Three's Company

TV review by Emily Ashby, Common Sense Media
Three's Company Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 10+

Classic comedy of errors is still swingin'.

TV Land Comedy 1977
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Parents say

age 14+

Based on 9 reviews

Kids say

age 9+

Based on 13 reviews

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this TV show.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this still-hilarious '70s sitcom relies on sexual innuendo, silly physical humor, and monumental misunderstandings for its well-earned laughs. Throughout the series, Jack pretends to be gay so that his traditional landlords will allow him to live with two single women. There's no substantive negative commentary on homosexuality (though Jack sometimes camps it up a bit), but the masquerade is played for humor time and time again. The onscreen chemistry between Janet, Chrissy, and Jack (who fancies himself a ladies' man but rarely enjoys great luck with them) brings the subject of sexual attraction to the forefront, but the constant slapstick comedy keeps the tone light enough for family viewing with tweens. Even the innuendos seem pretty tame by today's standards; Chrissy's dumb-blonde shtick might raise more eyebrows among modern parents. Some kids might find the characters' constant mix-ups stressful.

Community Reviews

dellmsft
dellmsft Adult
February 20, 2018
age 14+

Emily Ashby?

Not sure how this CS reviewer thinks this show is appropriate for kids 10+. Considering all the parental reviews suggest it's for older kids, shouldn't she reconsider this review. I don't really care about this show in particular but it just happens to be one that I've seen many times. But it does concern me thinking about other shows I haven't seen on this site. My question is: at what point do CS reviewers consider changing their reviews.

This title has:

Too much sex
M.R. in L.A.
M.R. in L.A. Adult
July 29, 2016
age 10+

A really positive family viewing experience

Starting from when I was 8 or 9, three's Company was my favorite TV show. Since becoming a parent, I've often wondered why my parents were okay with me watching this show and when I saw CSM's 10+ raiting, I was a little surprised. I expected it to be older. But a few weeks ago, when we had exausted a lot of other movie night options, we decided to pop in the DVDs and see how it went. It proved to be a really positive family viewing experience. My 10 year old really enjoied it and laughed and laughed and Mr Roper's antiquated views on homosexuality provided really good discussion points about how our society has evolved and become more enlightened and accepting in regards to the LGBTQ community. And, as always, it was just a lot of fun to share a childhood memory with my son.
See all 9 parent reviews

What's the Story?

For eight seasons in the late 1970s and early '80s, THREE'S COMPANY effortlessly combined slapstick, physical humor, and double entendres. The show (which was based on the British hit Man About the House) centers on aspiring chef Jack Tripper (John Ritter), who shares an apartment in Santa Monica, Calif., with two female roommates -- slightly neurotic florist Janet Wood (Joyce DeWitt) and ditzy blonde Chrissy Snow (Suzanne Somers). In later episodes, after Somers left the show amid salary disputes, Chrissy was briefly replaced by her cousin, Cindy Snow (Jennilee Harrison), and then by the much more grounded Terri Alden (Priscilla Barnes). While the trio's co-ed bunking situation works well for them, their conservative older landlord, Mr. Roper (Norman Fell), thinks otherwise. He decides to live with it only after Jack lets Mr. Roper believe that he's gay -- when, in truth, Jack is happily heterosexual and even prides himself on his attraction to the ladies (though his roomies would probably disagree).

Is It Any Good?

As you can imagine, a premise based on one major misunderstanding just begs for more to follow -- and they certainly do. The name of the game here is comedy of misheard comments, misinterpreted situations, slapstick clumsiness, and drawn-out double entendres. Over the course of the show's eight-year run, Jack & co. weathered many personnel changes (including the memorable addition of Don Knotts as new landlord Mr. Furley), but their onscreen chemistry held strong.

Although plenty of Three's Company's humor has sexual tones, the mood is so light and silly that it's really pretty harmless. Kids old enough to pick up on the flirting and longing gazes likely will understand their place in the overall comedy, and younger tweens will miss most of it amid the clumsy physical humor that's so prevalent. The only thing to really watch out for is the mild teasing that surrounds Mr. Roper's belief in Jack's homosexuality. While even that's kept very light, it's pretty frequent (he often refers to Jack as "one of the girls") and may raise questions from kids.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about getting along with siblings (and/or roommates). How does sharing living space with someone affect your relationship with them? What challenges does it bring? Families can also discuss the dangers of prejudging people. Have your kids ever felt like they were unfairly judged or labeled? How does it make them feel? How do they respond if they're teased? Also, what's the best way to handle a misunderstanding?

TV Details

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