The New Normal Information

The New Normal is an American television comedy series created by Ryan Murphy and Ali Adler for NBC. The network placed a series order in May 2012. The pilot episode had an early release on NBC.com, before the series' premiere on television. The series premiered on September 10, 2012, before moving to its regular time slot on September 11, 2012. It airs Tuesdays at 9:30 pm Eastern/8:30 pm Central after the new comedy series Go On, as part of the 2012"13 United States network television schedule.

On October 2, 2012, NBC commissioned a full season of The New Normal.

Premise

Bryan (Andrew Rannells) and David (Justin Bartha) are a happy gay couple living in Los Angeles, with successful careers. The only thing missing in their relationship is a baby. They meet Goldie Clemmons, (Georgia King), a single mother and waitress from Ohio. Goldie left her adulterous husband and moved to L.A. with her nine-year-old daughter Shania (Bebe Wood) to escape their former life and start over. Jane (Ellen Barkin), Goldie's conservative and very bigoted grandmother, follows her family to the city against her granddaughter's wishes, thus causing havoc for her granddaughter and the hopeful couple. Goldie decides to become Bryan and David's gestational surrogate, and naturally, her family gets involved.

Cast

• Justin Bartha as David Bartholomew Sawyer, an obstetrician
• Andrew Rannells as Bryan Collins, a television producer who is the showrunner for the hit television series Sing (a thinly veiled spoof of series creator/showrunner Ryan Murphy's real-life television series Glee.)
• Georgia King as Goldie Clemmons, David and Bryan's surrogate. A shy working-class waitress from Ohio, she runs off to California with her daughter Shania after finding her husband Clay in bed with another woman, and signs up to be a surrogate in hope of using the money to go to law school.
• Bebe Wood as Shania Clemmons,Goldie and Clay's nine year old daughter.
• NeNe Leakes as Rocky Rhoades, Bryan's former production assistant (P.A.) and producer on Sing.
• Jayson Blair as Clay Clemmons, Goldie's estranged husband and Shania's father.
• Ellen Barkin as Jane Forrest, Goldie's grandmother. A staunchly Republican real estate agent prone to making outrageously racist and homophobic statements, she follows Goldie and Shania to California and is unwilling to return to Ohio without them.

Recurring actors on the show have included Jackie Hoffman and Barry Bostwick as David's divorced parents Frances and Marty, Marlo Thomas as Jane's boss, Cheri Oteri as Bryan and David's Baby Consultant and Michael Hitchcock as Gary, the head of the surrogacy firm.

Series overview

Seasons of The New Normal

Season		Episodes	Originally aired		DVD and Blu-ray release date
			Season premiere	Season finale	Region 1	Region 2	Region 4
	1	22		April 2, 2013		September 30, 2013

