It's only a matter of time before ABC renews Tim Allen's TV show, created by Julie Thacker Scully and Mike Scully, follows the relationship between the actor's character, widower Matt Parker, and his previously estranged daughter, Riley (played by Kat Dennings). Riley, who is in the midst of a divorce, and her two children move in with her father at the beginning of Shifting Gears, kicking the series into motion.

All 10 episodes of Shifting Gears season 1 are now available to stream on Hulu.

To no one's surprise, Shifting Gears has been a success. Allen's TV shows typically perform well, and his 2025 sitcom is his latest hit. Shifting Gears set a viewership record for ABC as its series premiere garnered around 16.95 million views across live and streaming, the highest since The Conners debuted in 2018 (per TheWrap). Consequently, it would be a complete shock if ABC canceled the show. Fans should expect to see Allen and Dennings return to their screens for Shifting Gears season 2 during the 2025–2026 TV season. Until then, they can watch other sitcoms to fill the void.

5 Last Man Standing

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The first series that Shifting Gears fans should watch (if they haven't already) while waiting for season 2 is Last Man Standing, of course. Last Man Standing is Allen's most recent show, aside from Shifting Gears. It premiered in 2011 on ABC and ran for six seasons on the network before it was canceled and then picked up by Fox for three more seasons. The sitcom ended in 2021, and Allen made his return to TV four years later via Shifting Gears.

Given its story centering around Allen's typecast conservative character and family values, Last Man Standing is the perfect replacement for Shifting Gears.

Allen's character, Mike Baxter, is a senior executive and the director of marketing for a sporting goods store chain in Denver. Meanwhile, he has a wife, three daughters, and a grandson at home. Given its story centering around Allen's typecast conservative character and family values, Last Man Standing is the perfect replacement for Shifting Gears. It also helps that Allen reunited with some of his Last Man Standing co-stars in his new ABC series.

4 Home Improvement

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Last Man Standing wasn't Allen's first successful sitcom — Home Improvement was. In fact, Home Improvement was Allen's breakthrough. He rose to prominence via the 1990s ABC comedy series, which lasted for nine seasons and over 200 episodes. It revolves around Allen's Tim Taylor, the host of a home improvement show called Tool Time, and his family (a recurring theme in the actor's sitcoms). Home Improvement's long run should keep Shifting Gears fans preoccupied during the hiatus between seasons 1 and 2.

3 2 Broke Girls

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If one is going to watch Allen's past TV shows to the time while waiting for Shifting Gears season 2, they should also check out Dennings' former sitcom, 2 Broke Girls. Dennings starred as Max Black alongside Beth Behrs' Caroline Channing in the CBS comedy series. Max and Caroline, who come from very different backgrounds, work alongside each other as waitresses at a local diner in Brooklyn, New York.

Max and Caroline meet at the beginning of 2 Broke Girls. Despite their differing personalities, they form a friendship, move in together, and start saving up money to open their own cupcake business. 2 Broke Girls ultimately ran for six seasons and 138 episodes before ending in April 2017.

2 Lopez vs Lopez

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If Shifting Gears enthusiasts are searching for a similar TV show that is still on the air, look no further than Lopez vs Lopez. The NBC sitcom stars George Lopez and his real-life daughter, Mayan, as fictionalized versions of themselves. Lopez vs Lopez is essentially the inverse of Shifting Gears as it begins with George moving in with Mayan after his moving company went bankrupt, and just like Matt and Riley in Shifting Gears, they are estranged at the start of the series.

1 Mom

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Another sitcom that features an estranged parent/child duo is Mom, starring Allison Janney and Anna Faris as the said pair. However, Mom is a bit more dramatic than Shifting Gears. The CBS comedy-drama follows Janney's Bonnie and Faris' Christy, who are both addicts helping each other stay sober by moving in together.

Over the course of Mom's eight seasons and 170 episodes, Bonnie and Christy (along with Christy's daughter, Violet) experience many highs and lows. Other characters include significant others (old and new) and Bonnie and Christy's friends from AA. Similar to Shifting Gears, Mom was a ratings success, but it was also a critical success as Janney won two Emmys for her performance in the comedy-drama.

Source: TheWrap