Let's face it -- this show simply isn't up to the gold standard that Aaron Sorkin set for himself with 'Sports Night' and 'The West Wing.' Now normally even something of Sorkin's that is sub-par would still be far superior to most of the drivel on network television. But in this case, since the series is itself a commentary on the sorry state of the current television industry it needs to provide a compelling vision of what television COULD or SHOULD be. It does not. Instead, we get a mediocre show about people putting on a "comedy show" where NONE of the sketches we've yet to see from this show-within-a-show are REMOTELY funny.
The show feels too much like Sorkin and producer Thomas Schlamme trying to rub NBC's noses in its decision to kick the two off of the West Wing crew after its fourth season (which was a travesty) and consequently feels too much like a personal, in-joke filled therapy session of Sorkin trying to show the world how things SHOULD have happened. The show also has too much of a preachy quality to it (something that many viewers have complained about 'The West Wing' - but there it seemed more appropriate since the topic matter was something as lofty and morally relevant as politics and the future of American policy).
In the end, the show simply isn't funny (even though it's supposed to be about funny people) nor is the focus of its drama at all compelling or interesting - you ultimately could care less about any of the characters or what happens to them. This is the result of a few things - first of all, the show's plots have largely focused television insider jargon (which we saw on Sports Night but there the behind-the-scenes look at TV was always done as interesting window- dressing around plots focused on the characters' personal lives, not as the focus of the plots themselves). Secondly, the lack of interest in the characters comes from the show's dark, drab set of undistinguished locations that makes the whole production feel dark and cramped without any feeling of zest or life in it.
But most fundamentally, our lack of interest in the characters results from both underwritten and miscast roles. Bradley Whitford and Matthew Perry are solid as the two leads, but they only really come alive in scenes between their two characters, which so far have been few and far between. Similarly, Timothy Busfield is always a solid actor but so far he has been given nothing to do; similarly, Nathan Corddry.
On the miscast side, D.L. Hughley, while usually good in other films and shows, just doesn't quite click with Sorkin's rapid-fire dialogue here. Sarah Paulson's casting as Harriet Harris, Matthew Perry's love interest, is seriously off-kilter. For one thing, her character's Christianity is written far too buffonishly, which isn't her fault of course and once again demonstrates Hollywood's outlandish misconceptions of most Americans' sense of religion. But beyond that flaw in how the character is written, Paulson as an actress provides NO spark that would give viewers any reason to care about her. And finally, Amanda Peet is woefully miscast, turning the character into too one-dimensional and perky a type to ever convincingly have become a major network executive. Sorkin clearly was aiming for another strong female lead character like Dana on 'Sports Night,' but he needed an actress with much better dramatic chops (like Felicity Huffman) to fully realize the role in a three-dimensional way.
In short, this is a show filled with talented people in front of and behind the camera and all their efforts have misfired into an unappealing, unappetizing mess. Better to let this show fade after one season so that all this talent can be released to try their luck on other projects. If you want to see the best of what this show's writer and producer (and some of these actors) can do, rent or buy 'Sports Night' or 'The West Wing.'
The show feels too much like Sorkin and producer Thomas Schlamme trying to rub NBC's noses in its decision to kick the two off of the West Wing crew after its fourth season (which was a travesty) and consequently feels too much like a personal, in-joke filled therapy session of Sorkin trying to show the world how things SHOULD have happened. The show also has too much of a preachy quality to it (something that many viewers have complained about 'The West Wing' - but there it seemed more appropriate since the topic matter was something as lofty and morally relevant as politics and the future of American policy).
In the end, the show simply isn't funny (even though it's supposed to be about funny people) nor is the focus of its drama at all compelling or interesting - you ultimately could care less about any of the characters or what happens to them. This is the result of a few things - first of all, the show's plots have largely focused television insider jargon (which we saw on Sports Night but there the behind-the-scenes look at TV was always done as interesting window- dressing around plots focused on the characters' personal lives, not as the focus of the plots themselves). Secondly, the lack of interest in the characters comes from the show's dark, drab set of undistinguished locations that makes the whole production feel dark and cramped without any feeling of zest or life in it.
But most fundamentally, our lack of interest in the characters results from both underwritten and miscast roles. Bradley Whitford and Matthew Perry are solid as the two leads, but they only really come alive in scenes between their two characters, which so far have been few and far between. Similarly, Timothy Busfield is always a solid actor but so far he has been given nothing to do; similarly, Nathan Corddry.
On the miscast side, D.L. Hughley, while usually good in other films and shows, just doesn't quite click with Sorkin's rapid-fire dialogue here. Sarah Paulson's casting as Harriet Harris, Matthew Perry's love interest, is seriously off-kilter. For one thing, her character's Christianity is written far too buffonishly, which isn't her fault of course and once again demonstrates Hollywood's outlandish misconceptions of most Americans' sense of religion. But beyond that flaw in how the character is written, Paulson as an actress provides NO spark that would give viewers any reason to care about her. And finally, Amanda Peet is woefully miscast, turning the character into too one-dimensional and perky a type to ever convincingly have become a major network executive. Sorkin clearly was aiming for another strong female lead character like Dana on 'Sports Night,' but he needed an actress with much better dramatic chops (like Felicity Huffman) to fully realize the role in a three-dimensional way.
In short, this is a show filled with talented people in front of and behind the camera and all their efforts have misfired into an unappealing, unappetizing mess. Better to let this show fade after one season so that all this talent can be released to try their luck on other projects. If you want to see the best of what this show's writer and producer (and some of these actors) can do, rent or buy 'Sports Night' or 'The West Wing.'