The Winners

Sect. A #1 Parks & Recreation vs. Sect. B #1 The Simpsons

Who wiped Pawnee off the map? The Simpsons did! The Simpsons did! While I supposed I should not have been too surprised the most quoted TV show and longest-running comedy by more than a factor of two would advance to the Final Four, I am shocked at just how easily Parks & Recreation–such an artful blend of kindness and cutting humor–went down. That’s a tourney wrap for Michael Schur after his early roll and The Simpsons are going to the Final Four where they will face…

Sect. C #2 The Larry Sanders Show vs. Sect. D #1 Arrested Development

The wealthy family that lost it all is winning regularly in this tournament. Garry Shandling’s classic talk show behind-the-scenes-ery was able to eke out razor-wire close wins round after round, but that show featuring Jeffrey Tambor in a supporting role ran up against a buzzsaw–another show featuring Jeffrey Tambor in supporting role. In the battle of clever shows featuring Tambors, the tale of the comically inept Bluth family proves supreme and moves on to the next round.

Sect. E #1 Seinfeld vs. Sect. F #4 Chappelle’s Show

Dave Chappelle’s short-lived sketch show that went out with a blast while on top enjoyed one hell of a Cinderella run in our tournament, but it ran into a buzzsaw with the groundbreaking 1990s show about nothing. While there are questions about whether Seinfeld aged well going back to the minutes after its underwhelming finale, it’s showed it still has a reverent following and as with The Simpsons above, its quality in its prime (3rd through 5th) seasons is hard to deny. Will it go on to the finals and a possible match with the other 1989 debut that changed the TV landscape? Well, it has to get past Meatcat as…

Sect. G #2 Schitt’s Creek vs. Sect. H #2 30 Rock

30 Rock decided of the Final Four that it wants to go to there. The Roses will have to pack up and move on (EW!) as there’s room for only one wealthy family that’s down on its luck–and that’s the Bluths above. Eight years after its finale, Tina Fey’s edgy comedy about the crazy crew of an SNL-style sketch program continues to resonate with our voters and Liz, Jack, Tracy, Jenna, Kenneth, Pete, Frank, Twofer, Lutz, and the rest of the gang move on to the Final Four.

So will our final be the Battle of the Titans that start with S? Will two shows that made cutaway gags actually work face off? Or will it be some other combo that I have yet to come up with a lazy thread to tie between. You decide, so tune in tomorrow when it will be time to vote in the Final Four!