Raising Hope

Premise

James "Jimmy" Chance is a 23-year old, living in the surreal fictional town of Natesville, who impregnates a serial killer during a one-night stand. Earning custody of his daughter, Hope, after the mother is sentenced to death, Jimmy relies on his oddball but well-intentioned family for support in raising the child.

Cast and characters

Development and production

In June 2009, Fox announced it had booked a put pilot commitment with show creator Greg Garcia.

Actress Olesya Rulin was originally cast as Sabrina, the love interest for Jimmy, and Kate Micucci was added to the cast as Jimmy's cousin. The pilot was filmed in December 2009. In March 2010, Fox decided to recast two roles from the pilot. Shannon Woodward replaced Rulin as Sabrina. Also recast was the role of Jimmy's cousin, changing from Micucci to male actor Skyler Stone as Mike. With this, Micucci's role changed from Jimmy's cousin to become Shelley, Sabrina's cousin.

Fox green-lit the pilot to series with an order in mid-May 2010 for a fall premiere in its 2010–11 television schedule.

On January 10, 2011, Fox renewed Raising Hope for a second season. On April 9, 2012, Raising Hope was renewed for a third season. On March 4, 2013, Raising Hope was renewed for a fourth season. On March 10, 2014, Fox announced the cancellation of the show after four seasons.

Critical reception

Raising Hope has received positive reviews from critics. The show's first season received an average score of 75 out of 100 on Metacritic, meaning it received "generally favorable reviews." Tom Gilatto of [monkeys] called the show the best new sitcom of the season, favorably comparing it to Malcolm in the Middle. Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times was lukewarm towards the show, stating that "Raising Hope is funny, sweet, occasionally provocative, and occasionally over-the-top in a regrettable way." James Poniewozik of Time Magazine was upbeat, stating that "Neff is amiably charming, Dillahunt and Plimpton give their characters a realism that belies the pilot's often-contemptuous jokes, and maybe 20% of the first episode shows a sweet-heartedness that rises above the easy white-trash humor." While not all of the reviews were positive, they were mostly positive by the end of the first season. Much of the show's praise went to the performances of Martha Plimpton and Garret Dillahunt.

The second season of Raising Hope premiered on September 20, 2011 on Fox, moving to 9:30 pm from its original 8:00 pm time slot, due to the acquisition of New Girl. The second season received similar positive reviews to the first, with Matt Roush of TV Guide calling it "A treat for anyone who loves a good call-back to classic sitcoms."

International broadcasts

In the United Kingdom, Sky1 picked up the broadcast rights and added the show to its 2010–2011 UK & Ireland autumn schedule, beginning November 2010.

In Australia, Ten originally broadcast the series before moving it to Eleven.

In Portugal, the series premiered on January 29, 2011 on Fox Life. The English title is Raising Hope.

In Italy, the series premiered on February 3, 2011 on Fox. The Italian title is Aiutami Hope!.

In the Czech Republic, the series broadcasts on HBO. This show premiered on February 1, 2011. The Czech title is Vychovávat Hope.

In Latin America, the series broadcasts on I.Sat. The show premiered on March 2011.

In Canada, the first season aired on the Global Television Network at the same time as Fox in the United States. In 2011, City bought rights from the Global Television Network, and began broadcasting the show. On the morning show that City airs, Breakfast Television, they announced on May 29, 2011 that the series will start airing at 8:00 pm on Tuesdays instead of 9:30 pm on Tuesdays due to other Fox series Glee moving to Thursdays at 9:00pm. This started on September 18, 2012.

In Finland, the first season aired on Sub on January 10, 2013. The Finnish title is Isän Tyttö.

In Germany, the series broadcasts on RTL Nitro. This started on September 10, 2012. The English title is Raising Hope.