But the show departs from expected sitcom tropes in one crucial aspect, groundbreaking because it hasn’t happened for two decades: Fresh Off the Boat is a sitcom about Asian-Americans. In early February, entertainment critics and the Asian-American community alike eagerly anticipated the pilot episode, holding their collective breathe to see how this show would depict a minority that remains largely unrepresented by the media. 

Cut to present-day television viewing. Press the guide button on your TV remote and you will notice that the most popular genre of shows are now “Reality.” And while almost every person will declare that reality television is not real, a startling number of new shows are constantly being produced because there are viewers to receive them. Even as naysayers publicly castigate Juan Pablo Galavis, the latest bachelor on the hit ABC “reality” series, the franchise just wrapped up its 18^th season, with the next bachelorette already selected to star in the hit spin-off.