MUST SEE #TBT: Relive The Past With These 4 Classic NBC Sitcom Season Premieres

For a solid 25 years, NBC ruled over Thursday nights and reigned over sitcoms with their “Must See TV” line ups. Between 1982 and 2006, NBC’s 8pm-10pm Thursday night schedule boasts such classic sitcoms as The Cosby Show, Cheers, Seinfeld, Friends and The Office, as well as lesser known outliers like Veronica’s Closet, The Single Guy and Boston Common. Nobody does comedy like NBC used to, but thanks to streaming, you can catch a classic night of NBC Must See TV comedy any Thursday you want.

Enter Decider’s Must See #TBT. Every Thursday, we’ll focus on a specific time period (or theme) and deliver a custom Must See TV line up. Since we’re in the middle of Fall Premiere week, we thought it would be great to look back at some of our favorite NBC comedy season premieres from years gone by.

Cheers

Season 6, Episode 1: “Home Is The Sailor”
Original Airdate: September 24, 1987

The season six premiere of Cheers wasn’t just the start of a new season, but a new era. Shelley Long had left the show, and Kirstie Alley joined the cast as the bar’s new manager.

Stream “Home Is The Sailor” [Netflix]

Seinfeld

Season 7, Episode 1: “The Engagement”
Original Airdate: September 21, 1995

In this episode of Seinfeld, Elaine enlists the help of Kramer and Newman to help get rid of a noisy neighborhood dog. However, the big event is when a lonely George impulsively proposes to his ex-girlfriend, Susan, and she accepts.

Stream “The Engagement” [Crackle]

The Office

Season 2, Episode 1: “The Dundies”
Original Air Date: September 20, 2005

Television critics hail The Office’s second season debut as the moment when the American series stepped out of the shadow of the famous original British version. The episode takes place in a Chili’s and features many heartfelt, and yet still absolutely embarrassing, moments. Fun fact: this episode was written by Mindy Kaling.

Stream “The Dundies” [Netflix]

Parks and Recreation

Season 4, Episode 1: “I’m Leslie Knope”
Original Air Date: September 22, 2011

Season 4 of Parks and Recreation put the show’s heroine in a difficult position: either Leslie must give up her dream of running for political office or give up her new boyfriend, Ben Wyatt. This episode is also noteworthy because it features hilarious cameos from Ben Schwartz as Tom’s flashy ne’er-do-well friend, Jean-Ralphio, and Patricia Clarkson as Ron’s first ex-wife, Tammy 1.

Stream “I’m Leslie Knope” [Netflix]

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Photos: NBC