Parenthood

In a TV landscape that offers many, varied ideas about what a family can be, the death knell for the traditional family drama is not yet ready to be rung, as evidenced by the success of Parenthood. The series—about the day-to-day lives of three generations of the Bravermans, a large Bay Area family—is loosely based on the 1989 film of the same name directed by Ron Howard, who is one of the TV show’s executive producers, along with Brian Grazer, Jason Katims, and Lawrence Trilling. Over the course of its four seasons Parenthood has evolved into one of the medium’s most compelling family dramas, tackling a variety of challenging subjects—breast cancer and military PTSD, among others—with grace by a stellar ensemble. As TV Guide’s Matt Roush notes, “In those universal moments of family togetherness and transition, as these grown-ups who sometimes still feel like kids marvel at the mystery of parenthood, Parenthood is worth its weight in sentimental angst.”

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