It's truly sad just how giddy I am to report the following news, but said giddiness means I can't bring myself to stop typing, or by extension, my complete and total lameness. Henceforth, here we go!
I've written questions to my peeps (read: random gossip columnists who couldn't care less about my existence) on various occasions, but have never seen them posted in their respective columns. Michael and Kristin have both heartlessly ignored my queries. I assumed that was simply par for the course and did my best to move on with my life, even giving up on sending them anything [insert sad Charlie Brown music]. I figured, "It's not them, it's me..." and tried to let it go [and by "it" I mean my hopes, dreams, and aspirations in life--no biggie].
Well, as it turns out, it is most certainly was NOT me! Oh yeah, it was them all along!
Not one week after writing to TV's Guide's Matt Roush (as I described to Annie, "THE Matt Roush!" Thanks again for the feigned enthusiasm, Annie. The feigning was only mostly perceptible) did he post my query in his column and provide a response in the Ask Matt section. It's beyond embarrassing how much I geeked out over the following, but what the hell. (I figure my geekiness reached a critical mass somewhere in the nineties, so at this point, what's the difference.)
- Question: I have followed your column for a very long time and have found that we generally have pretty similar taste in shows. Most recently, I’d like to thank you for recommending the hilariously ribald BBC America comedy The Inbetweeners. It’s because of this that I’m so perplexed by your recommendation of the CW’s newest drama, Life Unexpected. I started watching the show expecting a return to the glory days of the WB (Gilmore Girls and Everwood were staples in my routine), but was instead met with a cast of thoroughly unlikable characters stuck in a cheesy and predictable set-up. The pilot was decent, and had a few moments that almost grabbed me, but the best events were undercut by maudlin self-importance and terrible writing. As Lux is about to blow out her birthday candles and is told she needs to blow them all out or her wish wouldn’t come true, I couldn’t help but wince when she actually said, “I think it already has.” I saw it coming a mile away, but that didn’t make it any less painful.
I had high hopes that subsequent episodes would temper the ridiculousness of the conceit (the writers for this show don’t seem to have a very close relationship with reality, especially legal reality), an improvement in the writing, and that the characters would grow on me, but much to my chagrin, the writing has only gotten worse and the characters haven’t gotten any more likable. Shiri Appleby’s portrayal of Cate is so shrill and annoying that it overshadows the more tolerable aspects of the cast. All in all, I’m extremely disappointed with this predictable, largely irritating, generic addition to the CW’s slate and can’t understand where so many critics have fallen in love with it. Am I missing something? Is there some secret appeal to this show that I’m not seeing? And most importantly, does it get better? I don’t typically give up on a show after only three episodes, but for this mess, I might have to make an exception. —Lacy
Matt Roush: To date, I’ve only seen the same three episodes you have, so I guess this is a case where we’ll have to agree to disagree. Many of the reviews and much of the mail I’m seeing on this show reflect a willingness to embrace it for being a big step in the right direction—at least tonally—for the CW after several years of cynical missteps with soapy retreads and a steep and seemingly irreversible decline for the former signature show that was Gossip Girl. If Life Unexpected occasionally errs on the side of schmaltz, I can live with that. And I’m not pretending it’s an instant top-10 contender the way Gilmore Girls was at its peak. I worry that they will make Lux too much the precocious know-it-all who’s more grown-up than her screwed-up biological parents, but I like the fact that their lives are so messy. If there’s room for improvement, there’s also time.
That's ME! I'm that Lacy!
I'm so happy [in Kuzco voice].
As Annie can attest, as I giddily shrieked over the cubicle wall at like 8 o'clock in the morning, my response was, well... enthusiastic. I have long followed Matt's column, so I was a wee bit star struck (if you look on the back of your season 1 Chuck DVDs, Matt Roush (my Matt Roush) is quoted--oh yeah, he's a big wig). I tried to keep cool (very casually mentioning to Annie that my question had been posted and then actually waiting for her to obligatorily ask for the link (all the while my hand is poised over the send button... "What's that you say? You'd like me to send you a link? Oh, I suppose...") but in my head, in thinking of my new relationship with Matt, it was a conga line of, "Oh my god! It's like we're best friends!"
Rest assured, I'm coherent enough to realize that we are not, and if I engage in any more posturing, I suspect a restraining order will be acquired, but from 500 yards, I'd say he and I are pretty tight these days.
What can I say? It's nice to know there are people out there who think about these things as much as I do. I'm pretty sure that's at least one horseman of the apocalypse, but I don't care. I'm going to go pretend I have an actual friendship with these people and wile away the hours in blissful oblivion.
I suggest you join me.
All the cool kids are doing it...
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