# Best Spin-off **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 25, 2003, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929 "2003-07-25T17:58:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/1 "2003-07-25T17:58:57Z")
I don’t know whether to be heartened or depressed about the news that NBC has officially announced Matt LeBlanc will star in a spin-off of Friends. Some spin-offs (think AfterMASH) are too sad for words. Some (Mork and Mindy) are so disconnected from the original, you don’t even put them in the category of a spin-off. And of course, a few were actually good. So what do you think the best spin-off was? My vote goes to Frasier. It’s tired now, but it was very good in its prime. ---
**Author:** ![Fiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e274bd/32.png) [@Fiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiver)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/2 "2003-07-25T18:32:14Z")
I’d second _Frasier,_ which I believe surpassed and still surpasses its parent, _Cheers._ And, did you know that the show _Mork and Mindy_ spun off from, _Happy Days,_ was itself spun off from an episode of _Love, American Style?_ A runner-up to _Frasier_ might be _The Andy Griffith Show,_ which also far surpassed its parent, _Make Room For Daddy_ (although no one on the later show ever did a better spit-take than Danny Thomas). ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/3 "2003-07-25T19:55:24Z")
_Angel: The Series_. It eclipsed it’s forebearer last season in quality. ---
**Author:** ![Mahaloth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mahaloth/32/1079_2.png) [@Mahaloth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mahaloth)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/4 "2003-07-25T20:04:40Z")
Frasier Angel was better than Buffy last year, but has not been as good a show overall. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f07891/32.png) [@Little\_Plastic\_Ninja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Plastic_Ninja)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/5 "2003-07-25T20:40:20Z")
Frasier’s pretty darn good. Ditto Angel. But naturally the greatest and best-known spinoff is The Simpsons, which used to be an occasional animated short on The Tracey Ullman Show. Ullman? Ulmann? Ullmann? Something. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/6 "2003-07-25T20:43:02Z")
[/]Maude\* ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2003, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/7 "2003-07-25T20:44:04Z")
Or, even better, _Maude_ :smack: ---
**Author:** ![aaslatten](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f14d63/32.png) [@aaslatten](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aaslatten)\ **Post date:** [July 26, 2003, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/8 "2003-07-26T00:30:55Z")
“The Jeffersons” I think “Frasier” almost goes into the category of being disconnected from the original. ---
**Author:** ![LookitMe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7bcc69/32.png) [@LookitMe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LookitMe)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/9 "2003-07-28T01:43:45Z")
Frasier. ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/10 "2003-07-28T01:51:34Z")
Ditto _Frasier_ and _The Jeffersons_ -I used to like _Family Matters_ and it spun from _Perfect Strangers_ if I recal correctly. -_A Different World_ spun from _The Cosby Show_. I loved that show(both actually). ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/11 "2003-07-28T05:03:57Z")
\>I think “Frasier” almost goes into the category of being disconnected from the original. I don’t see how, as they frequently refer to it, and occasionally have the characters drop in. ---
**Author:** ![refusal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@refusal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/refusal)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/12 "2003-07-28T12:45:49Z")
Saved By The Bell: The College Years 😉 ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/13 "2003-07-28T13:26:41Z")
Petticoat Junction. ---
**Author:** ![roadrunner70](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e19b73/32.png) [@roadrunner70](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roadrunner70)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/14 "2003-07-28T13:32:52Z")
Gomer Pyle USMC was a pretty good show in its time. _'From the halls of MontezOO-OOmer…_ ---
**Author:** ![elf6c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/c57346/32.png) [@elf6c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elf6c)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/15 "2003-07-28T13:35:25Z")
**Angel** spun off from **Buffy the Vampire Slayer** - last year’s season was as good as the best of Buffy. **Star Trek: DS9** was a great partial spin-off (O’brian and Worf) of ST:NG. What- no **Laverne and Shirley** fans? **Frasier** was a great show for many years, before sinking into suckitutude as of the last 2 years or so. Don’t forget \*\* the Simpsons \*\* was a spin-off techincally from the Tracy Ullman show (did she even try a lawsuit seeking $$$ regarding this). ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/16 "2003-07-28T14:05:31Z")
What? No votes for _Joanie Loves Chachi_? _The Honeymooners_ was taken from a skit on the _Jackie Gleason Show_, correct? And I liked _Rhoda_. ---
**Author:** ![Kantalooppi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/a5b964/32.png) [@Kantalooppi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kantalooppi)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/17 "2003-07-28T14:28:26Z")
**Daria** , though almost completely disconnected from the original - I think they only did one reference to the original show (Beavis and Butthead) ever. ---
**Author:** ![lilbtagna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4491bb/32.png) [@lilbtagna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lilbtagna)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/18 "2003-07-28T16:10:49Z")
_Frasier_ was a terrific show until recently. As much as I liked _Cheers_, its spin-off was even better. ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/19 "2003-07-28T18:16:47Z")
AFAIK, The Andy Griffith Show was a spinoff from the Danny Thomas Show. Not that it deserves a best anything award. ---
**Author:** ![towel2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3ec8ea/32.png) [@towel2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/towel2)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2003, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-spin-off/190929/20 "2003-07-28T18:43:41Z")
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