The reboot era has touched just about every genre imaginable, including sitcoms. Over the past few years, Hollywood has banked big on nostalgia, bringing back some of the most iconic TV shows of days gone by for modern remakes and continuations. That was the case for a hit ‘80s sitcom that got a short-lived modern update in the 2020s, but fans are quickly running out of time to stream that reboot on Peacock before it disappears.
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Night Court was one of the most popular sitcoms of the ‘80s, and three decades after it wrapped its nine-season run in 1992, NBC continued the story with a Night Court reboot, and it’s now getting pretty difficult to watch. The reboot centered around Judge Abby Stone, the daughter of the late Harry Stone, and ran for just three seasons from 2023 until NBC canceled the show due to budget and scheduling changes. Once home to the complete series, Peacock currently only streams the third and final season, but those episodes are scheduled to be pulled from the platform on November 19th, and the series currently isn’t streaming on another major service.
Night Court Is the Reboot We Didn’t Need
Reinhold Weege’s original Night Court is a sitcom classic that remains one of the best from the genre in the ‘80s, and it just may have been better to leave something so great untouched. Although NBC’s revival managed to capture the nostalgia entailed with a reboot, it ultimately lost most of the magic of the original as the seasons went on. What began as a 74% critic-rated series on Rotten Tomatoes that had a strong initial viewership became a series that failed to maintain that early momentum and saw double-digit viewership declines year-over-year.
The original’s charm is attributed to the chemistry between its leads, a dynamic that was impossible for the reboot to replicate, especially given the passing of original cast members Harry Anderson, Markie Post, and Charles Robinson. The reboot also didn’t focus on the unique, zany cases and the colorful defendants who passed through the courtroom that were a hallmark of the original show, causing it to falter when it came to the original’s edgy, absurd humor.
It wasn’t all bad, though. The reboot did work as a continuation of the original story, offering a fresh take on a decades-old classic, and while the absence of original cast members was heavily felt, the chemistry between the reboot’s cast was great. And it goes without saying – cliffhanger endings suck, so it’s sad the show didn’t get to have a proper ending that wrapped up loose ends.
Where to Stream Night Court After It Leaves HBO Max?
The Night Court reboot currently isn’t streaming on a major streaming platform, and unfortunately, it’s only going to get harder to watch the show. Season 3 is available to stream on NBC’s website, but the first two seasons aren’t available. The complete show can be viewed by renting or buying it on platforms like Prime Video. As for the original Night Court, seasons are scattered across services, including Prime Video and Philo.
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