The Curious Case of The Mentalist's Success

When The Mentalist premiered last fall, it actually struck me as better than I would have expected. That's not to say it was an excellent show or anything, but I had hopes that it would turn into a better procedural than most. Well, unlike most shows that start off slow and get better as the first season progresses, The Mentalist started off decent enough and very quickly devolved into the murky waters of the practically unwatchable. The worst part? The worse the show gets, the more viewers it gets. Oh, America. Will you never learn?

In a crop of otherwise lackluster new series last fall (ratings-wise), The Mentalist emerged as the only real runaway hit. Many of the other new shows were immediately far superior in quality, but somehow CBS once again sucked in record numbers of viewers for yet another mediocre crime procedural. I'm thinking it must be a Stonecutters plot...

Anyway, it started off okay-ish, if hackneyed, and given it's uncrowded timeslot, I penciled in a space for The Mentalist on my third tier and watched it only when there was absolutely nothing else.

After the past few episodes however, I think it may have to be bumped off the viewing list completely. In short, the show annoys the hell out of me and I spend the better part of every episode alternately yelling at the TV and weeping for the future of a culture that would love this show so entirely. I'm going to assume that the only people out there with Nielsen boxes (which is a ridiculous, inaccurate, archaic system that doesn't even kind of work--but that's a rant for another day) are old people who don't know how to watch TV online or off their DVR. Seriously, only people over the age of 50 consistently watch TV when it's actually on. As such, shows that appeal to old people (well, not only old people, but they skew older, that's for sure) like Dancing with the Stars, NCIS, and the steaming crap pile that is The Mentalist garner such huge ratings numbers.

Anyway, after this week's episode, I just don't know if The Mentalist will be allowed a spot on my viewing schedule, no matter how desperate I am for programming. It's just too painful.

Let me count the ways...

1) That's not a brilliant deduction, Sherlock, that's lazy, half-assed writing.
This problem presented itself early on in the series (read: about a dozen times in the pilot alone), but I had had hopes that the writers would realize this was a problem and correct things. Yeah, not so much. Basically, Patrick Jane (played by the usually delightful Simon Baker) is a Sherlock Holmes-yish type character who can make keen perceptions about the people around him. The problem is, the writers are just too damned crappy for him to make brilliant deductions based on tiny clues, so they just have him pull random insights out of his head with either no explanation, or a completely crappy explanation. Apparently he could tell that Van Pelt's father was a football coach from the Midwest, but then casually offers no explanation for how he came to this (invariably) correct conclusion. When he does offer an explanation, it's usually painfully ridiculous. Seriously, it usually goes a little something like this: A body is found with no identification. The witless detectives turn to Jane who chimes in with something like, "You see the tiny black smudge on his shoe? Well, clearly this indicates that his family owns an Italian restaurant in Virginia where a bituminous coal mine 6.2 miles up the road deposited coal dust on the sidewalk he takes to work from his one bedroom apartment for which he pays $557 a month in rent to a landlord name Oleg. You people didn't notice that? You're so stupid." Okay, so it's not quite that ridiculous (usually), but on the off chance that the writers even bother to give some sort of explanation, it's outlandish, condescending, and unbelievable and leaves the other characters on the show amazed, dumbfounded, and ultimately useless in the presence of such a supreme genius. Oy. Which brings me to my next point...

2) He's infallible and basically renders the rest of the team completely unnecessary.
Jane has the uncanny ability to make assessments based on nothing. Okay, whatever. If that's where you want this premise to go, fine. But, if that's really what you're going to base your entire show around, he has to have flaws and he has to be wrong at least some of the time. Jane is never ever wrong. He's almost never even a bit off. He pulls fanciful bullshit out of no where and is always spot on. Shows like House and Psych (the far superior predecessor to this kind of idea) both have characters who make deductions based on their observations, but those shows do it right. Dr. House is wrong a hell of a lot of the time, but ultimately works it out in the end. Usually. Even the brilliant Dr. House totally screws up on occasion. While not the norm, the audience at least knows that it's a possibility, and can never be sure he'll swoop in to save the day. His team (well, at least the old team--god, how I miss the old team...) actually helps him get to the right answer and on occasion, beat him to the punch. The crew on The Mentalist basically just have to watch Jane foppishly screwing with people and setting up ridiculous schemes until the end of the episode. They do the standard cop stuff, interviewing people and whatnot, but never really help solve the case in the end. Dull, lame, lazy, stupid. On Psych, from which this concept was originally stolen, bastardized, and resold to the public in a pathetically inferior form with The Mentalist, Shawn makes deductions based on his surroundings, but the writers of that show actually have the skills to make his deductions possible. Also, Shawn is wrong sometimes, and even when he's right, he's never positive he's right until he has more pieces of the puzzle. Gus always helps out and the police actually do their jobs and help solve cases. Jane is certain of everything pretty much all at once. It's lame and it makes the rest of the cast nothing but extraneous fodder for Jane to screw around with and patronize. It's like when someone who's listening to a conversations smugly says, "Interesting," then refuses to say what is interesting. It's pompous and annoying and on this show, constant. Can you say fun to watch? Blah. Which brings me to my next point...

