Skip to main content

PILOT REVIEW: Save Me

SAVE ME












Starring: Anne Heche, Michael Landes, Alexandra Breckenridge, Madison Davenport, Heather Burns

Created by John Scott Shepherd
Written by John Scott Shepherd, Directed by Scott Winant

Save Me is a new sitcom about alcoholic Beth Harper (Anne Heche) who nearly chokes on a sandwich during a drunken night. When she lives, she suddenly seems to have a direct connection to God and sets about changing her life for the better. That means reconnecting with her estranged husband Tom (Michael Landes) and rebellious teen daughter Emily (Madison Davenport). Also in the main cast is her husband's mistress Carly (Alexandra Breckenridge) and an estranged friend Jenna (Heather Burns).

THE GOOD: I was surprised by how much I actually enjoyed Save Me. It won't become appointment viewing for me but it was better than I thought it would be. Anne Heche is interesting and enjoyable in the lead role and manages to carry a bizarre concept pretty well. The supporting cast is solid and there were some funny moments in the pilot including the relationship between Heche and her on screen daughter Madison Davenport. The concept, while strange, is something different for a network sitcom so that counts for something.

THE BAD: Even though I applaud it for its unique premise, I have a little bit of a hard time getting past it. It's just such an odd concept and I think it might start to wear thin quickly. There were also some pretty cliche moments such as a honking truck covering up a swear word, which has been done countless times in sitcoms. The ending of the pilot also was a little crazy, the whole show has a Desperate Housewives feel which might be appealing to some, but that's not appealing to me.

BOTTOM LINE: NBC ordered this show early last year and it seemed to be one of their early priorities but then it wasn't on the fall schedule and never made it to midseason which shows that they soured on the premise. I can imagine that's because the unique premise doesn't hold up over multiple episodes (though I did watch the second episode that aired last night too and was surprised by it as well). Despite me being somewhat surprised by the show, I don't think it would have been a hit for NBC and probably would have just added to their list of cancelled freshmen sitcoms.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

SEASON IN REVIEW: 2017-18 Miscellaneous Awards

As usual, I am ending the season with a few miscellaneous awards. The blog will be quiet this summer but I will continue to do the week ahead posts with broadcast TV news as it happens this summer. Then I'll be back for previews, pilot reviews, and more in the fall! BEST RETURNING COMEDY Superstore (NBC) - Superstore was awarded my "Best Returning Comedy" last year, but it only got better in season three. The funniest ensemble on TV took another step forward with some truly hilarious moments (the season premiere, the Golden Globes party, and the Christmas episode to name a few) and some major plot points moving forward. It also has the potential to be surprisingly sentimental at times. I think back to the first year of the show and how I felt like it had so many funny elements but didn't always bring it completely together. Well now it does on a weekly basis and it is one of those shows that just seems to be in the sweet spot of what will hopefully be a long run. ...

EPISODE GUIDES: That 70s Show Season Seven

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Seven of  That 70s Show ! THAT 70s SHOW: SEASON SEVEN 2004-2005 25 episodes The seventh season of  That 70s Show  is the final season with Topher Grace as a series regular and also the final full season for Ashton Kutcher. Despite still having both of those cast member, the show finds itself flailing especially with Topher Grace's Eric, who is stuck in a terrible arc for most of the season. The show also brings many characters back at one point or another but everything just feels tired. This season actually graded out the worst for me. Even worse than the often maligned final season (more on that next week). Every title this season is named for a Rolling Stones song. Starring Topher Grace as Eric Forman  (25 episodes) Mila Kunis as Jackie Burkhart  (25 episodes) Ashton Kutcher as Michael Kelso  (25 episodes) Danny Masterson as Steven Hyde  (25 e...

EPISODE GUIDES: Happy Days Season Five (Part 1)

On Thursdays, I take a detailed and critical look at a TV show by season. Today I am looking at Season 5 (Part 1) of  Happy Days ! HAPPY DAYS: SEASON FIVE 1977-1978 27 episodes Season Five is the year where Fonzie infamously jumps the shark. It happens at the beginning of the season and while  Happy Days  does eventually decline in quality, it is not this season. In fact, this season graded out slightly higher than the previous season even though it doesn't feel as strong. I think that's because there's not a lot of outright stinkers in this season. It's a very solid season with the show continuing to hum along. There are some signs of the troubles to come but it doesn't happen on a regular basis in the fifth season. Starring Ron Howard as Richie Cunningham  (27 episodes) Henry Winkler as Arthur Fonzarelli  (27 episodes) Tom Bosley as Howard Cunningham  (27 episodes) Marion Ross as Marion Cunningham  (27 episodes) Anson Williams as Potsie Webber  ...