Sitcoms, since time immemorial, have been the remote representation of our real lives on screen. That is why these shows seem to bind us together, weaving the life stories of the common person that we reckon with. Over time, the tools have changed, but the logistics have remained the same. Great American sitcoms like Friends, Modern Family, Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Young Sheldon, and recent pieces like Partner Track and many more are the perfect examples of how a sitcom could become a lot more than a mere TV show. But these are just the surface of it.

The actual potential sitcoms that modern-day shows derive their inspiration from have become archaic and antiquated. So let’s take a moment to reminisce about the age-old sitcoms that have laid the basic foundation for what we binge-watch today. One such sitcom is the late 90s’ Living single, whose synopsis and plot lines run parallel with Friends and modern-day shows like Partner Track.

Friends and Partner Track are just the gentrified versions of Living Single

Six young adults coexist together, mending their lives out through the struggles they face in settling down in the world’s greatest city. Sounds familiar? Well, the 1993 American sitcom Living Single is all about it. Following its lead came the best of all, Friends, which had somewhat of the same storyline.

Both the shows bear uncanny resemblances for which viewers call Friends a revamped version of Living Single. The same goes with the recent legal drama show, Partner Track, which revolves around a young Asian-American woman who works her way out to make a mark in one of the top law firms in New York City. Although the six-member element is missing here, the storyline is mostly the same.

Hence the fact that Living Single acts as a source of inspiration for many sitcoms for the latest generation holds very true. In fact, in an interview, Queen Latifah on Andy Cohen talked about how Friends was originally derived from this legendary black show. According to her, the executives of NBC ripped off Friends for the former, which laid a kind of template for most other series that followed or are yet to come.