The Brady Bunch Hour

Ignoring the terrible track record for Brady Bunch spinoffs and remakes, CBS has announced plans for a Brady Bunch reboot with Vince Vaughn as the executive producer. Instead of Mike being the Brady getting remarried and starting a new family, his youngest son Bobby will take his place. Unlike the original, which ran from 1969-74 and rarely mentioned Mike’s dead wife or Carol’s ex-husband, the new Brady Bunch will feature Bobby ex-wife, his new wife’s ex-husband, and, of course, their children. While the basic premise of the latest Brady Bunch remake sounds decent, connecting the new show to a series that has not been relevant since the 1970s is a bad idea.

Whether it was first run or syndicated, everyone who has been a child from the early-70s onward has found memories of watching The Brady Bunch. Some people related to having a parent remarry and finding themselves with step-siblings. Others knew what the Bradys were going through when their dog Tiger ran away. Young girls were jealous of Marcia when she got to take her idol Davy Jones to the prom because they would never get to meet their celebrity crush, whereas boys wished could be Bobby just so they could meet Joe Namath. The show is clearly stuck in the 70s, but the themes and events are those that every generation of kids either experiences or wishes would happen to them.

Read the rest of this entry →