Episodes

No.	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Production code	U.S. viewers (million)
ProdCode = 1AVS79	Viewers = 6.88	ShortSummary = David and Bryan are a Los Angeles couple with successful careers and a committed, loving relationship but they want a baby. After some disastrous attempts at finding a surrogate into their lives comes Goldie, a single mother from Ohio looking to start over in California with her eight year old daughter Shania. Goldie specifically said she wanted to be a surrogate for a gay couple and Bryan and David couldn't be happier. Until Goldie's conservative grandmother Jane arrives to bring her and Shania back to Ohio.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS01	Viewers = 6.96	ShortSummary = Shania begins impersonating Little Edie from Grey Gardens, much to the delight of Bryan. David and Bryan's decision to have a night out on the town like they did when they were younger doesn't go as planned. Jane attempts to get Goldie to go back to Ohio by having her ex-husband Clay woo her.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS02	Viewers = 6.08	ShortSummary = David insists that they not get too far ahead of things but Bryan can't resist buying some adorable baby clothes. During a group trip to an outlet store David and Bryan are confronted by some people who are very hostile to the idea of two men having children. Shania wears one of the baby tops to school and gets a bit too intimate with a boy in her class.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS03	Viewers = 5.09	ShortSummary = Shania is excited about her school's mock election and proudly tells Bryan and David that unlike her mother she will be voting for Barack Obama. Jane accuses them of corrupting her great-granddaughter into voting for the Democrats and they are shocked that Goldie would support the Republicans like her grandmother. Bryan and David have a dinner party in an attempt to show Jane they have a diverse group of friends.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS04	Viewers = 4.50	ShortSummary = David decides to tell his mother about the baby. Bryan and Goldie bond over mother-in-law woes. Jane picks up a younger man in the hotel bar and has an unfamiliar sensation during their sexual encounter in her room. Jane is so troubled by it that she seeks out David's medical advice. Shania is worried that her father might get custody of her and so she has been working on her California bucket list.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS05	Viewers = 4.86	ShortSummary = When Shania announces that she is "pretend engaged" to a boy at school Bryan is thrilled with the announcement and begins planning what is to be the wedding of his dreams for her. Goldie supports her daughter's decision but Jane is absolutely against the wedding because she believes a wedding isn't something to play with. David comes to understand just how important a wedding and marriage is to Bryan.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS06	Viewers = 4.33	ShortSummary = Bryan gets to thinking about growing up Catholic and what religion meant to him. When Rocky explains what it means to be her niece's godmother David and Bryan decide they need to find someone who can be a spiritual guide for their baby. They reach out to their friends Tiffany (Constance Zimmer) and Victoria (Leisha Hailey), who are the only religious couple they know, only to discover that their inability to have children would make being godparents a very difficult situation for them. Bryan goes to church and has a surprising conversation with Father Michael (John Benjamin Hickey).	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS08	Viewers = 4.66	ShortSummary = Goldie feels that the family is too immersed in their technology rather than actually spending time together so she proposes that they all go tech-free for the weekend. Shania takes the proposition a little too seriously and starts acting like a pilgrim. Rocky sets Jane up with her very first Twitter account which doesn't go as planned as she uploads a personal video of Bryan's that he was planning to show David on their wedding day with the #gayestvideoever.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS09	Viewers = 4.29	ShortSummary = This Thanksgiving, the family decides to have a girls and gays Thanksgiving including just Bryan, David, Goldie, Shania and Rocky. Although this seems like a good idea, David tells his mother about the idea and is forced to invite her. Shania proposes that they invite everyone's family but that doesn't quite go as planned. While Bryan and Shania go to buy a turkey for lunch, Shania is heartbroken when she looks in their eyes, and she convinces Bryan to buy the lot and take care of them and to have an all vegetarian with a tofu turkey or "tofurkey." When Jane finds out about the vegetarian meal, she decides to take matters into her own hands and kill one of Shania and Bryan's turkeys and cook it herself. David finds his divorced parents sleeping together in their guest house and Clint gets in a fight with Clay over Goldie. In the end, everyone is sent home and they have their girls and gays Thanksgiving after all	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS10	Viewers = 4.04	ShortSummary = Bryan and David accidentally learn the baby's gender; Shania's performance at a school assembly as Cher reminds Goldie she has dreams to pursue; Shania gets suspended.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS11	Viewers = 4.55	ShortSummary = David hires Carla, a baby proofer to make the house safer, but instead of creating a sense of security, it puts a wedge between him and Bryan causing them to bicker. Meanwhile, in the process of decorating the Christmas tree and getting into the holiday spirit, it is revealed that eggnog makes Jane an unusually nice person. Later, Bryan and Jane attend a Hollywood party at the home of Nancy Niles (Marlo Thomas), Los Angeles realtor to the stars, that will turn out to be the boost that Jane has been looking for	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS12	Viewers = 3.23	ShortSummary = David and Bryan decide that they would like Goldie to be their surrogate once again after their son is born, meanwhile, Bryan's ex-boyfriend Monte (Matt Bomer) returns to town and begins causing trouble.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS13	Viewers = 3.33	ShortSummary = Bryan and David begin to debate on who should be the stay-at-home dad once their son arrives to take care of him. Meanwhile Rocky fills in for Bryan on Sing.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS14	Viewers = 3.28	ShortSummary = Jane and Rocky become interested in men they meet at work and enlist Shania, Bryan and David's help in staging a "gay test" to determine their respective orientations. Meanwhile, Bryan and David disagree on the outfit their son will wear in his birth announcement photo.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS15	Viewers = 3.08	ShortSummary = Brian and David ask Goldie if she would breast feed their baby when it's born, to which she gladly accepts their offer. Shania gets upset after she discovers that Goldie didn't breast feed her as a baby. After a desperate attempt to get Brice to ask her out, Jane enlists the help of Rocky.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS16	Viewers = 2.80	ShortSummary = David and Bryan's dog is rushed to the hospital. Meanwhile, Goldie falls in love with Shania's school principal after being called in because Shania is acting like people from various British television shows.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS17	Viewers = 2.62	ShortSummary = Rocky throws a baby shower for Bryan and David, but said shower ropes Rocky, Bryan and David into a foster parent situation. Meanwhile, Jane doesn't know what to get Bryan and David for the baby shower.	LineColor = fa9112 }}	ProdCode = 1AVS07	Viewers = 2.44	ShortSummary = It's Halloween and Bryan immediately takes charge in telling everyone what to wear. But the rest of the group have grown tired of following his each and every command and decides to take Halloween into their own hands.	LineColor = fa9112 }} </ref>	DirectedBy = Elodie Keene	WrittenBy = Aaron Lee	OriginalAirDate =	ProdCode = 1AVS18	Viewers =	ShortSummary =	LineColor = fa9112 }} </ref>	DirectedBy = Scott Ellis	WrittenBy = Mark Kunerth & Karey Dornetto	OriginalAirDate =	ProdCode = 1AVS19	Viewers =	ShortSummary =	LineColor = fa9112 }} </ref>	DirectedBy =	WrittenBy =	OriginalAirDate =	ProdCode = 1AVS20	Viewers =	ShortSummary =	LineColor = fa9112 }} </ref>	DirectedBy =	WrittenBy =	OriginalAirDate =	ProdCode = 1AVS21	Viewers =	ShortSummary =	LineColor = fa9112 }}