3) He's annoying as all get out and I'd love to see Mary and Marshall kick his ass.
Jane toys with people constantly. Again, other shows seem to be able to make this work. House and Shawn both toy with the people around them on a regular basis, but they're actually likeable--even when House is an ass, he's better than Jane. Now don't get me wrong, Simon Baker is usually quite delightful. On this show? He's so incessantly smug that you just want to slap the hell out of him. On last night's episode, the dead-guy-of-the-week was in witness protection, so the US Marshalls showed up all over the place. Fortunately, In Plain Sight actually got pretty good (second tier, I'd say, if not lower first), so I'm intimately familiar with witsec procedures and whatnot. The whole time Jane was being a pompous jackass, I just kept hoping the next US Marshalls to show up would be Mary and Marshall. Oh, how I'd love to see Mary kick Patrick Jane's sorry ass. Alas, to no avail... Jane will just keep on being the single-faceted impish prick he's always been and the writers of the show will keep thinking that that kind of behavior is actually charming. Which it's not.

4) The writers of this show don't have even the most basic knowledge of the law.
Further, I'm pretty sure they've never seen a movie or TV show about people how have a basic knowledge of the law. The characters' actions are beyond ridiculous, risible, immoral, and unethical, pretty much all of the time. Warrants are almost never obtained, and on the off chance they decide to get one, they somehow get it within a matter of minutes. Whatever the situation, they generally just barge into people's homes willy-nilly and someone will add a throw-away line that explains why they don't have to actually follow any police protocol or, you know, the Constitution. In last night's inexcusable episode, they barge into the home of the dead guy even after the guy's wife tells them they cannot come in and screams at them to leave. Apparently she was in mortal danger (throw away line that makes no sense), so they just stormed in without an invitation or warrant. That, however, pales in comparison to the most ridiculous, unlawful act ever committed on this show (and let me tell ya, I had to special order a bar that high, and then this surpassed it). To get the dead guy's wife to confess to the murder, Patrick Jane literally tells her she has to confess to the murder or die. He even had one of his police friends dress up as a hitman and come to the house as Jane reiterates that unless she confesses, she's going to die. Jane very cleverly (note sarcasm) tape records her confession and then has her hauled off to the pokey. Oh my holy god, that's the most ludicrous thing I've ever seen on this show or any show. Can you say coerced confession?! If that's not duress, I don't know what is! Seriously, I think a hitman is going to shoot me unless I confess to a murder and hell yeah I'll confess to anything! As would anyone else! That tape is completely inadmissible in court and if anything, makes the police case look that much worse. It's unethical and was obtained under duress, but Jane and company act like that was just crack detective work. Without the tape, which is inadmissible, they have no case whatsoever. No hard evidence, no witnesses, no nothing. That wasn't a smooth and clever wrap up to a difficult case, that was an embarrassment. This show's writers have apparently never done any research into the profession they write about all day and have clearly never seen a show written by anyone who has. Utterly inexcusable. That was seriously the last straw. It's not clever and cunning, it's ridiculous, lazy writing, once again.

5) Oh, so predictable.
In spite of the show's ridiculousness and Jane's preternatural ability to draw specific conclusions based on practically nothing, the show is utterly predictable. Nine episodes out of ten, I know who did what and why and how within the first 20 minutes. This again can be largely chalked up to the horrible writing. They focus on things that make the conclusions obvious and when something is genuinely mysterious, Jane pulls the full explanation out of his ass and all is revealed after very little if any effort. It makes it exceedingly unfun to watch and anti-climactic on a regular basis.

6) Robin Tunney.
Bland as ever. 'Nough said. Well, not quite 'nough, I suppose. It's clear that the writers are trying to write her as Jane's foil and that they're pushing for some chemistry between them, but it's a lost cause. The pair have absolutely no chemistry whatsover, let alone a strong romantic vibe. She has no personality, no charm, and near as I can tell, nothing but a hamster wheel in her head. The rest of the supporting cast is decent enough, but with Tunney's character and Patrick Jane at the helm, the show is exceedingly dull.

