Response to "What a Woman Really Wants From a TV Show"

I recently read “What a Woman Really Wants From a TV Show” on Jezebel. I agreed with almost everything Dodai Stewart wrote.

1. I also miss having both physically and emotionally strong female leads or, as Stewart puts it, “kick ass female lead(s)”.
2. Unlike Stewart, I love a good procedural/medical drama (perhaps more than most), but I don’t think I can stand adding many more to the mix. I already have Law and Order: SVU, Bones, Grey’s Anatomy, Rizzoli and Isles, and Body of Proof. Please, no more.
3.  Two Broke Girls is somehow watchable, but parts of it are definitely racist. Really, really racist.
4. New Girl also has a few funny moments, but Jess as a character is not fleshed out.

What Stewart didn’t discuss, although she did mention it, is ABC’s newest show, Revenge. I’d argue that Revenge, perhaps more than any other show on the air right now, has a strong female lead.

Revenge is centered around Emily (Emily VanCamp), a young woman who moves back to the Hamptons to seek revenge on those who destroyed her father’s reputation. I won’t go into the complex plot right now, but I will tell you that there is one. At the same time, after watching an episode of Revenge it could easily be dismissed as a mindless sexy drama.

But Revenge has a one thing that other shows are missing: a strong female lead.

Emily’s character is intense, intelligent, and manipulative. She’s not necessarily likeable, but she’s a strong woman who successfully achieves her goals. She’s also beautiful, but for once beauty doesn’t make her an airhead, nor does it make her someone who only uses her sexuality to get what she wants. Her character is multi-faceted enough that she is able to use her beauty alongside her intellect, and she is also psychologically complex. That’s a refreshing thing to see on television. 

which shows have new episodes tonight?

Shows Premiering Tonight

Now that we've entered the intense premiere week, if you have even one favorite television show you're probably excited.

Unfortunately I missed out on the premiere of 'How I Met Your Mother' yesterday, mainly because I was being responsible and actually looking after the child I was babysitting.

But there are no babies tonight! And that means I'm gearing up for a slew of shows:

'Glee' premieres tonight on FOX at 8 pm

'New Girl' premieres on FOX at 9 pm

'Raising Hope' premieres on FOX at 9:30 pm

'The Biggest Loser' premieres on NBC at 8 pm 

The second episode of 'Ringer' is on the CW at 9 pm

'Body of Proof' premieres on ABC at 10 pm

'Unforgettable' premieres on CBS at 10 pm

The second episode of 'Parenthood' is on NBC at 10 pm

This line-up actually creates a lot of controversy for me...mainly because I'm not a huge fan of any of these shows, but I like most of them. My best guess is that I'll probably watch 'Glee' live (because Facebook will ruin it for me if I don't), watch the middle part of 'The Biggest Loser', and then switch back to FOX to watch 'Raising Hope'. I've already see the pilot episode of 'New Girl', and I don't have any desire to watch it again (even though I'll probably give episode 2 a chance next week).

The biggest problem for me is the 10 pm time slot. In all honesty, the best move would probably be to forgo everything and go to bed instead. But since we all know that's not going to happen what I'll actually watch is pretty iffy. Probably 'Unforgettable', since this is the pilot, and if any of those shows is going to be ruined for me via social media it will probably be that one.

Of course, I'm not going to lie, I'm bound to watch almost every show on that list. I just hope the networks hurry up and post them online as quickly as possible.

Yet Another Connection

I just realized that in my post way back in April when I mentioned the commonalities between 'Body of Proof' and 'Rizzoli and Isles' I missed one important thing.

Dana Delaney (the star 'Body of Proof) and Sasha Alexander (the star of 'Rizzoli and Isles') were actually co-stars on a show about ten years ago! From 2000-2001 Delaney and Alexander played physicians in the short-lived series 'Presidio Med'. Funny that they're both now playing doctors again!

Unrelated, the show also starred Julianne Nicholson (of 'Ally McBeal') and was Blythe Danner's first return to episodic television since her role in 'Tattingers' in the 1980s.

when not playing your age makes a difference

Actors who don't play their true age...

It's obvious that lots of actors do it. In fact, 'lots' should probably be changed to 'all'. Rarely does an actor only accept characters that are exactly his/her age. People play younger and older all the time, be it by a year or two, or twenty. Sometimes this is a big problem.

It's certainly an issue in "Body of Proof". Dana Delaney is 55. Joanna Cassidy is 65. She also looks like she's about 60. So, explain to me who thought it would be a good idea for Cassidy to play Delaney's mother?

Delany (L) & Cassidy (R)

bubbles shows that might just go

"Bubble Shows"
a phrase indicating that a show may or may not be canceled. generally referring to a show that is "on the fence" because a network has not yet agreed to renew it, and its ratings are dismal enough that they might choose to abandon it instead.

