Fox is known for being a network that plays faster and looser with its comedic ethics than others. Such pointed playfulness is on display in the latest promo for Last Man Standing's first season on Fox, which features several gags where Tim Allen takes aim at former network ABC over cancelling the popular sitcom in the first place. Though I guess it's up to the viewer to judge just how playful it really is. Check it out!
While perhaps not the most bloodthirsty insults that could have come from Last Man Standing's creative team, the promo-friendly jabs at ABC were still savage enough. And one has to wonder how quickly those moments were written up after Fox first announced it had ordered up Season 7, knowing that a splashy way to establish oneself on a new network would be by throwing the old one under the bus.
For those who didn't watch, the first promo segment featured a befuddled Kyle asking why anyone would cancel a TV show so beloved by the masses, to which Tim Allen's Mike walks in and replies that they might just be "a bunch of idiots." Certainly that was an opinion shared by tons of petition-signing Last Man Standing fans who were enraged after the show's surprising cancellation last year. But it's another thing when the show's star and executive producer is voicing those barbs within the context of the show itself.
Talking to Vanessa, Mike points out that he thinks everything is way better on the new network. But that opinion will need to wait a little longer to find others to share it, since the season has yet to kick off at its new home. Even beyond taking shots at ABC, these Fox promos also seem to be very optimistic that the audiences that tuned in for the first six seasons' episodes will automatically be returning for Season 7.
Specifically in the second one, when the Baxter parents are called out of the woods by "million of strangers" to come back, it's clear that Fox is confident in how well Last Man Standing will do in the same Friday night timeslot it used to air in. In its later seasons, the comedy was bringing in between 5-7 million viewers for its live viewings, and earned around a 1.0 demo rating. But it would often surpass those numbers to drive its yearly averages up, especially when delayed viewing came into play. So if Fox can manage to bring in the majority of those former viewers, the network could be looking at one of its most-watched comedies in years.
New and old viewers will be in for some changes, too, with new actors stepping in to fill the roles of Mandy and Boyd. As well, the show will introduce a new character into the Baxter home that will have a big impact on Vanessa. But almost everything and everyone else will stay the same.
For fans who can't wait to give Fox love for bringing Last Man Standing back for Season 7, the new episodes will start up on Friday, September 28, at 8:00 p.m. ET. To see what else will be hitting the small screen around the same time, hit up our fall premiere schedule.