So there you have it. Just some of the many, MANY reasons this show has gotten pretty damn awful, and yet people keep tuning in. A lot of people. A lot of old people who actually watch TV when it's actually on... Weird, right?

Anyway, if you like this show but are realizing that it actually kinda, sorta, seriously sucks, I'd recommend tuning in to Psych on USA Network instead. Same kinda premise, but insanely awesome instead of completely craptastic. :)

The Dead, the Mostly Dead, and the Slightly Alive

For some reason I keep thinking it's June next week... Perhaps it's because Burn Notice returns on June 4th (booyah! my god, I love that show), but I just can't seem to acknowledge that May is still very much in existence and means I'll have to wait four more weeks for Michael Weston and company to start blowing things up once again.

Whatever the reason May has fallen of my head, fact is, it's here to stay, and television-wise, it's actually a very important month.

Aside from being a sweeps month and one of the best month's for season finales, it's also upfront season. For those of you unfamiliar with the term, the "upfronts" are the season schedules for each of the networks. It's during this time that viewers get to find out which shows got picked up for next season, which shows got the axe, and what new pilots are in the works.

For a professional television watcher such as myself, the upfronts are kind of like the draft (as I hesitantly dip my toe into a sports metaphor)... Shows get picked up, fired, and traded, the schedules get jumbled, and I have to completely reorient myself. As frightening as it can be at times (what with the vast majority of my shows currently teetering on the bubble), it's also one of the most fun (for someone as pathetic as I am, that is).

For some unknown reason, NBC's upfronts will be on November 5th, while the other networks won't be until the 18th through the 21st. Maybe they're hoping that announcing first will give them some sort of edge? Lord knows they could use the help, but I just don't think it'll do them a whole lot of good. Whatever. Most of my bubble shows are on NBC, so the less time I have to wait, the better.

Anyway, here are the latest details on pick-ups and cancellations (go here for shows that were picked up or axed earlier), and a few predictions about the bubble shows that currently on the endangered TV list.

OFFICIAL PICK-UPS:

• Grey's Anatomy (Every time I see anything about this show, I find myself ever so glad we broke up. Although I'm hearing Izzie is on her death bed these days, so I might just have to tune in for her untimely (in that it should have come three years ago) demise. Although imminent death would be about the only way she could possibly become whinier... Maybe I'll pass after all.)
  
• Private Practice (Oh lordy, I don't watch this show, but I came across this clip and about died. I tell ya what, wow/oy/ugh/seriously?)


• Ugly Betty (which I'm a little surprised at...)


• Lost


• Desperate Housewives
  
• Brothers & Sisters


• Dancing with the Stars (injuring "celebrities" for yet another season)


• The Big Bang Theory (picked up for 2 more seasons)


• How I Met Your Mother (also picked up for 2 more seasons--yay!)


• Heroes (Although the show has been sucking it up lately, it still does very well overseas and with Bryan Fuller back on the team, I've heard that creatively, it's in a much better place than when Heroes and I broke up earlier this year. It was picked up for next season, but only an 18 episode order, as opposed to this season's 24 or 25 (which felt more like 86 or 117)).


• Two and a Half Men (got picked up for the next 3 seasons--gag me)


• 24


• Friday Night Lights (I believe it's another weird, DirecTV something or other, but one way or another, it's alive and kicking (heh, no pun intended))


• Breaking Bad


• The Tudors


• Law & Order: SVU

OFFICIALLY DEAD AS A DEAD DEAD:

• Life on Mars


• Knight Rider


• Chopping Block (the title alone was just begging for cancellation)


• Lipstick Jungle (after about of dozen horror-movie style returns from the dead, I think this one is finally over with)
  
• Trust Me (wasn't a terrible show, but it was kind of painful to watch. You have to try pretty hard to make Erik MacCormack and Tom Cavanaugh unlikeable, but I'll be damned if they didn't succeed with flying colors)
  
• According to Jim

Those were the shows that I've heard official news about. Below are the shows that are still unofficially anything...

GOOD AS DEAD:

• Kings (Well made, ambitious, and had a lot of great elements to work with, but it never found an audience. Also, it was more than a bit of a downer... Seriously, a little levity would have gone a long way. It started on Sundays as NBC's grandiose new drama, then it was banished to the Saturday death slot, then, just when you thought it couldn't get worse, it's been pulled from the schedule entirely. I'm hearing the remaining episodes of its 13 episode order will air this summer. Ouch.)
  
• Better Off Ted (This is a real shame. It's a great show, but Americans have truly, truly, terrible taste (see Two and a Half Men's pick-up status above for reference). I'd like to think that this little gem had a chance of being picked up, but the ratings are pretty abysmal and the show is actually good, so between those two factors, it doesn't stand much of a chance. Bah!)


