Given my track record . . .

[maystone]

I've started watching network TV. I know! I love Prime Suspect to little itty-bitty pieces, and it just keeps getting better and more comfortable in its skin every week. The cast is uniformly excellent, and I want to track down whoever does casting for the extras and the small speaking parts and give her/him a big ol' bear hug. Just outstanding work on that usually overlooked part of series television.

Tonight I checked out the premiere for Grimm, and I truly enjoyed it. The lead actor needs to loosen up a bit (and I think he will), but everything else was great. The visuals! Holy crap, they were gorgeous. It had a cinematic feel to it - deep colors, shadows, and some surprisingly witty little moments. (Hummels! VWs!) The dialogue was good, but given that David Greenwalt wrote it, that's to be expected. I'll be back for more.

(Just as an aside, when I was a kid I had the complete collection of Grimm's Fairy Tales. Hard cover. Illustrated. Those stories were not for the faint of heart, but I loved them. They didn't frighten me, but they definitely put a different spin on the world. I wonder if they're even offered as children's literature anymore?)

I also watched "Once Upon a Time." Yeah, it's about 180 degrees from Grimm, but I thought it was fairly enjoyable. I think kids would like it. It's nothing I'll make a point of watching, but if it's on and I'm not doing anything else, I'll tune in. The biggest problem for me is that the casting is very Hollywood. I can't tell the women apart, and the same goes for the leading men. Why do they do that? There really are different kinds of facial bone structure, you know. Yeesh.

I watch Suburgatory with Dar, because she's reviewing it for The Voice of TV. It's very uneven, and frankly, it's dull and flat as dirt when it concentrates on the daughter. But it has its moments, especially when it centers on the neighbor, Dallas. She's my favorite character, but she has to be carefully written, or she just comes across as a bimbo. So, see to it, writers.

Now having said all of that, I'm predicting that Subpurgatory and Once Upon a Time will make the cut, and Grimm and my beloved Prime Suspect will get the axe. Because that's the way it works with me and network TV.

Comments

[clarionj.livejournal.com]

I like hearing your take on things. I see so little TV, but I like to find one show to watch each year. It used to be Lost, and I don't have one right now. I wondered about Grimm--it's funny how the younger generations didn't grow up on those "too scary" fairy tales. My sister loved them and still says that we need those kinds of tales, that kids know there's bad in the world; they have bad feelings themselves, and the tales allow that expression.

Anyway, the visuals sound great. I might try to check that out.

[maystone.livejournal.com]

Yup, I think you'd like it. You may not read this in time for it to matter, but NBC is running it again tonight; I think the 7th game of the World Series was running against the premiere, and they want to recoup some viewership numbers.

Enjoy!

[clarionj.livejournal.com]

Oy, yes, I'm reading too late. I should set the DVR just to tape it. Catch up on weekends!