it was 1991, and we were seven long years away from pleasantville. luckily, there was hi honey, i’m home, a ridiculously high-concept sit-com that makes get smart seem realistic by comparison. the pitch is that a tv family from the 50’s lives next to a “real” family from the 90’s.

here’s the pilot, which is all you ever need to see of the series. the catch phrases are all here, like the mom offering brownies and the dad bopping his head. oddly, this show was advertised as an “instant rerun,” because episodes were re-broadcast on nick at night two days after they were on tgif.

oh, man. this show was a gimmick machine and that’s why i loved it.