• Terminator: The Sarah Connors Chronicles (The official word hasn't come down from on high, but multiple sources confirm that the show is dead. I never watched this show, but I hear it was quite good and anything with a Whedon alum on board deserves better than Fox has to offer.)

ON LIFE SUPPORT:

• Dollhouse (She ain't dead yet, but things are looking pretty grim. Joss mentioned in an interview recently that a second season pick-up is entirely possible, but after looking at last Friday's numbers, I'm not holding my breath. Let's just say it was a tough call between putting this show in the category above or this one. I would be thrilled if it got picked-up, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up (read: get any hope at all). It has turned into a pretty kick-ass series and I'll be sad to see it go. Here's hoping for a miracle.)


• Chuck (Although Chuck has always struggled a bit in the ratings department, deep down I think it'll get picked up. The brass at NBC like the show and have shown quite a bit of support in the past. I like to think that the powers that be realize that Chuck is in quite possibly the worst timeslot ever conceived, and that that has a lot to do with its ratings woes. Seriously, it's up against House, Dancing with the Stars, How I Met Your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, and Gossip Girl. Monday at 7 is a very busy time for me... Plus, the grassroots efforts by fans and the show's cast have garnered quite a bit of media attention of late, so I think NBC will keep it, even if just to save face. They don't have a whole lot of successful shows these days, and certainly none with as devoted a following. In short, go to Subway this weekend and help the cause!)
  
• Life (another one of my darlings that has struggled in the ratings department. Honestly, the ratings aren't terrible and given the number of times it's been moved around on the schedule, it's performing better than I would have thought. The overhead on this kind of show usually isn't too insane, and we all know people love their procedurals, so I have a little hope that Life will survive. More than for Dollhouse, but not as much as for Chuck. It's prognosis is somewhere in between, I'd say. Even though season two kind of lost its way here and there, it ended strong and I'm keeping the faith.)
  
• The Unusuals (its ratings aren't terrible, but they've been slipping week-to-week. It's a solid show with a premise that should have mass appeal, but it just isn't finding a huge audience. I'd really like to see this show come back for a second season, but unless the ratings pick up, or at very least, stabilize, it doesn't look too likely).

LOOKING GOOD:

• Castle (I'm very pleased that a pick-up for Castle is looking fairly likely. The ratings aren't insanely spectacular or anything, but they're good and hold steady week-to-week. Also, ABC doesn't really have much else in terms of a procedural, so I think they'll keep Castle around for next year. I sure as hell hope so. What at first struck me as a piece of harmless fluff that could flesh out my second tier shows has quickly become one of my favorite shows on TV, first tier all the way. Finally! A show with Nathan Fillion that might survive! Yay!)


• Eleventh Hour (The ratings are actually quite good (in spite of CBS's ostensible lack of support for the show). I'm hearing Marley Shelton might not be back next year, which for a show with only two series regulars, she's half the show... I think this show could really benefit from an overhaul, so if it gets picked up, here's hoping that make a lot of changes. The show needs a home base and more than two regular characters.)


• Lie to Me (It's really not that good of a show, but I have to admit it's gotten a lot better since its first couple of episodes. It's a third tier show through and through, but it's toned down its "we're these incredible specialists who have the unique ability to spot obvious lying" overtones and that has made it a lot easier to watch. I still fast-forward through parts of every episode though... Anyway, the ratings are pretty good, but could certainly be better. I think Fox will keep this one around, especially with Prison Break ending and 24 getting on in years, it could use another consistent player.)


• Samantha Who? (I was honestly a little surprised that Ugly Betty got an early pick-up and Sam Who? didn't... I think it still has a good chance of being picked up, but the early pick up announcement made it a little uncertain. It's a decent show, but I only caught the first few episodes. The concept doesn't leave room for much longevity, so I can see where ABC might be on the fence with this one...)


• Scrubs (strange as it may sound, it's looking more and more like Scrubs might get picked-up for another season... The real contingency is which actors would be willing to come back to the show. If enough regulars agree to come back, it'll most likely get picked up, if not, it's much less likely.)
  
• Southland (It has only aired a couple of episodes so far (which is the only reason I didn't put it in the "Definite Pick-Ups" category), but the numbers are solid and NBC has been pushing hard for it. With ER over and buried (finally), they've been looking for a new drama to fill that slot and it appears they may have found it. The show doesn't really do it for me, but it's well made and I can see where it could find a sizable audience. Another good sign, now that Kings has been yanked and sent to the Summer Cemetery, reruns of Southland are airing in its place. Bad for Kings, good for Southland. It's nice to see Ryan Atwood getting work...)
  
