The 20 funniest TV comedy summer episodes of all time

When Liz Lemon gets in trouble for a “hate crime” against a “Jewish tree,” she escapes to the Hamptons hoping to have a relaxing summer. However, her vacation neighbor turns out to be her loud, hard-partying co-worker Tracy Jordan, which obviously throws a wrench into Liz’s peaceful plans. This episode was actually written by comedian Hannibal Buress, and includes guest appearances by Elizabeth Banks, Will Forte, Victor Garber and Chris Parnell.

Like most “Arrested Development” episodes, “The Cabin Show” contains plenty of puns and double entendre, but the best gag in this episode was repeatedly someone who is disappointed over a last-minute camping trip cancellation. Although “The Cabin Show” marks the first mention of the Bluth’s family cabin, it soon becomes central to all of the characters' separate plotlines in some way.

“Cheers” rarely left the comfort of its namesake bar, which is kind of the point of the season eight episode, “Indoor Fun with Sammy and Robby.” Robin takes the day off to spend it with Rebecca, who dreams up the perfect date of picnicking, walking on the beach, riding around in paddleboats and going to the zoo — basically all outdoor activities. However, Robin ends up getting sidetracked at the bar when he enters into an endless one-upmanship competition with Sam.

As much as we enjoy the highbrow humor of “Frasier,” some of the best episodes are the ones that have the most ridiculous premises. A perfect example is “The Seal Who Came to Dinner,” in which Frasier and Niles break into Maris’s beach house in order to throw a dinner party. (Niles: “It’s not a crime if it’s catered!”) When a seal keeps washing ashore, the brothers attempt to dispose of it, but nosy neighbors end up thinking that they are murdering Maris.

The classic “Friends” episode “The One with the Jellyfish” is actually the latter part of a two-episode trip to the beach. Although there are some serious plot questions that needed to be answered (Will Ross get back together with Rachel? Will Monica finally see Chandler as boyfriend material?) this fourth-season premiere also had plenty of laughs and memorable lines, like Monica receiving a jellyfish sting that needed to be remedied, the debut of the 18-page letter (“FRONT and BACK!”) from Rachel to Ross, and Chandler emerging from behind the door at the end and exclaiming, “I knew it!” Be sure to look this one up on Netflix.

For three episodes in the sixth season of “I Love Lucy,” the show hit the rails for a trip to Florida. While all three would be fantastic fits for this list, we decided to go with the middle episode, “Deep-Sea Fishing,” because it pits the guys against the girls, which is always a formula for success with this show. After the two sides make a bet as to who can catch the biggest fish, they both end up buying a 100-pound tuna for insurance. Of course shenanigans ensue, and the episode ends with Ricky falling overboard and Lucy reeling him in.

We’ve been mostly disappointed in the last few seasons of “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia,” with the glaring exception of one episode, season 12’s “The Gang Goes to a Water Park.” Although there’s plenty of scheming afoot as always, the installment is really just about having fun and riding waterslides. There are three strong, separate storylines in this one, but in the end, they all hilariously collide in a disgusting mess. Additional props should be given for the excellent use of Ini Kamoze’s 1994 hit, “Here Comes the Hotstepper.”

In the “King of Queens” episode “Swim Neighbors,” Carrie begins a feud with her neighbors, Tim and Dorothy Sacksky, after rejecting their idea of a combined backyard. The Sackskys end up building a giant pool instead, which angers Carrie, until she finally decided to dive in during a sweltering heat wave. Not only is “Swim Neighbors” another laugh-filled installment of the show, but it also features Bryan Cranston as Tim, well before his “Malcolm in the Middle” and “Breaking Bad” days.

Whether it’s during Memorial Day Weekend, Labor Day Weekend or sometime in between, summer is the best time for road trips. However, a season two episode of “Malcolm in the Middle” deals with the worst part of these trips: traffic jams. The family gets stuck on their way back from a water park, and Hal, Lois, Reese and Malcolm all end up with separate storylines that eventually converge.

During a heat wave, the ever-cheap Al Bundy decides to buy an old, World War II-era German air conditioner, which ends up shorting out and blowing the neighborhood’s power. In response, Al moves his family to the local supermarket, where they can spend their summer in refrigeration heaven. However, the store manager insists that the Bundys buy something in order to stay, so Al reluctantly decides to purchase a pack of gum. When approaching the register, he cuts in front of his nemesis, Marcy D’Arcy, and ends up becoming the market’s millionth customer and the winner of a $1,000 shopping spree.

