Column: For families isolating together, ‘Schitt’s Creek’ is the perfect pandemic sitcom

It is impossible for me to overstate how deeply attached I have become to “Schitt’s Creek” during the COVID-19 pandemic. Downtown, the beach or indeed any L.A. neighborhood beyond a three-mile radius of our home has become, like “Schitt’s Creek’s” nearby town of Elmdale, an aspirational and only occasional destination. Like many modern comedies, “Schitt’s Creek” is single-camera, which means the story is not confined to soundstages — the Roses and their friends are often seen outside, though usually in pairs or trios and even then, the action remains, for the most part, interaction. Those of us lucky to be away from the front lines of the pandemic are living in our own sitcom these days, and, like “Schitt’s Creek,” it is a tragi-comedy revolving around changed circumstances. Because my kids love “Schitt’s Creek” as much as I do, “Oh, my God, Alexis/David” has become instant shorthand, and a much friendlier substitute, for calling out certain types of behavior — and David- and Alexis-like tones and gestures have helped defuse more than a few potential blow-ups.