• Privileged (shockingly enough, the little show that could might actually make it. The CW doesn't really have a whole of shows to hang on to, and with most of their returning shows getting older and more ridiculous, Privileged may very well be picked up. I've been hearing good things about its possible return lately, so although I don't really care one way or the other and have never seen a full episode, good for them...)

DEFINITE PICK-UPS:

• The Mentalist (although official word hasn't come down yet, this mediocre show was this year's breakaway hit for some unknown reason. Oh wait, Americans really love bad television. This show isn't a total disaster, but that's about the best I have to say. It's watchable, but it'll never break out of its third tier distinction unless it really starts bringing its A-game (assuming such a thing exists). Have no fear Mentalist fans, Simon Baker will be back next year, smarmily pompous as ever, along with Robin Tunney's dead eyes and hollow head. Yay...)
  
• Fringe (again, nothing official, but Fringe is pretty much a lock for next year. I didn't survive past the first 6 or 7 episodes, but I hear the show has really hit its stride these days. The ratings are solid, and Fox has shown considerable faith in the show. I'm confident of a pick-up and will be pretty surprised if it gets the axe (even though this is Fox we're talking about and nothing should shock me at this point)).

These lists are of course not comprehensive. Shows like House, the CSI trifecta, and the glut of reality crap like American Idol and The Bachelor will surely be back, so I didn't focus on them. Once the upfronts are officially announced, I'll post a comprehensive list for each network (including new pilots for next fall), but until then, it's the shows that have uncertain fates that get the attention.

Anyway, I'll keep you posted. Till then, I'll just be sitting here, on pins and needles, hoping to hell my shows come back next year... Sigh.

Joan of Narcadia (that title was just too good not to steal)

I came across the review title "Joan of Narcadia" on TWoP and couldn't help but to borrow. ;)

This review is woefully late in coming thanks to the weather. Apparently nature's white demon flakes of sorrow (read: snow) mucked up the signal and the last 20 minutes of the show was cut off. Henceforth, I had to watch the rest of it online at a later date. Easy enough, one would assume, but when your brother is eating up all the bandwidth playing World of Warcraft (apparently some sort of something or other needed to be vanquished right that very second or whatever--I wasn't paying very much attention), the buffering doesn't quite buffer as one would hope.

Anyway, that I was so dedicated to finishing the pilot speaks to its quality. It wasn't perfect, but it has a quirky edge that kept me smiling and enough long-term potential that I was eager to finish.

I've come across some very mixed reviews online and I can see where this kind of a show would elicit some polarizing viewpoints. It's not a show for everybody, that's for sure. It's a cop drama, but it's funny and offbeat. It's sort of a procedural, but is more invested in the characters than the cases. Speaking of the cases, they're on the eccentric side, so between the cases and the cops, we have a matching set. It's got a gritty aesthetic, but undercuts the grit with goofballishness. I can see where some people would feel the show was kind of all over the place and that the tone was inconsistent, but I think they forged a nice balance of elements. I appreciate a good mix of light and dark and thought the quirkiness tempered the darker undertones very nicely. I can see where this show might not resonate with the novice TV viewer, but I'm a professional and welcome the challenge.

I think this show worked for me as well as it did because I went in knowing what to expect. Having come across a fair amount of information about the show prior to air, I knew basically what I was in for and didn't find it off-putting. While I've read that others found the first 15 minutes painful to watch, I actually quite enjoyed the introduction and was willing to give the show a fair shot after only the opening sequence. It really set the tone of the show and actually cracked me up pretty admirably.

The pilot opened on Casey Shraeger, played by Amber Tamblyn (aka Joan of Arcadia), a vice cop working a street corner with various other hookers. I was a little put off by the fact that she was in vice, because that's basically all female cops get to do on TV these days, but that quickly turned around. The hookers and Casey are all trying to score a, uh, client, but none are having much luck, especially Casey. To give you a glimpse into the tone of the show, it immediately switches gears from serious to quirky. As one of the hookers chalks their lack of success up to the economy, I actually laughed out loud. It had never really occurred to me that the economic downturn would affect everyone, right down to hookers and drug dealers. I immediately imagined some guy balancing his checkbook and thinking, "Yeah, gotta cut back on hookers..." Which cracked me up. This opening sequence was kooky and light-hearted, and while a tad cheesy, I really enjoyed it.

