Welcome to my Monday newsletter! This week, I am looking at Chad Powers, Monster: The Ed Gein Story and the new seasons of Abbott Elementary and Saturday Night Live. Plus, the latest episodes of Platonic, Task, Only Murders in the Building and The Lowdown, my next entry in my Top 25 Shows Since 2000 (#9) and a Pilot Re-Review of The Event!
WHAT'S NEW
Chad Powers is the new Hulu comedy based on the Eli Manning Omaha Productions skit. There are some obvious comparisons to Ted Lasso, another sports comedy that was based on something quite small (in Lasso's case, a commercial). But the more apt comparison might be Apple TV+'s middling summer comedy Stick. The reason? It's a show that is much less sure-footed than Lasso was in its first season with only a few funny moments and a lot of awkwardness despite a great cast and a promising premise.
I didn't love the first episode but then I really didn't like the second episode, which tried to show that this wants to be more than a goofy comedy, it wants to be a show with heart and humor. Unfortunately through two episodes, it's lacking both those things. It is not funny enough. So much of the charm of Ted Lasso in its early days was how likable the Ted Lasso character, as played by Jason Sudeikis, was. Even though Stick wasn't very good, Owen Wilson gave us a character to root for with his usual likable self. Glen Powell is coming off more creepy and jerky than likable or funny when he's in his "Chad Powers" persona. From the voice to the choices he makes, what is there to really like about this character? And the "heart" stuff just ends up feeling heavy-handed. It feels like the premise and things like Powers' voice are too silly for the show to earn its sweet moments.
I also felt like the supporting cast was underdeveloped through two episodes. I enjoy Steve Zahn almost all the time, even in the dull second season of Silo. But he really hasn't made much of an impression here. There were some OK moments from Perry Mattfeld as his on-screen daughter but she wasn't given enough to do. Given that the first season is only six episodes, I'll probably stick with it. But it's been a big disappointment so far.
While Chad Powers was disappointing, at least it was trying to do something. The latest edition of Monster focused on Ed Gein, is one of the laziest sows I've ever seen. I only watched one episode but I don't intend to watch any more. From what I've read, the first episode is one of the better episodes and it wasn't good. I'm not going to reward terrible TV. The Ryan Murphy TV empire (whether as a creator or producer) is wildly inconsistent, but for many years it was always interesting - visually unique and often ambitious. They just didn't always hit. But this is such garbage and so tired. It's like nobody involved cared even a little bit about doing anything besides collecting a paycheck. The visuals are dull and boring. The show doesn't even seem to take any pleasure in its sadistic moments like so many Murphy shows have in the past. The first two Monster seasons were not very good by any means but had some interesting elements and solid performances. This has a good performance by Laurie Metcalf but not much else. Charlie Hunnam is doing some real weird things as the main character. I don't want to reward lazy money grabs masquerading as prestige TV so I will not be giving this anymore time.
The fifth season of Abbott Elementary got off to a solid but unspectacular start. It was a steady episode that didn't really introduce any new arcs but still featured the cast being very sure of themselves as you would expect from the fifth season of a sitcom. I was just surprised that we didn't get any sense of where the season was going to go. Last year immediately started some of the big stories with us finding out about the golf course getting built in the premiere and the year before kicked off with Janine going to the district. I'm fine if the show just wants to be purely episodic for a bit, but it was just outside of the norm for this show. As for SNL, it was a rough start to Season 51. Bad Bunny was not very adept as a host and everything felt very tired. From not changing the credits to the same old tired types of skits, you'd think there would be a fresher feel after a summer of change. But looks like the show needed more of an overhaul than it got. And I really miss Heidi Gardner. I will give a shout out to a solid Pete Hegseth performance from Colin Jost and the MVP moment of Bowen Yang as Dobby the House Elf on Update.
LAST WEEK ON...
Platonic came to an end this past week with its second season finale. I loved the first season and thought the second season started very strong before the show lost some momentum in the second half of its season. I think the biggest problem for the back half of the season was the show kept Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne apart for long stretches of time. The show tried to build up their separate worlds and supporting characters and while I think Luke Macfarlane is fun in the show, Rogen and Byrne are the reason to watch, especially when they're together. So I think this was a step down from the first season but if Rogen and Byrne want to do another season, I can't imagine Apple will say no (especially after Rogen bringing a bunch of Emmy gold to the streamer from The Studio). I just hope a potential third season gets back to basics with what works for the show. The tease at the end indicated it would, or maybe it was a tacit admission that they knew they drifted off course this season.
Task
Last night's episode of Task answered a lot of questions: when would Tom Pelphrey and Mark Ruffalo cross paths? Turns out its in episode five. Who was the mole? Well, we found that out too. It makes me wonder where things will go for the final two episodes but also excited. I think it was the right decision for the show to have Ruffalo's Tom identify Pelphrey's Robby at this point. The scene where they were driving together was intense but if it happened in the final episode, you'd know where it was heading. But since it happened in episode five, there were a ton of directions the show could go in. This was true of Mare of Easttown too, the show never quite went where shows like this typically go. It makes you realize that what you think would be the ending isn't really the ending and that's an exciting place to be in with two episodes to go. What a thrilling end to the episode too!
