The Home Improvement Spin-Off With Dave Chappelle You Likely Forgot Existed

Over the years, networks have churned out an array of sitcoms, some of which are among the most bewilderingly terrible TV shows of all time. Things only get worse when you take a look at the long list of failed spin-offs that only squeezed out 13 episodes or so. But even the worst of these look like "The Simpsons" when compared to the Dave Chappelle-led "Home Improvement" spin-off that was axed after just four episodes.

"Buddies" might be one of the shortest-lived shows of all time, airing on ABC from March 5 to March 27, 1996. Yes, "Buddies" ran for less than a month, after which time it was unceremoniously canned due to low ratings.

Conceived by "Home Improvement" creators Carmen Finestra, David McFadzean, and Matt Williams, "Buddies" grew out of a Season 4 episode of the hit ABC sitcom entitled "Talk to Me" which guest starred Dave Chappelle and Jim Breuer. Evidently, the network execs were pleased with the episode's ratings and thought the duo might fare well in their own show. It was a tenuous concept, considering Chappelle and Breuer's characters (simply named Dave and Jim) only appeared in this single episode, and Breuer was replaced before the offshoot started filming. Perhaps unsurprisingly then, the experiment failed remarkably fast.

In their initial "Home Improvement" appearance, Dave Chappelle and Jim Breuer guest starred as audience members seeking help with their respective relationships on "Tool Time," the show-within-a-show hosted by Tim Allen's Timothy "The Toolman" Taylor. It wasn't the most groundbreaking or funniest episode, but audiences reportedly loved it, with the episode coming in second in the Nielsen ratings that week, just behind "Seinfeld." 

At the time, Dave Chappelle had been building his stand-up career, though he had appeared in 1993's "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" and two episodes of "Def Comedy Jam." On the whole, however, he was still a relative unknown, as was Jim Breuer, a fellow stand-up and friend of Chappelle's who would later co-star with him in "Half Baked." "Buddies" would have been the pair's first time starring alongside one another, but the first sign of trouble came when Breuer was, bizarrely, removed before filming of the pilot commenced.

In the eyes of the execs, "Buddies" was a way to showcase Chappelle's talents, and evidently Breuer didn't quite fit into that formula. So, he was replaced by Christopher Gartin who instead of playing Jim, played John. Unfortunately, this new iteration didn't work, much of which came down to the fact that Chappelle and Gartin weren't, in fact, buddies.

"Buddies" saw Dave Chappelle reprising his minor "Home Improvement" role as Dave, opposite Christopher Gartin as his pal John. Together, the pair ran a struggling video production company named Hi-Intensity in Chicago. Looming over the titular friends was Dave's father/landlord Mr. Carlisle (Richard Roundtree), who had little patience for his son's lack of success and was constantly on the verge of evicting the pair.

None of these character dynamics were given a chance to develop, however, since the show had been designed around the comedic chemistry that existed between Chappelle and Jim Breuer. Chappelle and Gartin simply didn't have the same relationship, and Dave and John were hardly Tim Taylor and Al Borland, whose chemistry was part of what made "Home Improvement" the hit it was.

After the fourth episode of "Buddies" aired, ABC pulled the plug on the show, with its time slot being replaced by an "Ellen" rerun. At the time, ABC announced the show had been placed on hiatus, which many correctly predicted meant it had been canned. Indeed, "Buddies" became one of the shortest-lived series of all time and ever since, has teetered on the verge of becoming lost media. Today, episodes can be seen on YouTube and Best Buy released a DVD back in 2005 timed to capitalize on Chappelle's post-"Chappelle's Show" popularity, though three episodes were reportedly missing.