i think the canned laugh track should have a more active role in sitcoms that have it. have them boo, have them groan, have them go silent when a joke doesn't land. hell, have the actors interact with the audience a bit, even when there's no "physical" audience to interact with. i bet that'd be kinda fresh as sitcom gimmicks go
@typhlosion Maybe give the "weird neighbor kid" character some real power for once! Lead character says something generally accepted as funny but is actually terrible to other people? Crickets.