Hi Everyone! Today I’m going to be talking about my favorite sitcom of all time: Everybody Loves Raymond!
The show follows the life of Italian-American sportswriter Ray Barone and his family, who live on Long Island. Ray is the younger- and favorite- child of Marie and Frank Barone, who live right across the street from them. Marie and Frank are frequent- and usually uninvited- guests in Ray’s home, much to the dismay of his wife, Debra. Ray’s older brother, Robert, lives with his parents across the street and is a New York City police officer. Ray’s three children, Ally, Geoffrey, and Michael, are also season regulars.
Many episodes feature disagreement between Debra and her passive-aggressive mother-in-law, Marie, over things like cooking, cleaning, and raising children. Ray often is comically caught in the crossfire in these arguments, while the usually grumpy Frank will often come to Debra’s defense. Arguments between Ray, who doesn’t take much seriously, and Debra, who is frequently overburdened with household work, are also pretty common and usually downright hilarious. My favorite character is Robert, who usually is expressing his dismay at being the least favorite child in the family. I know the way I’m describing these plotlines probably seems more sad than humorous, but trust me when I say the sarcasm is unmatched! There are also many heartfelt moments throughout the show; even though the Barone family frequently bickers, they really do love and care about each other. Episodes that include the Barone children are especially sweet.
Everybody Loves Raymond has always been my parents’ favorite show. Therefore, I started watching the show when I was WAY too young to be watching it. Luckily, jokes that were not age-appropriate always went over my head. As I’ve gotten older, Everybody Loves Raymond has easily become one of my favorite shows to watch to unwind after a long, stressful day. It never fails to make me laugh hysterically! One thing that I really appreciate about the show is that it’s not really important to watch it in chronological order. Every single episode is hilarious and usually your understanding of the plot does not depend on having seen previous episodes. The acting and delivery is also phenomenal across the board, with many amusing recurring characters that add a lot to the show.
One of my favorite episodes is Season 7, Episode 22, in which Debra and Ray get in a fight over who should have to move a suitcase sitting on the staircase. When the house starts to smell like stinky cheese, they are forced to confront the issue. The first time I watched this episode, I literally cried from laughing so hard. It’s a great episode to watch if you’re feeling bleu (ba dum tsss)!
If you’re looking for a knee-slapper sitcom about family life, Everybody Loves Raymond should be on the top of your list!
My parents used to religiously watch this show when I was younger!! It’s such a classic. Your pun was really funny I’m not gonna lie.
I’ve heard of Everybody Loves Raymond but never paid much mind to it. Although I love sitcoms, for some reason I’ve never seen this one. I’m definitely going to have to give it a watch.
I have never watched this show, so I am excited to possibly give it a shot! Your use of dashes was very valuable when referring to Ray as a character because it helped me to develop a better understanding of him before watching the show. I actually laughed out loud at your pun, and I enjoyed the sound effects in parentheses.
I have never really gotten too into Sitcoms because the good ones always seem to be older and have about 1,000,000 episodes in every 500 seasons it has. Hearing that the plot doesn’t rely on chronological order makes the mass of media seem more manageable as you can just sit down and watch whatever episode you want whenever you want to and it won’t seem out of context. I really liked the style of this post as well and I must say I actually liked the pun at the end.