The Jim Gaffigan Show is an American sitcom based on the standup comedy of Jim Gaffigan. The show ran for two seasons on TV Land from July 2015 to August 2016.
The Jim Gaffigan Show provides examples of the following tropes:
- A Cappella: The "music" in the show is just singers humming and scatting.
- Big Eater: Jim practically is the poster child of this trope. He's rarely seen without some sort of food in his hand. If he's not, expect him to obtain food shortly. Much of the humor revolves around Jim's habit of over eating. He once convinced his kids that their Halloween candy had poison in them so he could eat it. He also took a popsicle from one of his sleeping daughters. when she woke up Jim convinced her she was still sleeping and that she was dreaming.
- Biting-the-Hand Humor: "No Good Deed" takes a couple pot shots at TV Land, the channel which aired the show.
- Breaking the Fourth Wall: The last moments of the first season finale has Jim and his real-life wife, along with various crew members, thanking the audience and to join them for season 2.
- Butt-Monkey: Jim naturally. The show revolves around often getting himself in trouble. Often due to his own laziness, incompetence, and/or gluttony.
- Jim's friend Dave qualifies as well. Especially the time he got mistaken for a homeless man.
- Camp Gay: Daniel. Jeanie's ex boyfriend.
- Composite Character: Dave is based on a few of Jim's comedian friends.
- Content Warnings: The second season finale has a disclaimer that the episode contains profanity. It all comes from Jim's dad, who frequently says "God dammit!"
- Crossover: With PAW Patrol, of all shows: an animated short was produced showing Jim as a dog to promote the show.
- Flash Forward: The second season premiere ends with a flash forward to Jim ascending an escalator to Heaven: "36 years from now... or if Jim doesn't change his eating habits... 2 months later."
- The Friend Nobody Likes: Dave is this during his birthday party. All the comics he invited are pretty much there for free Booze. Even Jim seems to mostly just tolerate him.
- Kafka Comedy: Dives into this a lot of the time.
- Mistaken for Gay: The time involving Daniel getting stuck in Jim's hotel room's bathroom.
- Multi-Part Episode: There's a three-parter in season 2 where Dave creates a show for TV Land.
- Race Against the Clock: The episode where Jim takes the kids to a museum has a clock appear on-screen every so often telling how much time is left before Jeanie arrives from the dentist.
- Rule of Three: Daniel's dad fakes a heart attack twice in episode 5. The third time, though, it's real (technically it was a blood pressure spike, but same ball park).
- Running Gag. Jeanie finding something wrong with the apartment Daniel is showing.
- Macaulay Culkin pops up every now and again doing random things.
- Shout-Out:
- In the episode where Jim goes to the museum, there's a map screen showing where the various characters are. At one point, Jim goes to a restaurant and it presents him like Pac-Man.
- In the episode "No Good Deed", Jim is seen watching PAW Patrol.
- Thoroughly Mistaken Identity: In "The List", Jeanie targets a man she thinks is responsible for not including Jim on a list of top 100 NYC comedians, simply because he regularly attends a coffee shop with his laptop and fits her "profile" of what a blogger looks like. It turns out the guy doesn't even speak English and has no idea what she's talking about when she confronts him.
- Time Lapse: Episodes frequently begin this way, with a montage of Jim doing something (like walking the kids around the neighborhood) shot in extreme Undercrank to speed up time.
- Vomit Discretion Shot: Jeanie throws up on a cruise boat in episode 5, due to excessive drinking. Jim jokes that she's had five kids, vomiting is like a second language to her.
- Whole Episode Flashback: The second season finale (and series finale) had a flashback to Jim's childhood.
- World of Jerkass: Pretty much the world seems to run on treating Jim like garbage and often get away with it
