Skip to main content

ONE SEASON WONDERS: Maggie Winters

MAGGIE WINTERS












September 30, 1998 - February 3, 1999
16 episodes
CBS

Starring: Faith Ford, Alex Kapp Horner, Jenny Robertson, Brian Haley, with Clea Lewis and Shirley Knight
Created by: Kari Lizer

Plot: Maggie Winters (Ford) moves back to her small Indiana hometown to live with her mother (Knight) following a divorce. She reunites with her best friends from high school, Lisa and Robin (Horner & Robertson) as well as a rival, Rachel (Lewis) who still lives in the town. Rounding out the main cast is another friend, Tom (Haley).

Brief Pilot Review:
Faith Ford is a really fun personality and that shined through in an otherwise run of the mill sitcom. She made it a better sitcom that it had any business being. It wasn't a fantastic pilot, but it was a likable enough one that did a good job of establishing Faith Ford's character as well as the relationships of those around her and their connection to her. Even when things were getting sort of dumb (like the friends singing "Total Eclipse of the Heart"), Ford kept it grounded in a place where she at least seemed believable and the other friends rose to her level eventually (Clea Lewis, fresh off of Ellen at the time, also had some funny moments).

I also think this pilot did a good job with the arc of the episode. It spent enough time with Maggie being frustrated with her surroundings and dismissive of the small town but redeemed her with enough time to spare. It felt paced well enough to not feel like either part of the episode was forced. So even though the jokes were sort of lame and the pilot was pretty standard fare, it didn't run into two problems so many sitcom pilots have. It didn't have a pacing issue and it didn't have a chemistry issue with the ensemble. Unless it's a groundbreaking sitcom, which this obviously was not, you can't really ask for much more.

What Went Wrong:
Faith Ford was no stranger to the CBS audience when Maggie Winters premiered in Fall 1998. She had just finished a ten season run as Corky Sherwood on Murphy Brown, a role that earned her five Emmy nominations. When Murphy came to an end, CBS quickly kept Ford in the family with her own sitcom. Ford was also an executive producer and the show took over the 8:30pm slot on Wednesdays (after The Nanny) that Murphy Brown occupied for much of its final season. CBS had a hard time with Wednesdays though. They always had a successful comedy presence on Mondays but Wednesday shows were a tougher sell with The Nanny never quite the same when it moved to the night and Murphy Brown taking a dive in the ratings when it moved from its longtime Monday home.

Reviews were mixed for Maggie Winters but many agreed the show had promise. Variety said Ford rose above derivative material "thanks to her confidence and inherent likability" while the New York Times called the show "pleasantly watchable but uninspired." The timeslot probably hurt Maggie more than anything. If CBS had given it a Monday slot, it may have lasted more than a season but The Nanny was fading fast. The two sitcoms soldiered on until early February when Maggie was cancelled and Nanny was put on hiatus. Ford turned up in the second and third season of The Norm Show on ABC before getting her second major sitcom role with Hope & Faith that was slightly more successful.

Tomorrow: Very Very Cooking!
Next Wednesday: A One Season Wonder look at Vengeance Unlimited!
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

EPISODE GUIDES: Rhoda Season Five

On Thursdays, I go through classic series with a critical look at each season. Today I am looking at Season Five (the final season) of  Rhoda ! RHODA: SEASON FIVE 1978 13 episodes Rhoda' s final season was a truncated one as the show was cancelled in December 1978 after only 13 episodes had been produced (and only nine had aired). This feels like a continuation from season four in many ways except with the ill-advised split between Ida and Martin (more on that below). While  Rhoda  has an occasional good moment and even a couple decent episodes, it is a show that seems so wildly different from season one and not in a good way.  Rhoda  could never figure out what it fully wanted to be and only made it four and a half seasons as a result. Starring Valerie Harper as Rhoda Morgenstern  (13 episodes) Julie Kavner as Brenda Morgenstern  (13 episodes) Ray Buktenica as Benny Goodwin  (11 episodes) Kenneth McMillan as Jack Doyle  (9 episodes) Nancy Wa...
Post a Comment
Read more

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...
Post a Comment
Read more

SCHEDULES OF THE PAST: 1995-1996 Thursdays

On Tuesdays, I take a look at schedules from yesteryear. Here's a look at Thursdays in the 1995-96 season! ABC 8:00 8:30 9:00 10:00 Sep Charlie Grace The Monroes Various Programs Oct Murder One Nov Various Programs Dec Various Programs Thursday Night Movie Jan Feb World’s Funniest Videos Before They Were Stars! Mar Apr May NBC was the powerhouse on Thursday nights but ABC still gave it the old college try in the Fall of 1995 with a trio of new dramas that they hoped would help them cut into the Peacock's dominance. Headlining their night was Murder One , a high profile new show from Steven Bochco that received much of the network's attention before the season started. The series focused on one murder case for an entire season, whi...
Post a Comment
Read more