Often-compared to "Absolutely Fabulous," but really nothing like it, "High Society" should have been an enormous hit. Jean Smart and Mary McDonnell had remarkable chemistry together and the writing was top-notch, which should have been enough to keep the series afloat. Wrong. Some people had a hard time picturing Smart as anything but her homely character from "Designing Women," despite the fact most of her roles have been closer to Ellie than Charlene. Critics trashed it. Even actor John Schneider trashed it in an interview on TNN (then he subsequently ended up on "Veronica's Closet"). In several reviews, the characters in "Society" were criticized for laughing at their own jokes. Yet a few years later, Megan Mullally was hailed on "Will and Grace" for doing that same thing. Take the two characters from this show and roll them into one and you have "Will and Grace"'s Karen Walker, complete with Dott's look and Ellie's last name. Personally, I think this was one of the funniest sitcom of all time - too bad it was so closely compared to AbFab that very few people remember it!