Obviously lots of people are writing about Bubble Shows right now. After all, it's almost the end of the season, and soon networks are going to be deciding which shows they are kicking off the air forever until some other network comes along and picks them up, à la "Damages", FX, and DirectTV.

There are a lot of shows that may never appear on your television set again after the end of this season: "Brothers & Sisters", "Detroit 1-8-7", "Off the Map", "No Ordinary Family", "V" I consider this canceled, "Chuck", "Perfect Couples", "Outsourced", "Lie to Me", "Nikita", "Body of Proof", "The Chicago Code", "Mr. Sunshine", and "Parenthood".

Of these shows I think that 2 (or possibly 4) should be saved, and here's why:

1. "Brothers & Sisters": yes, it is the most soap opera-ish, melodramatic show to air on television since "Desperate Housewives" (and yes, I know that's still on, but no one really watches it anymore. I mean, name one person...) but we need a little ridiculous drama in our lives. I have to admit that "Parenthood" is starting to veer into the territory of "Brothers & Sisters", but even "Parenthood's" new melodrama (family doesn't like the ex-alcoholic boyfriend, daughter might be pregnant, wife is really pregnant, son has aspergers, dad loses job, other child doesn't get into college, other daughter gets into DUI-induced accident, mother presents award winning play, family decides to adopt) can't replace the truly enjoyable insanity that makes up the Walker family. Then again, Calista Flockhart seems ready to leave (she has barely appeared in any episodes this season), and I'm not completely sure the show can function without her. Still, I want "Brothers & Sisters" to stay on the air...at least for one more season!

2. "Parenthood": I'm not quite ready to let this replace "Brothers & Sisters", and Lauren Graham has started to grate on my nerves, but need I remind you: family doesn't like the ex-alcoholic boyfriend, daughter might be pregnant, wife is really pregnant, son has aspergers, dad loses job, other child doesn't get into college, other daughter gets into DUI-induced accident, mother presents award winning play, family decides to adopt. They clearly need one more season just to wrap up those loose ends.

3. "Outsourced": I agree that this show dealt with a lot of racist undertones early on but I think hope those can be fixed. And I'd be sad to see Pippa Black go. Plus it can be really funny. You know, when it's not being racist. So...keep the series/hire some additional writers?

4. "Body of Proof": I actually think very little of this show, as evidenced by my earlier posts.
Still, I like to use it as background television when I'm doing other more important things (like checking email). And other people seem to like it. So it could get another chance. Or not. Honestly, I don't care much either way.

And what about those other shows? I can sum my feelings about those shows up very quickly:

1. "Detroit 1-8-7": Never heard about it, except when I read a line in EW that said it was "good". Never seen it. Don't even know what channel it's on.

2. "Off the Map": Watched 1.25 episodes. Shrugged. Switched the channel. If it was a little more "ER", and a little less least-appealing-parts-of-"Grey's" I might be more interested.

3. "No Ordinary Family": Superheroes or something? Not really my thing. Seems kind of corny. Maybe someone is watching it?

4. "Chuck": My mom likes this show. I have impartial feelings about it.

5. "Perfect Couples": Bad.

6. "Lie to Me": Wait. This is decent! Except I don't know what time it's on. I think it's on Fox? Maybe bump this up to things that should be saved. If their marketing improves.

7. "Nikita": Spies? Huh. Never seen it.

8. "The Chicago Code": I like crime shows & I like Jennifer Beals. But I already watch "Law and Order: SVU" and "Bones". I'm sure they're not at all like this show, but there's only so much crime I can take in a week.

9. "Mr. Sunshine": Allison Janey! Otherwise, I don't really care. Sorry, Matthew Perry.

What do you think? Am I totally wrong?

TV Schedule during Spring Break

I want that show to be new this week...NOW.
Or
The Genius of Mid-Season Replacements

So, instead of analyzing a show, I'm going to write about television scheduling. I know, that sounds really boring. But, I promise you, some of the networks are making genius moves with their scheduling that you're probably missing.

I'm sure you've all noticed (if you watch any TV at all) that there haven't been new shows for the last couple of weeks. Why? Because it's Spring Break! Maybe not at your college (and definitely not at your work), but at some college, somewhere. And viewers age 18-24 make up a large percentage of the viewing demographic. They also have the capability of destroying a show. If you lose that demographic either because they're not watching, or because they're Facebooking/Tweeting/Commenting on the internet about how bad it is (59%). Well, your show could be off the air before you know it. As a network, it's important to count that particular age group.


It turns out, the higher your education level, the more likely you are to evaluate a show online. But it's not just the college-age kids the networks need to be worried about. While watching TV 42% of Americans are online, and many of them (61%) will have a social media site where they can post something about what they are watching.*

So, what's that genius move I'm talking about? It's taking a chance and introducing a brand-new show while all the popular/currently on the air shows are on hiatus. Some networks choose to do this during the summer, and then use the shows which are successful that first summer during subsequent summers. TNT did this last summer with "Rizzoli and Isles".

