I actually enjoyed that studio sixty, but it may just be that I love Timothy Busfield, and love his chemistry with Allison Janney.
Giles ,'Same Time, Same Place'
Experimental TV: Network Drama
This thread is an experiment to discern the Buffistas' interests in television discussion. It will close on June 1st, 2007, after which our community will assess our future direction. Discuss network aired drama here. [NAFDA]
FNL: nice interview with Kyle Chandler.
Saw 3 of the Fox pilots last night. Neither was great, but neither was terrible either.
The Sarah Connor Chronicles - it took me a while to get into this one because I couldn't immediately figure out where it took place in Terminator continuity. (Post-T2 with T3 tossed out the window, FYI.) It's hard to talk about it without being spoilery, but I liked what I saw and would watch more. Hopefully the producers will find a way to cut down on the vfx shots and explosions -- right now it looks too expensive for Fox to keep around if the ratings aren't through the roof.
New Amsterdam - like Brief Lives meets Angel if Hob Gadling were a ginormous asshole with "I'm immortal, ask me how! No really, ask me! Pleeeeeeeeeease ask me?" tattooed on his face. I like the premise and want to like the show, but the main character is such a douche that I'm not sure I'll be able to stand it. (Short premise: Dutch guy is wounded in New Amsterdam in 1600-something and is healed by some friendly neighborhood Native Americans who for some reason decide to grant him immortality. The catch is that he will remain immortal until he meets and hooks up with his soulmate, at which point he will be allowed to grow old and die with her. The problem with his ever hooking up with said soulmate is, as I mentioned earlier, that this guy is a giant douche. It's amazing he's even had a date in the past 400 years, let alone any relationships.)
[eta that the other pilot was a comedy so I'ma talk about it in the comedy thread]
Is the "giant douche" part of the premise, or just poor writing?
I don't think it's deliberate, but it's hard to say whether the writing or the actor is at fault -- I think he's supposed to come off as tragically lonely and aloof, but he needs to be a LOT more charming about it before I'm going to tune in and watch him every week.
Saw the Fox drama pilots as well this weekend. New Amsterdam by far the worst of the lot. Basically, what Jessica said, but also, the entire set up, the why and how of his being around for 400 years or so was awful. Boring, cliched, and actually borderline offensive in the set-up scenes in the past. Feh.
K-Ville: Some rough edges, and I'd like to see more attention on characters other than the main guy. But that could be a factor of being a pilot. Actual Louisianans will cringe at the accents, I suspect, but they're not overemphasized the way, say, the Closer did in the beginning. Some good potential for a character-driven, ethically-murky cop show. I'll keep watching and see where they go with it.
Sarah Connor: I had the same timeline issues at first, but just went with it. Could be good pretty good actiony entertainment. Terminators keep getting hotter.
Canterbury: Pretty solid lawyer show - not a lot you haven't seen before, but well done. Julianna Margolies was very good in the lead - the kind of corner-cutting, driven lawyer that's not uncommon with male characters (Shark, SpyDaddy in Justice, Alan Shore) but unexpected in a woman. (A tv-woman, I mean, not real-world.) So good on them for pushing it a bit. Hopefully the missing kid subplot doesn't derail that.
if Hob Gadling were a ginormous asshole with "I'm immortal, ask me how! No really, ask me! Pleeeeeeeeeease ask me?" tattooed on his face. I
Oh yeah, that was seriously out of control.
Finally watched Studio 60. I liked this episode okay, I've always preferred the plots that are about putting on the show over those that are about the characters personal lives. Every word out of Harriet's mouth was annoying and it was odd to have no Matt and Danny, but their storylines got blechy recently, anyway. Recently is the wrong word, I guess.
Anyway, the long hiatus and knowing that it's riding off into the sunset are making me watch this show differently. Where I had been watching every week to see if I was going to continue watching, now I'm watching just to see if it went completely off the rails. Checking for the same symptoms, I suppose, but completely different emotional investment on my part. Kind of relaxing to not care at all.
Actual Louisianans will cringe at the accents, I suspect
I'm already prepared to cringe at many things.
FNL "Homecoming" tonight! (I'm happy because "Homecoming" and the one after it are the episodes that I have on tapes in screwed up order.