The problem a lot of people seem to have with The Larry Sanders Show is that they see the label '
sitcom' and expect a
sitcom sitcom. Sure, it's got funny moments and it's based around a situation but it's wrong to put it in the same box as
Friends and
Frasier. It's more about the
sleaze, the
corruption and the power-plays that go on behind the scenes, many episodes being more bleak and cynical than laugh-out-loud funny, but all the time
impressively well-written.
It's also worth noting that the show has been exported to a UK version called Bob Martin, written by Bob Mills and Jeff Pope and shown on ITV. However, instead of a talk show it's based around a troubled day-time quiz show with Michael Barrymore as the eponymous host. Like Larry Sanders emerged from Garry Shandling's experiences as a guest on talk shows, it's a fair bet that Bob Mills' own career of hosting a day-time quiz show was the main cause for the change in format.