Production

On January 27, 2012, NBC officially ordered the project to pilot, which was co-written by co-creators/executive producers Ryan Murphy and Ali Adler, while being directed by Murphy.

Casting announcements began in January 2012, with Andrew Rannells first cast in the role of Bryan Collins, one half of the gay couple who decides to use a surrogate to have a baby. Ellen Barkin was next cast in the series as Jane Forrest, Goldie's Republican grandmother. Justin Bartha and Georgia King both then joined the series. Bartha signed on to play David Bartholomew Sawyer, the other half of the aforementioned gay couple; and King joined the series as Goldie Clemmons, a cash-strapped waitress and mother, that becomes Bryan and David's surrogate. Bebe Wood followed with her cast in the role of Shania Clemmons, Goldie and Clay's daughter. NeNe Leakes was the last actor cast in the series as Rocky, Bryan's assistant.

On May 7, 2012, the show was picked up to series. It premiered on September 11, 2012. Jayson Blair originally signed on to the series as Clay Clemmons, in a recurring role. However, after the pilot was ordered to series, Blair was then upped to series regular.

Marketing

On August 29, 2012, NBC released the pilot episode online as a "preview", prior to the official premiere on September 11, 2012. A similar marketing strategy was made with The New Normal's time-slot companion Go On, which aired its first episode on August 8, 2012, post the 2012 Summer Olympics.

Critical reception

The New Normal received a 60 out of 100 aggregate score, based on 32 critics' responses, indicating "mixed or average" reception at Metacritic. Robert Bianco of USA Today called it a "surprisingly touching comedy," adding "For the most part, Normal plays like a lovely, small movie, mixing humorous moments with sweet, gentle grace notes. At its best, it plays like a Woody Allen film, something you may notice most when secondary characters stop and explain themselves to the camera." Linda Stasi of the New York Post thought the series was "pretty darned good," adding "The New Normal finds its game when it's funny without trying so hard and sweet when it should be. At times Normal is so touching you might pull out a tissue, or maybe a diaper." Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly gave the series a B grade, saying it contains "a mixture of sarcasm and sentimentality that isn't remotely realistic, but can be funny." David Hinckley of the New York Daily News called the series "a bumpy ride," adding "The New Normal wants what Modern Family is having. But if we're going to catapult from South Park to a Hallmark movie, we need a smoother ride."

Refusal to broadcast

On August 24, 2012, representatives from KSL-TV, the NBC affiliate in Salt Lake City, Utah, announced the station, which is owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, would not carry The New Normal, citing content they believed to be inappropriate for broadcast during the family hour. KUCW, the state's CW affiliate, picked up the series and currently airs it on weekends.

Broadcast

First-run broadcasts outside of the USA and it's territories within North America, for Canada the CTV Television Network has the rights to simsub the NBC broadcast in most areas.

Exclusive Fox broadcasting company first-run contracted broadcasters have the rights in Australia on Network Ten from October 14, 2012 with the show being preempted twice due to ratings, in New Zealand on TV3 (New Zealand) to be scheduled sometime in 2013 after a complete season has been aired in the US and in Israel on the yes pay television network scheduled for Saturday at 7PM.

In other areas the rights have been acquired for the United Kingdom by Channel 4 on E4 from January 10, 2013 at 9pm.

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Result	Notes
2013	People's Choice Awards	Favorite New TV Comedy		First Nominated and Won award
2013	Art Director's Guild Awards	Episode of a Half Hour Single-Camera Television Series		For Sofa's Choice