The siblings in Sibs are played by Marsha Mason, Margaret Colin (Leg Work), and Jami Gertz (Square Pegs); Alex Rocco (The Famous Teddy Z) is Mason's husband. Sibs' executive producers are industry superstars James L. Brokos (The Mary Tyler Moore Show), Heide Perlman (Cheers), and Sam Simon (The Simpsons).
And what has all this talent wrought? A sitcom with anorexia nervosa: Sibs is thin, tense, fragile, and often empty. But it is also a show that seems on the verge of curing its problems and frequently shows signs of witty vigor.
Sibs' premise is simple: The show concerns the ongoing relationships among these sisters — Mason is the relatively sane one, warm and nurturing; Colin is cynical and sarcastic, a chain-smoking recovering alcoholic; Gertz is the ditzy free spirit.
Of this trio, Colin's Audie is the most complicated. It requires an innately charming actress to make so difficult a personality seem even slightly sympathetic, and the wry, underrated Colin really pulls this off. So far, though, too much of Sibs has been taken up with marriage — the tiresomely sitcom-typical one of Mason and Rocco's. The show leaves you wanting to see more. Of the many sitcoms floating around this new season, Sibs has the greatest potential to become an ensemble triumph. B
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