Kicking off the fifth season of “Modern Family,” “Suddenly, Last Summer” centers on Cam and Mitch finally getting engaged, while Phil and Claire try to coordinate their children’s summer plans (Luke’s summer camp, Alex’s volunteering trip and Haley’s beach vacation) so they can have one kid-free week. Meanwhile, Jay tries to hurry Manny off to Colombia so he can get some kid-free time for him and Gloria, too. In classic “Modern Family” fashion, this funny episode of course eventually ends up tugging on the viewers' heartstrings.

There are numerous installments of “Parks and Recreation” that can qualify as summer episodes, but we went with “Camping” mostly because “Parks” is at its best when it brings all the characters together into one storyline. Of course, Andy ends up getting lost and not being able to find the others, but that only adds to the hilarity. However, the highlight of “Camping” has to be Tom’s high-tech, SkyMall-assisted version of the outdoor activity, which epitomizes the term “glamping.”

Disney World is an incredibly popular vacation spot in the summertime (or in the colder months, when you want to pretend it’s summer), which is why the Conners decided to use Dan’s last paycheck from the garage to take the whole family there. In this two-parter, the family has a blast at the “happiest place on Earth,” and even Darlene gets in on the fun when she realizes Winnie the Pooh makes her legitimately happy.

Although this “Seinfeld” episode is entitled “The Hamptons,” it might as well be called “The Shrinkage,” as that’s how most people remember the beach-based installment. The actual premise involves traveling to the Hamptons to see a “breathtaking” baby, but the gang accidentally sees a lot more than that, with this season five episode being the origin of George shouting, “I was in the pool!”

Lots of shows have done episodes about a team trying to win a big game or a championship, but “South Park” turned the tables with the season nine episode “The Losing Edge.” Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny actually find Little League incredibly boring and try their hardest to lose each game and get eliminated from the playoffs so they can enjoy their summer, but it turns out all the other teams have the exact same idea. The best part of this episode is Randy Marsh, Stan’s dad, who epitomizes the typical overzealous “sports dad” persona and constantly gets into fights with other parents.

In one of the most memorable episodes of “The Brady Bunch” (even though it’s actually three episodes), the family jets off to Hawaii for a combination business trip and family vacation. Once there, they are supposedly cursed with an evil tiki idol, which causes Greg to have a surfing accident, Peter to encounter a tarantula in his bed, Bobby to almost get hit by a falling wall decoration, and Alice to injure herself doing the hula. After learning that the tiki needs to be returned to an ancient burial ground, the boys are held captive by a suspicious archaeologist, played by the legendary Vincent Price. The setting may be different, but this is absolutely a classic “Brady Bunch” episode through and through.

After returning from summer vacation in Philadelphia, Will debuts a new look and style, much to the chagrin of Uncle Phil, especially when Ashley starts adopting his habits too. Uncle Phil kicks Will out, but of course he is eventually welcomed back after being taught a lesson. “How I Spent My Summer Vacation” actually contains one of the best scenes featuring Geoffrey, when he hears Will’s loud music and begins doing the running man dance in the kitchen.

Back when “The Honeymooners” was still part of “The Jackie Gleason Show,” an episode aired in which Ralph and Norton decide to buy a summer cottage for their wives. They initially think they got a deal for $989, but in classic sitcom fashion, the house turns out to be a dump and the Kramdens and Nortons get into a heated argument. They eventually unload the cottage for $1,000, only to find out that the man who bought it plans to sell it to property developers for $4,000.

Michael Scott incorrectly assumes he will be getting a promotion to the corporate office in New York City, so he brings the entire staff to Lake Scranton to host a “Survivor”-like competition to determine his successor. This is a big episode for Pam, who finally tells everyone — including Jim — how she really feels, but our favorite part is Andy helplessly drifting along the lake while stuck inside a giant sumo-wrestler suit. “Beach Games” was directed by the late great Harold Ramis.

When no one signs Lisa’s yearbook on the last day of school, she decides to reinvent herself as a “cool” kid during the Simpson family’s trip to the Flanders’ summer beach house. On top of references to “American Graffiti,” “Alice in Wonderland” and the old board game “Mystery Date,” this season seven episode also contains two especially memorable scenes: Milhouse impersonating a series of different sprinkler types, and Homer buying and detonating fireworks with hilarious results. We also can’t talk about summer “Simpsons” episodes without giving an honorable mention to season four’s “Kamp Krusty.”