Television series

The Munsters

Name: The Munsters
Genre: Comedy, Family, Horror
Released: 1964
Cast: Fred Gwynne, Yvonne De Carlo, Al Lewis, Butch Patrick, Pat Priest

A monster family plays it dead straight as an ordinary American household — Dad's a Frankenstein-shaped breadwinner, Grandpa's a grumbling Count, and the only 'normal' one in the house is the son everyone worries about. Black-and-white, gag-a-minute, and gently subversive about what 'normal' even means. Pure comfort viewing, best in small doses.

TVMaze rating

7.9

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The Addams Family1964

The other 1964 monster-family sitcom, running at the exact same time on a rival network, but with old money and arch wit instead of Herman's lumbering warmth. Seeing them side by side is a masterclass in tonal difference from identical premises.

But Drier, weirder humor with less physical comedy — some find the Addamses too knowing and the Munsters more huggable.

Bewitched1964

Same decade, same CBS-adjacent world, same joke engine: a supernatural being trying to keep the neighbors from finding out. Elizabeth Montgomery's comic timing is a genuine pleasure and the domestic satire has real teeth.

But Leans more romantic-sitcom than monster-comedy, and the will-they-notice tension repeats itself across eight seasons.

The Beverly Hillbillies1962

Swap monsters for hillbillies and you get the same trick: an oddball family who don't realize they're the strange ones, baffling the polite society around them. Broad, cheerful, and surprisingly durable comedy.

But No supernatural or horror element at all, and the class-based jokes have aged less gracefully than the monster ones.

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Bride of Frankenstein1935

Herman's makeup, gait, and even his tender-hearted-brute persona are a direct homage to Karloff's Monster here — the Munsters is a comedy built on this film's bones.

The actual Universal horror film Herman Munster's look, walk, and even his marital pathos are lifted from — grief, loneliness, and a monster desperate to be loved, played completely straight. It's strange to see the joke's source material be this moving.

But It's a genuine horror film from 1935, slow by modern pacing standards, with none of the sitcom comfort you're expecting.

I Dream of Jeannie1965

Another mid-60s fantasy sitcom built on hiding something extraordinary from ordinary neighbors, with the same gentle, laugh-track cosiness. Barbara Eden is a delight and the premise never runs out of steam.

But Gender politics are very much of their era, and it's more genie-of-the-lamp whimsy than monster-movie pastiche.

My Favorite Martian1963

A stranger among humans, played for maximum fish-out-of-water comedy, from the same black-and-white sitcom moment. Ray Walston is quietly brilliant as the exasperated alien uncle figure.

But Sci-fi rather than horror-flavored, and the special effects gags feel dated in a way the Munsters' makeup somehow doesn't.

Sabrina the Teenage Witch1996

A 90s update on the 'magical family hiding in plain suburban sight' formula, with the same warmth and family-first heart underneath the fantasy jokes. Great gateway if you want the vibe with brighter colors.

But Aimed squarely at teens, so the humor is softer and the stakes are homework-and-dating rather than anything gothic.

Mork & Mindy1978

Robin Williams at his most unfiltered, playing an alien trying to pass as normal in a human household — the outsider-in-the-family joke machine again, just louder and looser.

But Williams's improv energy is a completely different comic rhythm from the Munsters' deadpan, gentler pacing.

Wednesday2022

A slick, modern continuation of the exact monster-family lineage the Munsters helped popularize, with mystery-plot stakes layered over the family comedy. Jenna Ortega is terrific and it's the closest thing currently on air.

But It's a boarding-school mystery-drama first and a family sitcom a distant second — very different rhythm and runtime.

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet1952

The straight-faced, no-monsters original that the Munsters was quietly spoofing all along — the blandest, most wholesome sitcom family imaginable. Watching it makes the joke of Herman and Lily land twice as hard.

But There's no fantasy hook at all, and by design it's about as eventful as a Tuesday afternoon.

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet poster

Edward Scissorhands1990

Same premise exactly — an outsider-monster trying to belong in a manicured suburban neighborhood — but Burton plays it as fable and tragedy rather than gag-a-minute comedy.

Take the Munsters' central joke — a manufactured monster dropped into pastel suburbia — and play it as heartbreak instead of laugh track. Depp's Edward is Herman's tragic twin, gentle and dangerous in a world that can't decide what to do with him.

But It's melancholy where the Munsters is cheerful, and the ending offers none of a sitcom's easy reassurance.

What We Do in the Shadows2019

Same joke — monsters treating supernatural horror as mundane domestic annoyance — filtered through modern mockumentary format and a much raunchier, more absurdist register.

Vampires and a familiar sharing a run-down house, filmed mockumentary-style, being petty and domestic and hilarious about immortality and rent. It's the Munsters' bones with a documentary crew and a much filthier sense of humor.

But The mockumentary format and modern deadpan cringe comedy are a world away from a 1960s multi-camera laugh track.