History Series / TheComeback

It stars Kudrow as has-been sitcom actress Valerie Cherish, who is poised to make a comeback by starring in not one but two new shows. She is given the chance to star in her own reality show that would document her every day life including her new job as a lead in a new sitcom called ''Room and Bored''. However, things don't go as planned on either show. The writers of ''Room and Bored'' rewrite Valerie's character and change her from a sexy business woman and turn her into the frumpy aunt of one of the show's sexier young cast members. Meanwhile, Valerie complicates the jobs of her reality show crew by misunderstanding how documentary filmmaking works and constantly asking for cuts and retakes.

The show is presented in {{Mockumentary}} style, similar to the ''[[Series/TheOfficeUS The Office]]'', however what sets ''The Comeback'' apart is that the footage is shown in "raw" form. Meaning that the viewer is seeing the footage as it is being filmed, untouched and uncut, before it is edited and polished into a series. The actual reality series that the footage is being shot for isn't shown until the final episode when Valerie is shown watching the series premiere.

''The Comeback'' only lasted one season that consisted of 13 episodes. It was cancelled due to low ratings and a lukewarm reception by critics. However the show did garner three Emmy nominations including one for Kudrow's performance. Retrospective reviews of the show have been much warmer, with EW calling it one of the best shows of the 2000's.

It stars Kudrow as has-been sitcom actress Valerie Cherish, who is poised to make a comeback by starring in not one but two new shows. She is given the chance to star in her own reality show that would document her every day life including her new job as a lead in a new sitcom called ''Room and Bored''. However, things don't go as planned on either show. The writers of ''Room and Bored'' rewrite Valerie's character and change her from a sexy business woman and turn her into the frumpy aunt of one of the show's sexier young cast members. Meanwhile, Valerie complicates the jobs of her reality show crew by misunderstanding how documentary film-making works and constantly asking for cuts and retakes.

It stars Kudrow as has-been sitcom actress Valerie Cherish who is poised to make a comeback by starring in not one but two new shows. She is given the chance to star in her own reality show that would document her every day life including her new job as a lead in a new sitcom called "Room and Bored". However, things don't go as planned on either show. The writers of "Room and Bored" rewrite Valerie's character and change her from a sexy business woman and turn her into the frumpy aunt of one of the show's sexier young cast members. Meanwhile, Valerie complicates the jobs of her reality show crew by misunderstanding how documentary film-making works and constantly asking for cuts and retakes.

* BreakupBreakout: In-universe. In the intervening years since ''Room & Bored'' went off the air, Tom and Paulie G. dissolved their writing partnership. Paulie managed to transition his own personal problems into writing and directing his own HBO show, while Tom is stuck on a kids' show that he resents.

* FaceHeelTurn: In the first season Jane was just following her job and had little control over the ManipulativeEditing done to Valerie's reality TV Series, often trying to be silent as Valerie speaks to her. Come the second season Valerie gives her a job [[MoneyDearBoy when she is struggling to find financing after winning an Oscar]]. By the end of the season, Jane pressures Valerie to have them document her marital struggles on-camera.

* GenreSavvy: Valerie frequently attempts to use her status as a sitcom veteran to alter the events of "Room and Bored" in Aunt Sassy's favor, completely unaware that Paulie G. and others do not receive her suggestions well.

* RoommateCom: Parodied with a ShowWithinAShow -- a ghastly sitcom called "Room and Bored". It's about four young horny singles, but a washed-up older actress was brought into the show against the will of the screenwriters. They cast her as the disapproving "Aunt Sassy". (Typical lines: "Aunt Sassy, can we keep these puppies?" -- "Where you see puppies, I see Korean barbecue.")

* WhiteDwarfStarlet: Valerie, the one-time star of a now obscure Murphy Brown-esque sitcom decades ago which she still has an entire wall of her house dedicated to with memorabilia.

* {{Hypocrite}}: Shayne claims to be a Christian and expresses disgust and discomfort with discussions of sex and even looks down upon reality TV. Yet she willfully stars in a sophomoric sitcom full of low-brow sex humor, and the sex discussion that she is so upset over [[spoiler: was that the writers of said sitcom were making crude and crass sex jokes at an actresses’ expense while at work]].

* BreakupBreakout: In the intervening years since ''Room & Bored'' went off the air, Tom and Paulie G. dissolved their writing partnership. Paulie managed to transition his own personal problems into writing and directing his own HBO show, while Tom is stuck on a kids' show that he resents.

* {{Jerkass}}: Paulie G. Valerie at times as well.

ManipulativeEditing:

* {{Uncanceled}}: After the show achieved cult status, HBO ordered eight new episodes set to air in late 2014...nine years after the show was cancelled!

* ManipulativeEditing:

* ManipulativeEditing: The first season ends with Valerie throwing a viewing party for the premiere of her reality show. She's heartbroken when she realizes that the show was heavily edited to humiliate her, her friends, and coworkers. What's worse is that the show made her cruel tormentor, producer Paulie G, look like the victim in their ongoing feud.

* WhiteDwarfStarlet: Valerie, the one-time star of a now obscure Murphy Brown-esque sitcom decades ago which she still has an entire wall of her house dedicated to with memorabilia.

A 2005 Creator/{{HBO}} comedy from Creator/LisaKudrow and ''SexAndTheCity'' producer Michael Patrick King.

* {{Butt Monkey}}: Valerie, though most of the time she brings her suffering upon herself.
* {{Catch Phrase}}: Aunt Sassy's "I don't want to see that!"

* {{Genre Savvy}}: Valerie frequently attempts to use her status as a sitcom veteran to alter the events of "Room and Bored" in Aunt Sassy's favor, completely unaware that Paulie G. and others do not receive her suggestions well.

* {{OscarBait}}: Jane wins an Best Documentary Short Oscar for a film about Jewish lesbians in the Holocaust. ''Seeing Red'' itself becomes Emmy Bait thanks to Valerie's "brave" performance as an even worse version of herself.
* {{Rage Breaking Point}}: Valerie experiences one each season, the first in the form of a punch to the gut after Paulie G. mocks her back brace; the second occurs after Valerie is fed up with the mistreatment she experiences on the desert set of "Seeing Red," taking out her misplaced anger out on Ron and Shayna.

* ItsAllAboutMe: Even when Valerie is doing a good thing for someone else, it's usually because it also directly benefits her image.

* CringeComedy

* StepfordSmiler: Valerie.

* WhiteDwarfStarlet: Valerie.

* BlondesAreEvil: Averted. As the breakout star of "Room and Bored," Juna has every reason to be the stereotypical AlphaBitch but instead she's genuinely sweet and naive.

* BreakupBreakout: In the intervening years since ''Room & Bored'' went off the air, Tom and Paulie G. dissolved their writing partnership, and Paulie managed to transition his own personal problems into writing and directing his own HBO show.

* ConfessionCam: Valerie uses this a few times.

* ManipulativeEditing: The show's final episode had Valerie throw a viewing party for the premiere of her reality show. She's heartbroken when she realizes that the show was heavily edited to humiliate her, her friends, and coworkers. What's worse is that the show made her cruel tormentor, producer Paulie G, look like the victim in their ongoing feud.

A 2005 Creator/{{HBO}} comedy from Lisa Kudrow and ''SexAndTheCity'' producer Michael Patrick King.

HBO ordered a second season of eight episodes nearly nine years after the show was canceled.