TV ROUND-UP: NBC & CBS
*
Jericho (CBS Wednesday, 8PM)
Maybe HBO has spoiled me, but sometimes Jericho is hard to watch. If it were the down-home family drama it seems, Jericho would require little more than we get here...but once the atomic bombs drop, the CBSness of this show starts to hurt. The explosions themselves look great--few sights are more terrifying than the orange glow of a mushroom cloud on the horizon--but other moments, like a school bus crash, lack the production value to make them look convincing. A bigger problem, though, is that with such an awesome premise (a small town is left to fend for itself when the rest of the world falls under nuclear attack) requires equally awesome writing and direction, and Jericho just doesn't have it. For every genuine apocalyptic moment (a street littered with dead crows, an answering machine message cut off abruptly as the blast hits) there's a "don't we all know better than this by now?" cliche to undermine the show's credibility. (The mayor's "let's all stick together!" speech to his townies is particularly groan-inducing.)
Taking a page from The Day After Tomorrow, Jericho decides to distract us from that whole messy end-of-the-world business with a far less interesting threat, a bus of escaped convicts (at least it's a step up from wolves!). Humdrum characters and some awkward pacing also hinder what could have been one of the best new shows of the season; most of the actors do what they can (with Skeet Ulrich in the lead), but ultimately none of the characters are compelling because there's no real drama between them. What Jericho needs, if it is to survive, is to offset human drama with the disaster at large...and fewer children-in-peril-type subplots (c'mon, it's CBS, we know the kidlets are gonna be fine). In other words, Jericho is in desperate need of some edge, 'cause right now it plays like Northern Nuclear Exposure. When the world really ends, I guess we can only hope it'll be this schmaltzy...but someone please save this cool premise from itself, it's too good to go to waste!
Criminal Minds (CBS Wednesday, 9PM)
Like Jericho, Criminal Minds suffers in the translation of big screen-style drama to the small screen. With its twisted plots featuring even more twisted serial killers--you know the type, disfigured loonies with waaaay too much free time on their hands--Criminal Minds recalls Se7en and Silence of the Lambs. With its execution, it recalls, well, Jericho. The major cast members, including Thomas Gibson (formerly Dharma's better half) and Mandy Patinkin, are snooze-worthy, but thank god for fresher faces like Matthew Gray Gubler and Kristen Vangsness. The two, playing the brains of this operation, are a fun and captivating duo, and very believable in their roles...and, in the episode I saw, anyway, they also appear to be the only ones doing anything. Superfluous characters aside, Criminal Minds isn't a bad show...it's filled with enough intriguing turns to keep it engaging, and the horror, though Saw Lite, is passable for an hourlong procedural. Though Criminal Minds could use a boost in its budget, it's not the worst way to spend a Wednesday night.
Kidnapped (NBC Wednesday, 10PM)
A high-society New Yorker with a potentially shady past finds his privileged life compromised after his son is nabbed. His feisty wife doesn't like the way he handles things, and a by-the-book FBI agent played by Delroy Lindo speaks in a reassuring Delroy Lindo tone about how he "just wants to get your son back." Meanwhile, on the kidnappers' end, the mastermind picks off his underlings to cover his ass. Wasn't Ransom an awesome movie?
Oh, and while we're on the subject, all of the above is also true about this new NBC drama, one of many new shows seemingly designed to last for just one season (unless they really drag this case out). The cast includes Jeremy Sisto, Timothy Hutton, Dana Delaney, and yes, Delroy "I just want to get your son back" Lindo, and the show's direction and editing have visual panache to spare. It's too bad, then, that this all feels like it's been done before with a more appealing cast (sorry, but you can't beat Rene Russo and pre-sugar tits Mel Gibson). The only new angle here that it's a hotshot rogue (Sisto) on the trail instead of the dad himself. Upcoming episodes promise plenty of 24-style twists, and they better deliver, or else all the flashy direction in the world won't save this from being just a Ron Howard retread.
Smith (CBS Tuesday, 10PM)
Ah, now this one gets it right. While certainly not as stylized as Kidnapped, Smith uses its big budget to great effect. The show, from uberproducer John Wells, is every bit as good as a movie on the same subject would be...and, as a rare feat on network TV, uses the same cast a movie would. Big screen vets Ray Liotta, Amy Smart, and Virginia Madsen add a welcome touch of class to these proceedings balancing the personal and professional lives of big-time criminals. The acting is fantastic, the characters well-drawn, and the premise intriguing, though the pilot leaves something to be desired in terms of delving deeper into the characters. But all in good time...I'm eager for more.
