Smash
After fighting it for so long, I eventually caved in and sat down for a Smash marathon.
Smash is not Glee. Actually, apart from the musical element, there shouldn't be a comparison to Glee. In fact, if we absolutely NEED to compare it to Glee, I reckon it's what will happen when those McKinley kids grow up, move to New York and realize that landing a gig on Broadway isn't that simple. It'll be much harder but for the purpose of the show's plot, the characters get their roles relatively easily. However, it's nice to see how the show introduces the viewers to what goes on behind the scenes of a musical production.
It smashes (pun no intended) the perception that musical numbers are easy to make and does not require practice. Nope. Any stage production, be it a concert, a dance routine, a play or a musical requires a lot of time, a lot of practice, a lot of spats, a lot of frustrations and a huge camaraderie and a whole lot of dedication. And these, among other things, are what keep the actors/singers/dancers/backstage crew coming back for more. Smash hasn't really demonstrated that much but hopefully they will as the show progresses. It's nice that they are introducing the workshop first and not jumping straight into rehearsals because usually, the workshop is where a lot of the drama happens. It doesn't look polished, it doesn't look perfect. But perhaps the development of the show will mirror the development of the musical and it'll pick up its pace.
I don't like Kat McPhee and I don't have a reason why I don't like her (maybe it's Elliot Yamin-related) but I just don't. So most of the time, I just try to detach myself when she's on. Her British boyfriend is sorta uptight and I don't know if he's going to stick around because you can already see the typical, "You don't have time for me!" arc happening despite him being rather supportive initially. I like Ivy. I like that she's sorta bitchy but she keeps it in check, sometimes. I usually like these characters because there's always a layer or two that you know is lurking beneath that façade and it's always a treat to see those layers expose themselves bit by bit.
Anjelica Houston's a HBIC and Debra Messing's a HBIC Jr and watching them act again is always such a thrill.
People keep calling the show 'campy' and I don't necessarily see that? Then again, Broadway IS campy so. I also like that from the get go, the show started off with their own music plus a couple of covers. And considering the fact that the people behind Chicago and Hairspray are behind this show, it's no surprise that the book that they constructed for the Marilyn musical sounds very much like the books from those two musicals as well. It has a Legally Blonde, Bare: A Pop Opera, Next To Normal sort of feel to it. They definitely didn't spare any budget with the costumes and I love it when Ivy transforms into Marilyn because you can see that she should get the role.
On a personal note, Debra Messing's character admitted in episode three that, "Michael's just... he's just SO GOOD in our show and you know what a huge turn on that is when someone is just SO GREAT in the show," and that made me flail a little because I know exactly how that feels. Thankfully, the guy and I got over it and we're now very very good friends. But it's nice to know that this is something that happens to everyone.
I know this review is my personal yapping session mostly because I love reliving my stage days. Heh. But I guess, I'm (sorta kinda) glad that Smash managed to pique my interest a little. So yeah.
/FirahTalkingToHerself