The Funniest Moment In Home Economics Season 1
Much of the comedy in ABC sitcom "Home Economics" revolves around the fact that each of its three adult sibling leads are in different socioeconomic brackets from one another. Upon the series' opening, viewers learn that little brother Connor (Jimmy Tatro) is a successful investor, middle child Sarah (Caitlin McGee) is a therapist, and first-born Tom (Topher Grace) is an author. Tom and Sarah's spouses likewise factor significantly into the main cast, amounting to, in Sarah's case, what may be one of the best TV couples of 2021. As its title suggests, then, "Home Economics" is effectively about family, wealth, and how those two subjects intersect.
Grace, notably, returned to the sitcom genre for the first time since his career-defining "That '70s Show" role to star in "Home Economics," which he explained was due to the fact that casting directors began typecasting him in villainous roles. Appropriately, then, "Home Economics" is light and breezy right out of the gate, juxtaposing straightforward family drama with easily digestible comedy. Here's what is arguably the funniest moment from the entirety of the show's first season.
Topher Grace slipping on a treadmill is an early series high point
On ABC's YouTube channel, the most-viewed "Home Economics" clip, titled "An Early Thanksgiving Argument," is of an early discussion among all of the series' leads taken from its pilot episode. Much of the comedy in the first half of this scene revolves around Connor's conceited personality, exacerbated by the fact that the conversation is taking place in his home gym. Then, Tom's wife Marina (Karla Souza) encourages her husband to ask Conner for some financial assistance. Tom clearly feels uncomfortable broaching this subject, and awkwardly stumbles backwards onto a moving treadmill, which promptly launches him back-first into an adjacent concrete wall.
This scene is arguably the best example in Season 1 of verbal comedy suddenly being undercut by a big physical gag, subverting the expectations of audiences accustomed to the show's humor manifesting solely from its dialogue. While this is a strategy the series continues to employ moving forward, the fact that this moment occurs in its very first episode, before audiences have become used to this style of comedy, makes Topher Grace's fall a Season 1 high point.