First: What a movie Grease 2 could have been had Adam Shankman been in a position to direct!
Second: Parenthood has some potential. Admittedly, the casting of both Peter Krause and Lauren Graham puts the show squarely in my sweet spot, so I am predisposed to give it a shot. The pilot is not troublefree: Graham's first few scenes have an odd flavor of her melancholy Adelaide about them, which made the whole thing kind of clunky, and I'm not sure at all that I buy her as a member of this particular family. (Maura Tierney would have fit into the family better, but talk about an actress with irresolvable melancholy . . .) I am also having trouble overcoming visions of Michael Douglas breaking down a door to reveal a strung-out Erika Christensen naked on a crackhouse bed every time the lawyer sister hits the screen. Oh, and I am bracing myself for the inevitable outcry concerning the show's depiction of Asperger's. But I loved the scene where Graham stormed out of the Chinese restaurant upon realizing what her sister thought her dating prospects were; Crosby's line about losing himself in sport provided some hope that the writers understand my need for catchy patter; and did I mention that Graham and Krause are involved?
I really love "Reproduction" from G2.
ReplyDeleteDefinitely thought it had some promise. At first, I kept mentally comparing everyone to the movie cast, but then they drew me in. I liked the way they showed Peter Krause as the oldest child who has to be responsible and responsive to every member of the family who has a problem - without the episode ending with him having a diatribe about that fact.
ReplyDeleteApparently, the original pilot was much more melancholy, with Sarah's hookup being played as more pathetic/desperate than comic. Not sold on the Dax Shepherd plotline yet, especially given that its major point wasn't introduced until the last minute, and the Craig T. Nelson cheating storyline had better not turn into the factory of plot distractions that the similar storyline on Brothers and Sisters has produced, but I'll keep watching.
ReplyDeleteMaybe the problem is that with TiVo, I hadn't watched any commercials for it, but I thought it was going to be loosely based on the movie. Rather than the most freaking depressing hour of television I think I've ever seen. Pretty sure I'm going to avoid that part of Berkeley like the plague.
ReplyDeleteMy husband walked out in the middle. He asked me later if they'd called child services after the grandfather elbowed the kid. I stayed till the end and won't go back. It felt very stiff, and everyone seemed to be acting way too hard, especially Graham and Krause. Every plot point and line of dialogue could be predicted. I realized I simply didn't care what happens to these people.
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