And ABC is doing it right now with "Body of Proof". The show premiered during the first week of this incredibly long and tedious 'spring break' hiatus. And they've released three new episodes already, while all the other networks are running mainly reruns (except for reality tv shows, but that's a whole other issue). So, what do you think the most popular current episodes on Hulu are? The first three episodes of "Body of Proof"! Now, this method of releasing TV shows during hiatus only works if your television show is good/successful (not mutually exclusive!) because you need to retain viewers after the other shows come back on air. Unfortunately, as I've said earlier, I don't think that "Body of Proof" will stand up to that test.



*"About the Data: This 24/7 Wall St./Harris Poll was conducted online within the US between March 11 and 15, 2011 among 2,526 adults (aged 18 and older). Figures for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, region and household income were weighted where necessary to bring them into line with their actual proportions in the population. Where appropriate, this data were also weighted to reflect the composition of the adult online population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents’ propensity to be online". Marketing Chart

Women in Science (Body of Proof)

"Bones" vs. "Rizzoli and Isles" vs. "Body of Proof"

There are now quite a few women who feature prominently on crime/medical television shows. They are often presented as science brainiac types. Unfortunately, they often have flaws which are far less likely to be present in their male counterparts.

Some of these women are:
*Temperance Brennan (also called Bones) on the television show "Bones"
*Maura Isles on "Rizzoli and Isles"
*and now Megan Hunt on "Body of Proof"

All of these women are presented as being remarkably intelligent. Brennan is a brilliant forensic anthropologist who is better at analyzing bones than (it seems) anyone else in the world of criminal forensics. She is also extraordinarily socially inept, to the point of aspergers. She is also clueless about popular culture, which often makes her seem unintelligent. That is not to say that people who have aspergers or are unaware of popular culture are unintelligent, more often than not it's the exact opposite. But when it's presented on television things often seem black and white, and unfortunately all that shines through the screen is her relative stupidity.


On "Rizzoli and Isles" Dr. Isles plays the medical examiner. She is skilled at her job, and is presented as a kind-hearted woman (she attempts to comfort Detective Rizzoli by showing up at her apartment and offering to spend the night in a non-sexual way. I promise. Well, kind of. Actually, I think it's totally sexual, and so would a lot of viewers, but I don't think that's what the writers were going for. Here's my post on the topic). But Dr. Isles, like Dr. Brennan, lacks social skills, and is unable to read people. For instance, in one episode, involving very wealthy friends of hers she sides with the friends, instead of supporting Rizzoli, and doesn't understand why Rizzoli is hurt. She also doesn't understand why her own wealth is an issue. Seriously? This is a woman who is supposed to be one of the smartest women on television? And she doesn't understand conflicts about social economic status?



Megan Hunt is the newest woman to join the genre. Her show, "Body of Proof", premiered last week on ABC. The show is yet another crime procedural/medical/forensics show. Dr. Hunt is a spectacularly gifted neuroscientist who has had to give up her operating career due to a car-crash related injury. She is now working as a medical examiner (sound like anyone we know?), she is also socially awkward (wait...this sounds kind of familiar), and stated in the series premiere that she "doesn't have any friends". She often finds the key to the whole mystery, but she is unlikable every step of the way.

All of the flaws that these women have frustrate me. I realize that it wouldn't really be watchable television if they were flawless, but the type of flaws that they do have seem to put a damper on their remarkable intelligence. On "House" Dr. House is also an incredibly intelligent yet flawed character, however, his flaws serve to emphasize his intelligence (sure, he doesn't care about morals, but his ways of proving he doesn't care are brilliant schemes...for instance, last week he hid ragweed in Wilson's vents to make him think he was allergic to a cat that House disliked).

Unfortunately, "Body of Proof" is a "Bones"/"Rizzoli & Isles" copycat that lacks any spark. I'm watching "Bones" because it's witty, a little off-kilter, and because the leads have great chemistry. I'm watching "Rizzoli & Isles" because the crimes are interesting, Sasha Alexander is hot, and I'm secretly hoping the title characters will get together. I'm watching "Body of Proof" again tonight...because I want to give it another chance. But honestly, a poorly portrayed genius-yet-flawed female character? I've seen that too many times before. And at least before the show she was in had other things to offer.


"Body of Proof" normally airs on ABC on Tuesdays at 10 pm, but you can also often catch it on Sunday nights at the same time. In fact, it's on in about 3 hours! So, check it out, see if you agree with me, leave a comment etc.

p.s. I'm not going to go on a rant about this, but do you notice that all of the extra-smart women are brunettes? And look how similar their looks/hair length/poses are in those photos.

Thanks!

I really appreciate it! Stay tuned for my analysis of "Body of Proof", the new Dana Delany series.