Brooklyn Nine-Nine was a total smash hit with audiences, so clearly, the popular police-satire has done something right. Celebrated for its witty portrayal of serious issues, actor Andy Samberg brings the laughs as an immature (yet competent) NYPD detective in Brooklyn’s 99th precinct. As wonderful as it is, no show lasts forever, so it’s important for fans of cop/workplace comedies to have a list of similar shows in their back pocket that are perfect for a rainy day. Here are some similar shows to watch if you love Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
Updated on July 16th, 2020, by Richard Keller: Comedy is needed to release the tensions of everyday life. Shows like Brooklyn Nine-Nine help do that. Fortunately, there are other sitcoms similar to this NBC program that are available. Here are a few more lighthearted shows like Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
15 Scrubs
Like Brooklyn Nine-Nine, the medical comedy Scrubs mixes laugh out loud moments with periods of seriousness and thought. In a way, these shows hearken back to the sitcoms of the 1970s and 80s. It was a time when constant punchlines weren’t the norm.
This is the way Bill Lawrence put together Scrubs. While much of the show is a mix of broad comedy and slapstick, there are moments that actually bring tears to the viewers’ eyes. Of course, this can’t be done without great actors, and the cast hits the mark time and time again.
14 Psych
Crime procedurals can be dark. That’s why you should watch Psych. This show about fake psychic detective Shawn and his trusty pal Gus is the opposite of something like Criminal Intent. This lighthearted comedy is all about nicknames, pineapples, and saying “Suck it!” to each other.
The show’s legacy, which includes two made-for-TV movies, is due to the main characters. Despite the frustrations of Shawn’s father and the Santa Barbara police officers and detectives, Shawn is a member of their family. In fact, he seems to be a member of everyone’s family in each episode. This is what makes it both funny and warm.
13 Cougar Town
Another Bill Lawrence creation, Cougar Town returned Courtney Cox to the comedy fold. In the show, she’s a single mother living in Florida who is looking for a new romance. Though the original concept was for Cox’s character, Jules, to be a “Cougar” in search of young love, she ended up falling for someone around her age.
He was part of an ensemble cast that contained new folks and some veterans from Scrubs. Together, they formed a surrogate family around Jules’ cul de sac that was there for one another. Also, each season seemed to feature ever-larger wine glasses.
12 The Middle
Consider this Patricia Heaton comedy a lighter version of The Conners. For nine seasons, the Hecks were neither rich nor poor. They were simply there. Yet, there was an enormous amount of love between Heaton’s character, Frankie, her husband Mike, and their three kids.
It didn’t matter if Axel walked around all day in his underwear or if Brick whispered to himself after saying a sentence. Even when daughter Sue’s optimistic attitude was a bit too much, it didn’t stop Frankie from solving their problems as best as she could with humor.
11 Young Sheldon
Where Sheldon Cooper’s first home, The Big Bang Theory, was about the big laughs, Young Sheldon is about the chuckles. It reveals the origins of the Nobel Prize winner from his days living in Texas. Also, it’s the tale of his parents, his twin sister (also highly intelligent), and his older brother.
Like other comedies, conflicts emerge that are both cringingly embarrassing and sweetly funny. With BBT no longer on CBS, Young Sheldon keeps viewers in the universe with a character that became loved over the last decade.
10 Parks And Recreation
When thinking of shows that remind me of Brooklyn Nine-Nine, this is the first one that comes to mind, and there’s a good reason for that. Parks and Recreation is a hilarious political satire that was co-created by Mike Schur, who also happened to co-create Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
Yep, that’s where you recognize this relatable blend of inefficient bureaucracy and ridiculous one-liners! If you enjoy character-driven comedy and parodies, then Parks and Rec. is just what the doctor ordered.
9 The Good Place
Brooklyn Nine-Nine fans are sure to appreciate The Good Place, which was also created by Mike Shur (who also helped co-write The Office). Similar to Brooklyn Nine-Nine, the relatable jokes, absurd situations, and ridiculous characters in this fantasy-comedy series will have you rolling.
