Look at Sitcom Clichés : The Bowling Show

I wanted to start a new series of articles regarding sitcom clichés. Every so often I will pick a cliché and talk about it, today's topic is the annoying bowling episode. It seems every single show has done at least one episode which is either directly, or indirectly, about bowling.

Everyone has bowled at least once in their lifetime. Some love it, others hate it. I don’t mind it, let’s leave it at that. I don’t think I need to explain how the game is played, it’s not terribly complicated. Hey, maybe that’s why so many sitcoms have episodes centered in a bowling alley. For some reason it almost seems a rule that every sitcom has to have at least one show centered on bowling. It always has the same set up, the camera is where the lanes would begin, and the ball rolls past the cameras and we get the sound effects (sometimes they cut to a clip of a series of pins being knocked down). Then the cast member reacts accordingly. The funny thing is, I hate the bowling episode. For some reason the episode’s almost always fail for me.

It’s ironic that very first episode of one of the very first sitcoms would be about bowling. However, you can’t condemn The Honeymooners because it wasn’t a cliché yet. Same for The Dick Van Dyke so. However, after awhile these episodes began popping up a little too frequently. Let’s talk about some bowling episodes. I know shows like The Odd Couple, Laverne & Shirley, and MASH (somehow) did these, but my area of focus as always is 80’s and 90’s so we will start there.

Cheers-the first Gary’s Old Towne Tavern episodes, and in the end the Cheers gang actually wins. In this episode they do, with a little help from Diane. This one I love because it’s one episode where Diane truly feels like a part of the group. 

Growing Pains-The Seaver family has a bowling team (sure they do), and Mike is the star of the team (sure he is). I almost forgot this episode too, the plot involved Mike who meets a girl and tries to change his whole personality to make her like him. Then he agrees to go on a date the same night of the big bowling match. Will he go on the date and disappoint his entire family? What do you think. We only get to see a bowling alley at the end but this is definitely a bowling episode.

The Cosby Show-Cliff goes bowling with some old friends. We never see them bowling, we cut to the locker rooms where the group talks about what a horrible game they played and relive some memories. Even though the group is bowling, the episode is more about baseball.

Who’s The Boss?-An early episode has Tony winning a bowling trophy, the same night that Angela
loses a prestigious award. There were a couple other bowling references in this show, but I don’t think an episode actually centered in one.

Night Court-Almost doesn’t count since we never actually make it to the alley. Harry and the gang formed a bowling league, which no one is happy about. However, the real plot of this episode is why Harry gets distracted from the bowling match. It involves a woman, sexy lingerie, and a knight outfit. Long story, try to find the episode.

The Golden Girls-Yes, really. Sophia's old boyfriend from Sicily arrives in town to ask Sophia to come back with him to Sicily for a visit; the girls enter a bowling tournament, which would mean a trip back to Sicily for Sophia if she and Rose win. Rose is ultra competitive in this one, almost to the point of being out of character.

Designing Women-The women all went bowling to get in good with a prospective client. Annie Potts does a kind of caricature of a loud-mouthed, vulgar, male bowler, and the potential client, revolted, decides to hire a group of gay men who are good sportsmen instead.

Roseanne-We were lucky enough to get two episodes. The first was very early in the run when the show was simple and straightforward. It was about a night at the bowling alley where Becky was nervous about meeting a new boy. The episode a few seasons later was about Dan and Arnie trying to lead their team to victory, Roseanne feels left out when Jackie makes a new friend.

Home Improvement-I hate this episode. That’s all I’m gonna say. The plot has Tim and Jill competing at a bowling match while the kids are off in the arcade getting in trouble with a bully. That’s it, much like Roseanne this was an early episode and for me, just isn’t good.

Will & Grace-This episode isn’t all about bowling but does end up at a bowling alley. When friends Rob and Ellen point out how competitive Grace is, she agrees to be more laid back. As they bowl Grace stays relaxed, which infuriates Will because he thrives on her competiveness and finally he tells her to stop being nice and play right She does, and crushes their friends.

King of Queens-Another episode set in a bowling alley, how original. Actually there were a couple. One had the bowling as part of the story, as Doug does a mercy flirt with the new girl at the alley and she misinterprets him and thinks he is a stalker. A second episode involves Doug having to fire his wife from the team because of their sponsor, who is demanding victory.

Big Bang  Theory-So refreshing to see this cliché alive and well. The guys have a bowling team, and in the episode are playing a grudge match against Wil Wheaton and his team while in the background Leonard and Penny dissolve their relationship. These Wil Wheaton episodes got boring fast, and the bowling is uninteresting even by sitcom standards.

You know, I didn't realize just how many of these there really were. I could be here all day. Family Matters, Sister Sister, The Simpsons, Malcolm in the Middle, My Wife and Kids, Married with Children, Ellen, and The Drew Carey Show all had bowling episodes. Did I miss any?

Why is it so popular to set an episode in a bowling alley? Maybe I’ll never understand it. It’s just as bad as drama’s who have to do at least one boxing episode. The only thing worse than the bowling episode is the softball episode. Maybe some other we can get into that discussion.