TV ABC announces comedy premiere dates — watch sneak peek of The Goldbergs' Airplane! tribute By Gerrad Hall Gerrad Hall Gerrad Hall is an executive editor at Entertainment Weekly, overseeing TV, music, and awards coverage. He is also host of the daily What to Watch podcast and weekly video series, as well as The Awardist podcast. Gerrad also cohosts EW's live Oscars, Emmys, SAG, and Grammys red carpet shows, and he has appeared on Good Morning America, The Talk, Access Hollywood, Extra!, and other talk shows, delivering the latest news on pop culture and entertainment. EW's editorial guidelines Published on September 10, 2020 04:15PM EDT Surely you can't be serious. Oh, but we are. ABC has set premiere dates for its slate of Wednesday night comedies. The network's four laughers will be back for new seasons starting Wednesday, Oct. 21 for back-to-back episodes of The Goldbergs, followed by The Conners, and black-ish; American Housewife will premiere the following week, on Wednesday, Oct. 28. Keeping in the tradition of its recent season premieres, The Goldbergs — starring Wendi McLendon-Covey, Sean Giambrone, Troy Gentile, Hayley Orrantia, Sam Lerner, George Segal, and Jeff Garlin — will kick off its eighth season with a tribute, this time to the adored 1980 film parody Airplane! (watch an exclusive promo above). "Do you remember our 'Dinner With the Goldbergs' episode? It all took place in a very small area," McLendon-Covey explained during the show's Comic-Con@Home Panel moderated by EW, referring to the season 5 episode where a surprise birthday dinner for eldest child Erica (Orrantia) went off the rails and audiences got to see that this loud, unfiltered, eccentric family doesn't tone it down even when at a restaurant. And those antics will escalate when thousands of miles in the air. "Murray [Garlin] is gonna have some strong feelings about sitting in coach." Adds executive producer Doug Robinson, "The only thing crazier than having dinner with the Goldbergs is taking an airplane ride with the Goldbergs." ABC While Oct. 21 is the official season premiere for black-ish, the comedy is going animated for a two-part special on Sunday, Oct. 4 at 10 p.m. ET, focused on the Johnson family and the 2020 election. ABC previously announced premiere dates for its unscripted series; dramas will be announced soon. Here's the full comedy premiere schedule: WEDNESDAY, OCT. 21 8-9 p.m. — The Goldberg (back-to-back episodes) 9-9:30 p.m. — The Conners 9:30-10 p.m. — black-ish WEDNESDAY, OCT. 28 8:30-9 p.m. — American Housewife Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free daily newsletter to get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. Related content: black-ish to premiere election-themed animated special from Hair Love director The Goldbergs paying tribute to high-flying comedy Airplane! in season 8 premiere ABC announces new schedule including The Bachelorette return ABC renews 19 shows, cancels five, as next season's lineup announced