'The Cleveland Show':
Premiering September 27, 2009, The Cleveland Show is a half-hour animated series that follows Peter Griffin's (Family Guy) soft-spoken neighbor, Cleveland Brown, as he settles down in Virginia with his high school sweetheart and her unruly kids.
Premise:
In high school, Cleveland was madly in love with a beautiful girl named Donna. Much to his dismay, his love went unrequited, and Donna wound up marrying another man. Cleveland once told Donna he would always love her, and if this man ever done her wrong, he’d be there when she called. Now, Donna's husband has run off, leaving her with a daughter and a baby. She's come to Cleveland and offered him another chance at love. Unattached after his wife Loretta slept with Quagmire (in Family Guy), Cleveland happily accepts. He and Cleveland, Jr. move to Virginia to join their new family.
Characters:
Cleveland's new family includes a rebellious new stepdaughter, a 5-year-old stepson who loves the ladies, as well as a collection of neighbors that includes a loudmouth redneck couple, a British family seemingly stuck in the Victorian era and a family of bears. Yep, sounds like a Seth MacFarlane show.
Creators:
Speaking of Seth MacFarlane, he created The Cleveland Show, a spin-off of his very successful show Family Guy. He created The Cleveland Show with Mike Henry, who provides the voice for Cleveland, and Rich Appel, who has worked on The Simpsons and King of the Hill.
My Two Cents:
I've only watched a short clip, but The Cleveland Show looks to be a carbon copy of Family Guy, with Cleveland at the center of the action, rather than Peter. Since they are fairly different characters, I imagine we won't see as many crazy schemes or rude behavior from the main character, but from secondary characters. And surely, most of the humor will come from the mixed family situation, as well as the juxtaposition of having British and redneck neighbors next to Cleveland's black family. I'm looking forward to seeing the show, but I admit Seth MacFarlane's brand of humor might wear me out if Fox's Sundays are packed with it.