Casey's mother calls with some sort of problem with the maid (subtly pointing to the fact that Casey's family is wealthy--which seems unimportant at the time, but is actually pivotal--nice) and Casey tells her she has to go as she giddily informs her mother that, "I've gotta go, I think I've got a john!" Again, kind of cheesy, but Tamblyn's delivery is spot on and really funny. She said the line like she had just won at bingo. It reminded me of Alyson Hannigan and how her enthusiasm can make just about anything funny.

Anyway, the levity of these opening scenes soon changes as Casey's john turns out to be some sort of important cop guy who informs her she's been bumped up to homicide and that a cop has been murdered. The quick jumps between the gritty and the goofy pretty much sum up the tone and narrative approach of the show. It might be off-putting for some, but the up and down really works for me. Shows that are nothing but dark and somber tend to get bogged down, and shows that are nothing but sunshine and puppies tend to lack substance. The Unusuals makes for a nice blend and what I thought to be a successful balance.

The cases of the week didn't actually strike me as all the unusual, albeit quirky. It's the cops themselves that I think the title alludes to. As much as I enjoy Tamblyn's character, I have to say the rest of the precinct is even more delightful. Her partner Walsh (who is played by a guy who was the patient of the week on House last year--don't worry, I spent the entire episode trying to figure that out) is charming and the character, along with all the other characters, quite frankly, is intentionally enigmatic. He and Casey are the center of the show, but it's a good enough ensemble that even the supporting roles feel like leads. Each cop has his or her own idiosyncrasies and secrets and each had me intrigued as much as the next. Rounding out the cast is a detective with a terminal brain tumor (which makes him delightfully reckless) who is played by Chandler's old roommate Eddie (and who's looking hilariously 70s-ish here), his partner, who is certain he'll die at the age of 42 (as did several of his relatives), a type-A personality who speaks of himself in the third person (and who could go as Ron Burgundy for Halloween without even trying), a religious nut with a dark (and getting darker all the time) past, his partner, who has yet to really make a splash, but who is having an tryst with Walsh, and various other, more minor roles.

All in all, the characters all have something to offer and all add to the ensemble admirably. The crew works well together and have a fair amount of chemistry. One of the best aspects, I think, is that all the actors look like they could actually be cops (even Tamblyn, whom I was afraid would look too young and un-tough enough to pull it off). Nothing is more annoying than when the rough and tumble badass is played by a dingy blonde model (Eleventh Hour, I'm looking in your direction). Anyway, I think there's a hell of a lot of potential for this show and I'm really hopeful it finds an audience that is as charmed as I am. Aside from the characters on screen, there is a motif running through the show with a woman's voice on a police radio that works surprisingly well. It sounds cheesy, and kind of is, but what comes over the radio is pretty funny and it's exceedingly satisfying to see the perps she mentions in the background of a later scene or walking through the police station. Awesome.

The week-to-week crimes are entertaining and the show set up a solid over-arching storyline that I'm already very invested in. The death of Walsh's partner has repercussions on nearly everyone else, and when Casey is assigned to get the dirt on her new partner, it makes for a lot of ethical conundrums that I'm sure will play out in intriguing ways. Having seen the second episode, Casey has already had to make a choice between her orders and her partner, and I can't wait to see more.

Just from the pilot I was pretty charmed by this show, and now that I've seen the second episode, it's won a season pass on my DVR. It didn't take long for me to grow accustomed to the tone and pacing, but others seem to have found them problematic. On the surface, some of the characters seem to be cliches, but as this show makes evident from the very start, nothing is what it seems.

I think this show has definite potential and although I can see where it wouldn't work for some viewers, I'm really digging it so far. Based on the first two episodes, I give it a B.

LA Blah

I have to preface my review of Southland with the fact that I'm not generally a big fan of cop shows, so many of my opinions apply to the whole genre and shouldn't necessarily reflect negatively on Southland alone. I went into this show kind of expecting not to like it and was ultimately correct.I gave this show a shot initially for a couple of reasons: 1) It was touted as the follow-up production for the team behind ER; and 2) Ben McKenzie (aka the O.C.'s Ryan Atwood (which I accidentally typed "Ryan Atwork"--geez, I need a vacation) would be making a return to TV, and I just had to see if he had any real range to work with or if this would be another forum for him to not talk very much and punch people. Replace "punch" with "shoot" and that basically sums up his character (although with considerably less worrying about Marissa, so it was a nice change of pace).

