‘Mid-Century Modern’ And The Nostalgic Comfort Of Sitcoms

Old friendships are like blankets. When you wrap them around you (whether that’s literally or just with your memories of them in your head), you feel safe and cozy. TV shows can make you feel the same way, too. During the lockdown portion of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we all retreated into the warm embraces of our favorite shows. If you’re a fan of comedies, that might have meant rewatches of The Golden Girls, Designing Women, How I Met Your Mother, or Community. But if Mid-Century Modern had been around back then, then that would’ve been a mainstay of your found family story watchlist as well.

From Will & Grace creators David Kohan and Max Mutchnick, Mid-Century Modern follows the lives of three gay best friends who move to Palm Springs, California to live out their golden years together. This decision comes after an unexpected death in their friend group brings them to the realization that they would rather be together at this point in their lives instead of scattered around the country and video chatting every night, even if that means sharing the house with one of their brutally honest and mischievous mothers. With so many big personalities under one very luxurious room, how could hilarity not ensue?

Kohan, Mutchnick, and fellow executive producer Ryan Murphy assembled an all-star cast for this sassy streaming sitcom. For starters, Nathan Lane plays women’s undergarment mogul and queen bee Bunny Schneiderman. Playing the Blanche Deveraux to Lane’s Dorothy Zbornak is Nathan Lee Graham as the fierce and fashionable Arthur Broussard. Matt Bomer rounds out the trio as the optimistic and lovable himbo Jerry Frank. But it’s the legendary Linda Lavin’s Sybil Schneiderman with no filter and lots of love who holds the group together like glue. Plus, with guest stars like national treasure Richard Kind, the versatile Pamela Adlon, and the iconic Rhea Perlman, there’s a ton of bang for your buck with the cost of admission.  

Yes, it’s easy to say that this show is just Golden Girls with gay men. The parallels are pretty clear, but that description doesn’t even begin to capture the heart of the series. Each role is perfectly cast for maximum hilarity. The writing and the performances could match up against classic sitcoms that stood the test of time like Cheers or The Dick Van Dyke Show. And with iconic director James Burrows at the helm, that makes a lot of sense. Burrows’ style and structure are often imitated as he was one of the architects who established the foundation of this genre as we know it today over the past five decades.

If I could use one word to describe Hulu’s latest sitcom, it would be joyful. The show is light, care-free, and generally low stakes, but it still manages to pull you into the lives of Arthur, Bunny, and Jerry as they navigate the rough waters of dating at a certain age, growing up, and the legacies they will leave behind. It’s the type of comfort show that welcomes you right in, pours you a drink, and invites you to stay a while. Before you know it, you’re already 6 episodes in because you couldn’t help but stay put for another episode and another episode and so on.

Of course, the world of Mid-Century Modern isn’t immune to the hardships of reality. Not only did the production have to deal with the recent LA fires that affected numerous people in the SoCal area, they also suffered another huge loss when Lavin passed away shortly after Christmas 2024. While we won’t get to spend a long time with Sybil, every moment with the character is a gift. The same can even be said about her final episode, which is a proper sendoff filled with both happy and sad tears. 

After spending some time with Mid-Century Modern, it should quickly join your roster of comfort comedies, especially if you’re a fan of shows like Frasier, 3rd Rock From The Sun, Wings, Night Court, and of course, The Golden Girls. In a time when many sitcoms can be forgetful cookie-cutter copies that act as fodder for doctor’s office waiting rooms, TV shows with an immediate outpouring of love and playful comedy like this rarely come along and stay around.

It doesn’t exactly reinvent the wheel when it comes to multi-cam series, but it serves as a textbook example of how it could be done effectively. And though heavy storylines with a poignant message about the state of the world or one’s place in it are definitely necessary and often excellently executed, audiences may sometimes need a bit of escapism from their harsh realities by retreating into dad jokes and puns. This show takes a well-established formula and delivers a delightful modern offering as a throwback to a simpler, sillier, and nostalgic time. I sincerely hope we’ll meet this show again and again for many seasons to come.

All ten episodes of the first season of Mid-Century Modern premiere on Hulu on March 28, 2025.

For more TV, make sure to check back to That Hashtag Show.

Keep Reading:

‘The Studio’ – One Of The Most Hilarious Looks At Moviemaking Ever [Review]