My Name Is Earl (NBC Thursday, 8PM)
Little can be said in praise of My Name Is Earl except that it's funny, and that may be enough. Jaime Pressley is surely the highlight of the show, and it is different enough from any other sitcom on TV to warrant viewing. Laughing at stupid people is always best when the writing is smart, and in that respect, Earl makes the grade.
The Office (NBC Thursday, 8:30PM)
Having finally moved out of the shadow of the short-lived Britcom that inspired it, The Office has come into its own and is much better for it. Steve Carell is pitch-perfect as a total asshole and, as a sidenote, it's refreshing to see the mainstream embrace a comedic actor that I can actually stand. The supporting cast shines in small moments, but thanks to Jim and Pam the hijinks also have a touch of real-world credibility. Certain touches still have an artificial, written feel...but breaking free from the three-camera format has done wonders toward making sitcoms funny again.
Deal or No Deal (NBC Thursday 9PM)
Having heard quite a bit about the latest primetime game show sensation, I felt it was my duty to check out Deal or No Deal. Now an hour of my life is missing and I have nothing to show for it. If you're the kind of person who watches Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and wishes there was a way to enjoy the suspense of a game show without all the intellectual strain of having to figure out a puzzle, then this is the show for you. Deal or No Deal is literally an hour of a single contestant opening suitcases full of supposed money...the only entertaining part of this is watching the models who open the suitcase "act" happy or sad in their three seconds of screen time. While the id in me somewhat enjoyed the high stakes game of luck, Deal or No Deal lost me when the show ended before the contestant had won/lost. Boo! Deal or No Deal is just a stupid game of chance dragged out to fit the too-long hour slot, and has absolutely no payoff for the audience at the end of it. Given that it doesn't purport to be anything but a mindless game show, maybe I should go easy on artistic merit and judge it on entertainment factor alone...but eh, no deal.
_____________________________________
Jericho: B-
Criminal Minds: B-
Kidnapped: B
Smith: A-
My Name Is Earl: B+
The Office: B+
Deal or No Deal: C
Jericho (CBS Wednesday, 8PM)
Maybe HBO has spoiled me, but sometimes Jericho is hard to watch. If it were the down-home family drama it seems, Jericho would require little more than we get here...but once the atomic bombs drop, the CBSness of this show starts to hurt. The explosions themselves look great--few sights are more terrifying than the orange glow of a mushroom cloud on the horizon--but other moments, like a school bus crash, lack the production value to make them look convincing. A bigger problem, though, is that with such an awesome premise (a small town is left to fend for itself when the rest of the world falls under nuclear attack) requires equally awesome writing and direction, and Jericho just doesn't have it. For every genuine apocalyptic moment (a street littered with dead crows, an answering machine message cut off abruptly as the blast hits) there's a "don't we all know better than this by now?" cliche to undermine the show's credibility. (The mayor's "let's all stick together!" speech to his townies is particularly groan-inducing.)
Taking a page from The Day After Tomorrow, Jericho decides to distract us from that whole messy end-of-the-world business with a far less interesting threat, a bus of escaped convicts (at least it's a step up from wolves!). Humdrum characters and some awkward pacing also hinder what could have been one of the best new shows of the season; most of the actors do what they can (with Skeet Ulrich in the lead), but ultimately none of the characters are compelling because there's no real drama between them. What Jericho needs, if it is to survive, is to offset human drama with the disaster at large...and fewer children-in-peril-type subplots (c'mon, it's CBS, we know the kidlets are gonna be fine). In other words, Jericho is in desperate need of some edge, 'cause right now it plays like Northern Nuclear Exposure. When the world really ends, I guess we can only hope it'll be this schmaltzy...but someone please save this cool premise from itself, it's too good to go to waste!
Criminal Minds (CBS Wednesday, 9PM)
Like Jericho, Criminal Minds suffers in the translation of big screen-style drama to the small screen. With its twisted plots featuring even more twisted serial killers--you know the type, disfigured loonies with waaaay too much free time on their hands--Criminal Minds recalls Se7en and Silence of the Lambs. With its execution, it recalls, well, Jericho. The major cast members, including Thomas Gibson (formerly Dharma's better half) and Mandy Patinkin, are snooze-worthy, but thank god for fresher faces like Matthew Gray Gubler and Kristen Vangsness. The two, playing the brains of this operation, are a fun and captivating duo, and very believable in their roles...and, in the episode I saw, anyway, they also appear to be the only ones doing anything. Superfluous characters aside, Criminal Minds isn't a bad show...it's filled with enough intriguing turns to keep it engaging, and the horror, though Saw Lite, is passable for an hourlong procedural. Though Criminal Minds could use a boost in its budget, it's not the worst way to spend a Wednesday night.