Although Ben McKenzie (who plays Ben Sherman--another in the long line of "we don't want the audience calling him by his old character name, so we're going to name the new character his real name" tactics used by writers to try to break a character out of an old role--not that that's going to stop me) is the audience's doorway into this world or police-ness (he basically plays Dr. Carter, the newbie), the show is shot in pseudo-documentary style, and much like ER, bounces from one storyline to another, although with much less overlap and no where near as ground-breaking a result. Where ER completely turned the hospital drama on its ear, Southland tries to shake things up with its style and approach to storytelling, but all in all, it's not much of a game changer in the end. The documentary feel is supported by the shaky camera work, rough production aesthetic, ceratin noir elements, almost a total lack of soundtrack, and would-be natural dialogue (going so far as to bleep out swearing), but it all just felt too self-important and scripted to me to be genuine. The acting is solid and the actors are all good, but the wording was so unnatural that the delivery just wasn't (or couldn't be) convincing. It's fine for the dialogue to feel scripted for a scripted show, generally speaking, but for a show that was aiming for gritty realism, it kind of fell flat. In the end, it just felt like they were trying way to hard to be authentic for it to actually feel authentic. I think this is something the show could definitely work on, but given that this isn't really my genre, I'm not sure I care to stay around long enough for them to work out the kinks.

Given that this isn't my genre of choice, I think that had a lot to do with why the show failed to resonate with me. I enjoy a good detective drama, but beat cops have never really held much appeal. In general, I don't particularly like cops, so when a kid got shot (about 17 times in the chest and lived... uh, yeah...), I found myself extremely excited that we were going to the hospital. Yay! A hospital! Doctors! Look they're wheeling him to the operating----and we're back on the street. :( Again, it's not the fault of the show, it's more based on my own sensibilities. What few interactions I've had and my friends and family have had with cops have been annoying and aggravating. Cops are kind of jerks most of the time, and I can't help but to not really care to watch them all that much... Given such sensibilities, I actually enjoyed the pilot more than I would have guessed...

Anyway, there were several storylines going at one with different cops at different levels trying to resolve the problem. I had a hard time caring about any of these cases. Unlike ER, there was very little background for the people who had been kidnapped, shot, etc., and I had a hard time relating to each of their stories. That wouldn't have been a problem so much if the cops themselves had been more engaging, but aside from Ben McKenzie and the always excellent Regina King (and Tom Everett Scott (!), but he was only in a couple of minutes), I wasn't particularly enthralled with the majority of them. I think the documentary approach was a big part of this problem. In an attempt to make the dialouge and storylines feel super realistic, they made them feel much less realistic after all was said and done. Nothing sounds faker to me than dialogue that's trying to sound genuine. This made most of the cops' interactions with one another and with the bad guys feel forced and failed to suck me in.

It was a lot of fun to see the ever taciturn and hot-headed Ryan Atwood back on screen, and he was by far the best part of the pilot, but I don't think that's enough to keep me watching. Don't get me wrong, it was a giddy thrill to see him want to punch a guy (aww, that takes me back), but after all was said and done, Ryan alone wasn't enough to save the ensemble of cops, and the crimes of the week weren't engaging enough to compensate. Although, given that his character is apparently from a rich neighborhood (I believe they said Beverly Hills, but I'm going to assume it's the O.C.), a crossover can't been too far off--if Marissa hadn't died, she could always overdose in L.A. and save Tijuana the trouble...

Although the show didn't really do it for me, that isn't to say it was bad. The production was well thought out and the culmination of the pilot made for some real interest and investment (particularly Ryan's shoot-out). If cop shows are your kind of shows, I'm confident you'll love Southland. It wasn't your standard crime procedural, and for that I salute them. It was a nice change of pace from the current spate of CSIs, Law & Orders, and whatnot that clog the airways at the moment. That said, cops have never really been my favorites. Especially beat cops. Not that driving around and harassing people isn't just an absolute blast to watch or anything, but I found myself much more interested in the much more interesting cases that involved more than just pulling people over (shocking, I know).

I think the show has potential and it's nice to see a show breaking out of the box, but I don't think the Southland pilot was very successful (although I do think that has a lot more to do with my tastes than with the show itself).

All in all, unlike several people in the pilot, I was not blown away. I give it a C+.

Stupid Cupid

Being the Veronica Mars devotee that I am, I can't help but to give Rob Thomas (the VM writer/showrunner guy, not the Matchbox 20 guy) productions a shot, but his last few endeavors have left me unimpressed. I don't know what all he had to do with 90210, but it was pretty awful. As I recall, he passed on showrunner, but still had some sort of something to do with it, which is nigh unforgivable (seriously, if he so much as walked by the writers' room, I might have to hold a grudge). I have only seen clips of Party Down (because it airs on Starz), but it looks like it has potential... Anyway, mixed reviews of his recent projects aside, I was willing to give his new (slash old) series Cupid a shot, even though it really doesn't sound like something that would be up my alley.

