next?
Most of the episodes above are from comedies â with Buffy being the only major exception. I wonder what currently airing shows could pull it off?
Maybe iZombie, if Liv eats a singerâs brain. Maybe Portlandia, in a sketch. Outside of that, I donât think many could do it without it feeling forced. Even comedies today donât take many risks.
What I really want
More musical episodes would be fun, but what I really want is more musical shows.
We need more fun, experimental projects like Galavant or Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. The latter almost didnât happen â it was first pitched to Showtime, who passed. But interest is clearly there, and I hope we see more in the future.