The series follows Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell) who arrives in Heaven (The Good Place) by mistake and tries to hide her bad behavior and misdeeds in an effort to stay there. If nothing else, be sure to watch it for the twist ending at the end of season one.
8 The Office
As I mentioned before, Brooklyn Nine-Nine creator Mike Shur co-wrote many scenes in the American version of The Office. He also made multiple appearances on the show as Mose Schrute, the cousin of Dwight Schrute. For those who haven’t seen it, trust me, this is exactly the kind of character-driven comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine fans would go wild for. The Office is a mockumentary-style comedy series that follows the every day lives of employees of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company in Scranton, Pennsylvania. The humor’s pretty dry, so get ready to laugh and cringe at the same time!
7 Happy Endings
Happy Endings might have been canceled back in 2013, but like The Office, this single-camera ensemble comedy had quite the cult following because it was just so darn relatable. Unlike some of the shows on this list, Happy Endings doesn’t take place in a work environment, but instead follows the lives of six best friends living in Chicago who put the FUN in dysfunctional. We’ve all “met” the types of characters in this show: the married couple, the overachieving businessman, the neurotic housewife, the ditzy single girl, the manchild, and the Taylor Swift-inspired character who just can’t manage to keep a man. Sound familiar? You’ll love every minute of it.
6 Veronica Mars
For those of you who enjoy Brooklyn Nine-Nine’s perfect blend of crime and comedy, it might be time to check out Veronica Mars, a show that has been described as “a mystery wrapped in a comedy inside a teen drama.”
The series is set in the very rich, very fictional town of Neptune, California, and follows Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell) as she follows in her father’s footsteps moonlighting as a private investigator throughout high school and college. Anyone who appreciates a good character-driven, crime-solving series with a dash of light-hearted comedy will love every minute of it.
5 Superstore
What do Brooklyn Nine-Nine, The Office, Parks and Recreation, and Superstore have in common? Miserable and clueless employees, that’s what! The vast majority of people in America have had to put on a laminated name tag at some point in their lives, even if it was back in high school, so this show was bound to be a hit because so many people get it.
Superstore follows a group of employees who work at a fictional retail store in St. Louis, Missouri, and we all know that workplace comedies are golden. Watch and find out why many are calling this show a worthy successor of The Office.
4 Angie Tribeca
Just like Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Angie Tribeca is a satirical take on the “police procedural genre,” which apparently is a thing. The series stars Rashida Jones as police detective Angie Tribeca, a member of the LAPD’s elite RHCU (Real Heinous Crimes Unit). Angie and her new partner solve a different crime in every episode, and the series is delightfully heavy on irony, slapstick comedy, and witty one-liners that you’ll be quoting before you know it.
3 Chuck
Chuck is a workplace/action/crime comedy all-in-one, so hold onto your butts. Chuck (Zachary Levi) works as a computer tech for a retail outlet and his life is just as average as his name. That is until he receives an encoded email from an old friend working for the CIA. After that, Chuck has top-secret intelligence downloaded into his brain and things change pretty fast as he’s thrown into the undercover world of espionage. The series was popular and beloved enough to run for five seasons, even under multiple threats of cancellation, and finished in 2012.
2 Sirens
Listed as one of the most underrated sitcoms to stream on Netflix, Sirens follows the professional and personal lives of three EMT paramedics in Chicago and you won’t believe what they get up to. Unlike some of the other workplace comedies on this list, the jokes and situations in this show are pretty crass and dirty, so maybe don’t watch it with your grandma… Despite being a bonafide pearl-clutcher, Sirens (which is loosely based on the British series of the same name) is both quirky and laugh-out-loud funny.
1 Reno 911
Any fan of cop-humor had to know this one was going to make the list, right?! Reno 911 was a mockumentary-style parody of law enforcement documentary shows, specifically Cops, and it was just as ridiculous as you can imagine. The series ran on Comedy Central from 2003 to 2009 and followed a bunch of incompetent police officers as they chased criminals, performed their daily duties, and carried out questionable police procedures. Interestingly, most of the material used was completely improvised, which is pretty impressive.