Television series
My Two Dads
- Comedy
- Light-hearted
A sitcom about two men awarded joint custody of a teenage girl after her mother's death—neither knowing which of them is her biological father. It's a warm-hearted show about unconventional family, domestic mishaps, and growing up between two very different parental styles. Genuinely sweet underneath the jokes, with real affection between its central trio.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you enjoy classic sitcom machinery, with a tidy premise, a reliable studio-audience rhythm and two mismatched men slowly learning to share a kitchen and a kid.
Skip it if you want a sitcom that pushes against its format; this one plays its setup safely, and its jokes lean on familiar sitcom patterns more than surprise.
What it asks of you: Thirty-minute episodes, one easy half hour at a time, with a 1980s multi-camera pace; little needs tracking from week to week beyond who is annoyed with whom.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
Full House1987
Shares the same DNA: a single-parent household comedy that's earnest about family bonds while staying light. Three men raising three girls, same warmth, same emphasis on working through problems together.
But The sentimentality can feel suffocating now, and it leans heavily on Very Special Episodes that resolve in 22 minutes.
Growing Pains1985
The gold standard of '80s family sitcoms—smart, funny, and genuinely invested in its characters' development. Balances comedy with real emotional stakes as kids actually grow up onscreen.
But The Mike Seaver character is aggressively '80s in ways that have not aged gracefully, and some plots feel dated.
Family Ties1982
Sharper writing than many of its peers, with real ideological differences driving the comedy. The Keaton family feels like actual people having actual disagreements, not sitcom archetypes.
But It occasionally prioritizes being preachy over being funny, and some of the Reagan-era politics feel heavy-handed now.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from My Two Dads
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Soap1977
Both use domestic chaos as their engine, but Soap asks what happens when the family sitcom admits that people are terrible and messy, rather than learning their lesson by act three.
A pitch-black parody of soap opera melodrama that also happens to be about actual family dysfunction—messy, weird, genuinely hilarious, and not afraid of darkness. If you loved the *comfort* of My Two Dads but want something with actual bite and strangeness.
But It's relentlessly cynical and sexually frank in ways that make it feel almost hostile compared to the warmth of My Two Dads. Also genuinely hard to follow sometimes.
More like this (7)
Who's the Boss?1984
Another show about an unconventional household figuring out how to live together. Tony and Angela's chemistry is electric, and it earns its will-they-won't-they tension through real character work.
But The gender dynamics haven't aged well, and it gets increasingly silly as it goes on.
Perfect Strangers1986
Two men navigating life together—one refined, one working-class. The show finds genuine warmth in their friendship and generosity toward each other, which mirrors what makes My Two Dads work.
But The humor relies heavily on slapstick and miscommunication, which can feel thin if you're not in the mood for it.
Mr. Belvedere1985
Another ensemble comedy about a household held together by someone trying to impose order on chaos. Features a similar ensemble dynamic and real stakes beneath the jokes.
But It's pretty broad, and the plotting sometimes feels thin even for a sitcom.
Charles in Charge1984
A young man trying to parent a household not technically his own, navigating responsibility and affection. The central relationship feels genuine enough to carry the lighter material around it.
But The premise creaks a bit (why is this guy living with this family?), and it doesn't always justify itself beyond the high-concept setup.
Diff'rent Strokes1978
An earlier exploration of unconventional family. Two children adopted by a wealthy man—it tackles harder material than most sitcoms while still making you laugh and care about these people.
But Some episodes address serious issues (racism, abuse) in ways that feel dated and sometimes exploitative in hindsight.
Six Feet Under2001
Both explore what it means to build family with people you didn't choose, and how death reshapes the people left behind. But where My Two Dads offers comfort, this offers truth.
Takes the multi-generational household and the messy inheritance of parental responsibility seriously. Death, sexuality, money, and love all entangled in one house. Funny *and* devastating in equal measure.
But It's a drama, not a comedy, and it dwells in grief and dysfunction rather than resolving them. Also, it gets increasingly bleak in later seasons.
Bluey2018
Both are optimistic about family as something you build rather than something you're born into. Both believe that love and effort can actually work, and that's their radical act.
An animated show about two parents navigating parenthood and their relationship with their children. Genuinely funny for adults, emotionally sophisticated, and interested in how people build life together across generations.
But It's animated and Australian, which might not be what you expect. Also, if you're not primed to love it, it can feel saccharine on first watch.
People
Cast
Writing
- Danielle AlexandraCreator
- Michael JacobsCreator