Kidnapped (NBC Wednesday, 10PM)
A high-society New Yorker with a potentially shady past finds his privileged life compromised after his son is nabbed. His feisty wife doesn't like the way he handles things, and a by-the-book FBI agent played by Delroy Lindo speaks in a reassuring Delroy Lindo tone about how he "just wants to get your son back." Meanwhile, on the kidnappers' end, the mastermind picks off his underlings to cover his ass. Wasn't Ransom an awesome movie?
Oh, and while we're on the subject, all of the above is also true about this new NBC drama, one of many new shows seemingly designed to last for just one season (unless they really drag this case out). The cast includes Jeremy Sisto, Timothy Hutton, Dana Delaney, and yes, Delroy "I just want to get your son back" Lindo, and the show's direction and editing have visual panache to spare. It's too bad, then, that this all feels like it's been done before with a more appealing cast (sorry, but you can't beat Rene Russo and pre-sugar tits Mel Gibson). The only new angle here that it's a hotshot rogue (Sisto) on the trail instead of the dad himself. Upcoming episodes promise plenty of 24-style twists, and they better deliver, or else all the flashy direction in the world won't save this from being just a Ron Howard retread.
Smith (CBS Tuesday, 10PM)
Ah, now this one gets it right. While certainly not as stylized as Kidnapped, Smith uses its big budget to great effect. The show, from uberproducer John Wells, is every bit as good as a movie on the same subject would be...and, as a rare feat on network TV, uses the same cast a movie would. Big screen vets Ray Liotta, Amy Smart, and Virginia Madsen add a welcome touch of class to these proceedings balancing the personal and professional lives of big-time criminals. The acting is fantastic, the characters well-drawn, and the premise intriguing, though the pilot leaves something to be desired in terms of delving deeper into the characters. But all in good time...I'm eager for more.
My Name Is Earl (NBC Thursday, 8PM)
Little can be said in praise of My Name Is Earl except that it's funny, and that may be enough. Jaime Pressley is surely the highlight of the show, and it is different enough from any other sitcom on TV to warrant viewing. Laughing at stupid people is always best when the writing is smart, and in that respect, Earl makes the grade.
The Office (NBC Thursday, 8:30PM)
Having finally moved out of the shadow of the short-lived Britcom that inspired it, The Office has come into its own and is much better for it. Steve Carell is pitch-perfect as a total asshole and, as a sidenote, it's refreshing to see the mainstream embrace a comedic actor that I can actually stand. The supporting cast shines in small moments, but thanks to Jim and Pam the hijinks also have a touch of real-world credibility. Certain touches still have an artificial, written feel...but breaking free from the three-camera format has done wonders toward making sitcoms funny again.
Deal or No Deal (NBC Thursday 9PM)
Having heard quite a bit about the latest primetime game show sensation, I felt it was my duty to check out Deal or No Deal. Now an hour of my life is missing and I have nothing to show for it. If you're the kind of person who watches Jeopardy, Wheel of Fortune, and Who Wants To Be A Millionaire and wishes there was a way to enjoy the suspense of a game show without all the intellectual strain of having to figure out a puzzle, then this is the show for you. Deal or No Deal is literally an hour of a single contestant opening suitcases full of supposed money...the only entertaining part of this is watching the models who open the suitcase "act" happy or sad in their three seconds of screen time. While the id in me somewhat enjoyed the high stakes game of luck, Deal or No Deal lost me when the show ended before the contestant had won/lost. Boo! Deal or No Deal is just a stupid game of chance dragged out to fit the too-long hour slot, and has absolutely no payoff for the audience at the end of it. Given that it doesn't purport to be anything but a mindless game show, maybe I should go easy on artistic merit and judge it on entertainment factor alone...but eh, no deal.
_____________________________________
Jericho: B-
Criminal Minds: B-
Kidnapped: B
Smith: A-
My Name Is Earl: B+
The Office: B+
Deal or No Deal: C