Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip

[Deleted]

That's odd that it premiered in Canada before the US. I caught the premier on DVD through Netflix. Thought it was great. I hope that it does really well.

[topher]

How much work did Amanda Peete have done?

[Binky]

I thought Peete looked different, too. Not good or bad different...kind of older different, actually. That said, holy shit, is she miscast in this. If this lasts, I'll be surpised if she returns for season 2.

I liked it. Brad Whitford is awesome and so is Timothy Busfield. Matthew Perry did well, too. But Peete stank.

[indygirl]

ITA, Binky. She just didn't seem to fit. I wasn't that crazy about Sarah Paulson either, but she could grow on me. Bradley Whitford seemed most comfortable in the show, but I guess that makes sense. I really want to like this show, but it did feel a little flat/forced in some spots. I think Perry and Whitfield will make a good team though.

[tamaradixon]

Isn't Amanda Peet preggers in real life? She may be gone soon.

I saw her in 'Barefoot in the Park' last spring in NYC. She was AWFUL.

[shawnalanne]

I never watched WW and had low expectations of this. But I liked the pilot.

Edited to add:

I thought Amanda Peete looked out of place in the role as well, but I thought that was part of her charecter. People not visualizing her in that role, so they underestimate her. I thought she did it well.

[huntergrayson]

I don't know if Amanda Peet (no E, right?) got a lot of work done. It seemed like she just got crazy skinny. Sarah Paulson, too.

Steven Weber's plastic surgery was far, far more obvious to my eyes.

Speaking of, either Felicity has the best, most subtle work ever or was filmed entirely through gauze. Because she looked better and more youthful here than she ever did on Sports Night.

That was the only Sorkin show I had been exposed to - caught up via the DVDs and I dug it. But never decided to try the West Wing. This seems like it could get as "preachy" as critics have claimed of that show. Also, there were a few too many meta moments for me and they got irksome.

Hey, Aaron? If you have a long rambing monologue ripoff "homage" to Network that includes lambasting the networks and the viewing audience for being incredibly dumb but yet feel the need to make it clear via everything but semaphore flags that it IS a Network reference, aren't you kinda, you know, perpetuating the whole "dumb audience" thing?

Oh, yes, TV is terrible and only you can save it. We GET IT.

(I should note that I absolutely hate, hate, hate Network and think it's the most overrated piece of crap ever - it's totally the Crash of its day. Because *every* scene and *every* character is in service of the all too obvious "theme").

Er, I know DL Hughley is somehow famous enough to merit his own promo one-sheet for this, but how, exactly is he famous, again?

Is it too soon to hope for a cameo from Sarah's ultra-talented partner, Cherry Jones?

Sigh, oh, Matthew. So, so charming again. I don't care if you don't have range. You can make up for it in other ways. Pantsless ways.

[Deleted]

huntergrayson, I am so glad that you brought up Cherry Jones! MrB and her hail from the same hometown here in TN, and although she is older than he, their families know each other. Major talent.

I am going to watch it, but I don't know if it will hit TiVo status.

[Binky]

I think it's interesting that the devout Christian character is being played by a lesbian. Even if the character is likeable, she still won't win over certain subset of viewers.

[Deleted]

I first spotted this show at TWoP when it was languishing in the basement threads where I love to scrounge for snark treats.

Everyone on the thread testified to Mr. Sorkin's genius and based on their faith in that genius, this show was the third coming. I was indifferent to the first coming and only watched the second coming in its last year (and enjoyed it) but I didn't accept Mr. Sorkin as my TV Savior or anything like that.

I didn't even know that this would be on last night. I was watching the first season of Smallville on DVDs and counting the truck crashes and mayhem and 30 foot throw downs before I took a break. When I came back, the TV switch was on and this show was on. So I watched.

On the positive side, this show looks great. The DP is first class. He made that actress from TransAmerica look as good as she can act. However, he can't work miracles, Matthew Perry's drug and alcohol excesses are listed on his face, but Mr. Perry is very charming regardless. (And you know, I would have made his character the one who couldn't pass a drug test because he looks like he couldn't pass a drug test.) The dialog is smart and fast and well delivered. That is one of the reasons that I like Deadwood. I like the Victorian and Shakespearean elocutions. It's a change from the actory sensory mumblings and the trite three camera comedy punchline deliveries of what you usually see on TV.

I agree with some of the other posters. If you are going to ripoff Network, and there is no reason not to do so, you don't have to remind everybody in every act (that is like Lana Lang and her whining about her parentage abandonment) that you did it. Ripoffs are part of Nature's plan and how we all become Men and Women and Babies get made. Let's not brag about our prowress.

And also, if you are going to ripoff Network, Mr. Sorkin, shouldn't you put a twist on that plot and maybe go in another direction than that movie? Just to make it interesting and different and Yours?

Stephen Weber is ice cold evil---weren't they playing that Vanilla Ice riff when he was on the screen? Or did I get that from some Smallville episode when John Glover was on screen?

Anyway, Miss Peete is so terrible, she is Lana Lang. Or better yet, she looks like she should be on the Letterman show on the Ventriloquist Dummy segments. When Miss Peete opens her pretty eyes wide and her face goes blank, I start looking for the guy with his hand up her ass. I suppose that this is Miss Peete's different take on the Faye Dunaway character in Network. Well, unlike Mr. Sorkin, Miss Peete is trying to make the character hers. But, it is not working.

For now, this show is sort of hanging. Not really good but with possibilities---some good casting and acting and photography and dialog. Not really bad but could go in that direction if neglected and pushed---cliched plotlines and some bad casting and too self involved and referential---some falseness at its core. You know, like Lex Luthor.