The new Cupid is a semi re-launch of the 1990s series of the same name, which starred Jeremy Piven as a man who believes he is the god of love and that his duty on earth is to match up a bunch of couples. I never saw the original incarnation, but I had heard it was actually a pretty decent show. The current iteration isn't terrible in theory, but is terrible in execution.

The concept is light and fanciful and could have been a no commitment guilty pleasure, but with the unrelentingly unappealing Bobby Cannavale at the helm, it was tepid and off-putting. It might just be me, but I found him to be completely uninteresting, obnoxious, and extremely uncharming in that "I'm trying desperately to be charming and failing miserably" kind of way. He has a vague Brad Garrett quality to him, and that's kind of like when you drink something that tastes vaguely of cough medicine... It's not that that whatever it is is completely awful, but it reminds you of something that is awful just enough that you have a hard time enjoying it. Enter Bobby Cannavale and his Robittussim-esqueness...

Most people on the web seem to love this guy for some reason, but I found his over-acting annoying and his presence on screen uncharismatic and completely unengaging. Add to that the total lack of chemistry with Sarah Paulson (Cupid's psychotherapist and obvious intended love interest), and you've got a fairly painful romantic pairing to watch. I generally like Sarah Paulson (I was one of the 9 people who watched Studio 60), but her character on Cupid (Dr. Claire McCrae) is pretty dry and kind of a nag. I understand that that's kind of the point (he's a free spirit, she's repressed, yada, yada, yada, been there, done that), but so far, she doesn't strike me as a lovable neurotic so much as a... well, pesky micro-manager. For what she was given, Paulson did a decent job, and I anticipate she could make the character work after some tweaking, but her interactions with Cannavale were so lackluster that I don't think it's worth the effort.

The whole (and very obvious) point of the show is that he is Cupid and she is Psyche, who, in mythology was ultimately married to Cupid. It's obvious from the get-go that there's supposed to be sexual tension between Claire and Cupid (who has adopted the name Trevor Pierce, for... tax purposes, or whatever), but it doesn't come across on screen. There was absolutely no chemistry (whether romantic, friendly, love-hate, hate-hate, etc) whatsoever. I not only don't have any desire to see the pair hook-up, but I'm pretty sure I don't want to see them as long-distance pen pals. I have to assume that if I found Cannavale appealing at all, this wouldn't be the case, but what can I say? The actor alone doesn't do anything for me, and then put him in a role that I find annoying and it's not going to be a winning combination. She's the typical wet blanket who needs to live a little and he strikes me as more of a dundering idiot than anything else. Not exactly the makings of a mythic romance...

Aside from Claire and Trevor, the only other series regulars are a brother and sister team (husband and wife? gambler and bookie? who the hell knows (or cares)) who manage some sort of karaoke cantina bar or something where Trevor works. They really didn't serve any purpose in the pilot and I can't even remember their names. So yeah, the leads don't work together and the supporting cast doesn't lend any support. We're really cooking now.

Sadly (and quite frankly, I don't think this has ever happened before), I was more interested and invested in the week-to-week storyline than any of the over-arching characters. The basic structure of the show is that Trevor has to hook up 100 happy couples in order for him to return to Mount Olympus. Hence, each week will focus on him helping people find true love, and then we'll never see those characters again, I suspect. As such, it's not a good sign when I'd much rather the couple-of-the-week were the series regulars. They were charming and engaging and actually had chemistry together. By the end of the episode, I was hoping to hell I had misinterpreted the concept of the show and that we would casually leave Trevor in NYC and follow the couple-of-the-week to Ireland. I'd much rather watch them every week. Generally, the A-plot (the story-of-the-week) is of secondary importance to me, but with Cupid, it was the only storyline I even kind of cared about. Yikes.

Long story short, I was unimpressed. I might give it one more chance, but that's only if there's nothing else to watch (you know, if the weather channel goes out or something). I can't imagine it could rebound in a way that would make me a fan, but I might get just bored enough to give it a second chance. If you want to watch a fun, quirky, squee-worthy love-hate romance that really works, I'd recommend you watch Castle instead. The two leads on that show actually have chemistry together (what a novel concept!). If, however, you'd prefer a show that feels like a brother and sister have been forced to play Romeo and Juliet opposite one another in a school play, Cupid is your show.

Overall, I give the Cupid pilot a C-. The bare bones could have worked, but the romantic leads just don't work together at all... and when that's all you've got, you've got a whole lotta nothin'. Look on the bright side, it's one fewer show that will be gumming up your DVR. :)