Mid-Century Modern lovingly cribs from The Golden Girls

You won’t hear or see the words The Golden Girls in new sitcom Mid-Century Modern but it owes the classic 1980s comedy almost everything.

It’s not just the premise that it (lovingly) cribs from The Golden Girls, but also the vibe. It’s warm and funny, with the fast-paced pat of a set-up-and-punchline joke structure, and leans into the multi-cam staging of a show with a live studio audience.

If you know and accept that Mid-Century Modern is a series with a three-walls set, a “laugh-track” and the non-naturalistic construction of a yesteryear comedy, then you’re going to have a fun time with it. This is not Arrested Development and it’s not trying to be.

Officially, the premise is “three gay men of a certain age” decide to move in together after one of their friends die, even though there is a 22-year age gap between Matt Bomer, 47, and Nathan Lane, 69, but the show at least acknowledges that.

(Fun fact: The Golden Girls actor Estelle Getty was 14 months younger than Bea Arthur, who plays her daughter.)

The house is architecturally a mid-century modern in the desert holiday spot of Palm Springs, which Contiki once called “the gayest town in America”. The lavishly decorated home (think: animal prints and black accents) belongs to Bunny (Lane), who made a lot of money from a lingerie chain store.

Jerry (Bomer) is a flight attendant and Arthur (Nathan Lee Graham) has just been fired from his job at Vogue. Much like in The Golden Girls, the fourth resident in the house is Bunny’s mum, the caustic but loving Sybil (Schneiderman).

Bunny is a little neurotic, Jerry is a little dumb and Arthur is a little dramatic, but together, they’re an alchemical mix of cutting and sunny. Arthur, like Dorothy in The Golden Girls, has the best one-liners.

Created by the guys behind Will & Grace, David Kohan and Max Mutchnick, Mid-Century Modern is going all-in on LGBTQI humour. There are pointed declarations of “Queen!” and more double entendres than there are pride flags at Mardi Gras.

It’s rapid-fire and it’s glorious, and Mid-Century Modern’s three leads are having a ball.

But it’s not all jokes and cocktails with many moments of genuine pathos mixed in, including ruminations on friendship, contentment and family.

Jerry is estranged from his daughter (Billie Lourd), after his ex-wife outed him in front of his Mormon church congregation and kept him from his kid. Arthur is not close to his family so Sybil is like a de facto mum to him, and the bond between Bunny and Sybil is very sweet.

Pamela Adlon has a recurring role as Bunny’s sister, and she holds many resentments for being not the favoured child, while Richard Kind pops up across two episodes as an old acquaintance.

Lavin, a TV and stage legend, died in late-2024 before Mid-Century Modern finished filming its season, and her death had to be incorporated into the show. It’s a touching tribute to Lavin, and if you didn’t already realise it, that episode will reveal how much and how quickly you’ve come to care for these characters.

But, like The Golden Girls, Mid-Century Modern is as much about found family as it is about a biological one, and it crackles with the toasty love the characters have for each other. That feeling is infectious.

Mid-Century Modern is streaming on Disney+