Only Murders in the Building
Last week's episode featured the return of Meryl Streep. While Streep is deservedly one of the most decorated actresses in history and her role is responsible for a speculated late-in-life romance with Martin Short, I've never been the biggest fan of her on the show and this week was no different. While the storyline in Flatbush provided some nice acting moments for Short, Streep has never been all that funny or interesting on the show (for what it's worth, I thought Dianne Wiest was a little disappointing in this episode too). This episode felt a lot like it was spinning its wheels as the show set the back half of the season in motion. How much more do we really know that we did at the beginning of the episode? Not a lot and the red herrings were a little more blatant here too. The show isn't popping as much as it did in the first couple episodes of the season for me.
The Lowdown
I really enjoyed this week's episode, more than the two episode premiere last week. I think the show narrowed its focus a bit with an episode that primarily featured Ethan Hawke, Ryan Kiera Armstrong and Michael Hitchcock. Hawke remains the standout - able to sell any moment with utmost gusto (woof that scene where he was force fed the fish was gross). But I am also really enjoying Hitchcock in this show and the sensibility he brings to a show populated with mostly rugged characters. The young Armstrong was given a lot more to do this week and proved she was capable of carrying the load with some of Hawke's qualities seemingly rubbing off on her character and performance. This show reminds me a lot of Bad Monkey, where I'm far more interested in the vibes and characters than the plot.
TOP 25 SHOWS SINCE 2000
I haven't watched American Dreams in a long time. It's been on my list to re-watch for years now and I haven't gotten around to it, but I still intend to. Back in high school, it was my favorite show and not just because I had a huge crush on Brittany Snow. Sure, the show was a bit saccharine at times and some might call it a gimmick that is used of contemporary artists to play older artists on American Bandstand. But it really should be remembered as an all-time great family drama. With dynamite performances besides just Snow (including Gail O'Grady, Tom Verica and Will Estes among many others), the show captured an era but was mostly a moment in time for the families. Sure, there was no escaping the Kennedy Assassination, the Civil Rights Movement or Vietnam. But it was never heavy handed about any of it. It was organic and heartfelt. And now, I just want to stop writing and fire up the show on my DVD player. I've managed to get my hands on Seasons 2 & 3 but I'm still wishing there was an official release or that it would appear on streaming. Darn music rights. I think many more people would remember the show fondly if it was more visible.
PILOT RE-REVIEW
This season, I am traveling back in time to the 2010-11 season, the first season I did this blog. I will be re-reviewing the pilots from that season, at least as many as I can find!
Original Review: Click Here!
What I Think Now: There are so many things in this pilot that feel like they turned to random pages in the Lost playbook and decided to implement what they found on the page. The narrative structure is all over the place with both hopping timelines and organization around individuals in the cast. The show relies on trying to put a twist before every commercial break. And yes, there's one cryptic and almost laughable reference to the words "the event." But I'll be darned if I wasn't still hooked in just like I was in 2010. I tried to figure out why because I'd like to think my TV palette has improved since 2010 and I wouldn't be as fooled by shows like this and their blatant pandering. But I think what works here is a strong cast of actors who take what they're doing seriously even amidst an absurd pilot. They are effectively able to sell the moments in a way that a cast with lesser talent couldn't. The pilot also leaves just enough, and I mean just enough, crumbs to keep it interesting without getting too frustrating. They are masters of manipulation in this pilot and yet I found myself getting manipulated again. The pilot is also well produced. It's clear some money was spent so while the narrative is cheesy, the effects and technical production are not. There are strong performances from Jason Ritter and Blair Underwood. Sarah Innes and Zeljko Ivanek are playing such ridiculous types but excel in being creepy.
What Happened to the Show: The Event was NBC's big push for Fall 2010, which was a re-set for the network after the debacle of The Jay Leno Show. Promos were incessant that whole summer and it did respond with big premiere numbers. But it was one of those shows that never stopped dropping in the ratings. It earned a full season but took a break for several months in the winter and came back to even lower ratings. NBC cancelled the series after one full season of 22 episodes. I watched the whole season, it's one of the very few shows like this that I saw through to the end and I remember actually being mostly satisfied all the way through. I might actually re-visit it again at some point after re-watching this pilot. The Lost knockoffs may not come at quite the clip they once did but platforms have still tried to recapture in more recent years with shows like Manifest and Yellowjackets. Heck, even Severance has some Lost DNA in it. The Event was one of many trying to recapture that Lost moment of 2004 and it wasn't the best effort or the worst.
COMING UP
It's a quiet start to the week for premieres but there's a lot going on towards the end of the week. On Thursday, Netflix has the premiere of Boots, a military dramedy that is notable for being the final new show to count the legendary Norman Lear among its producers (the show started filming when Lear was still alive but then suspended production during the strike and Lear died before filming resumed). Also premiering Thursday is the ninth season of 9-1-1 followed by its spinoff, 9-1-1: Nashville on ABC. 9-1-1 has been a success for a long time, first on FOX and now on ABC so it's no surprise that they are attempting another spinoff (of course 9-1-1: Lone Star ran for five seasons on FOX). Rounding out the ABC night is the 22nd (!) season premiere of Grey's Anatomy. On Friday, Apple TV+ has the series premiere of its Alaskan-set drama The Last Frontier. There hasn't been much buzz about this show yet. On Sunday night, HBO has the premiere of its Tim Robinson conspiracy comedy The Chair Company while CBS kicks off its Premiere Week with a Sunday night preview of the second season of Matlock and the third season of Elsbeth.
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