This isn't very funny Friday Fun, unless it's in the 'so bad it's good' way. I present, for your viewing displeasure, one of many dramatic karaoke moments from the new CBS series Viva Laughlin. You see, they break into song in this program...but not original tunes. Instead we have truncated (read: heavily edited) classics from Presley (Viva Las Vegas), Blondie (One Way Or Another), BTO (Let It Ride), and The Stones (Sympathy For The Devil).
Now it didn't help that Sympathy is one of my all time, I mean ALL TIME, fav songs. So to see it butchered with edits just so they could get to the line: "Pleased to meet you, hope you guessed my name..." sooner really turned me off. But the sing-a-longs aren't the only reason why this show SUCKS. It, like Pushing Daisies (there, I said it), has a long list of problems.
Highly hyped yet overrated, they're both limited mediocre feature or TV movie premises posing as tee-vee series with legs. Except they got no legs...they got gimmick. Hell, Daisies has shot its wadd already...episode 3 was practically a bottle show. Can you say 'repetitive'?
Both shows had big splashy pilots with spectacular sets and fantastically colourful feature-like sequences dazzled up with dollies and steadicams --- not to mention dancing and songs or wall to wall music and narrators (please, someone...SHUT HIM UP!).
It's all smoke and mirrors to cover up laughingly predictable mysteries and simplistic storytelling chock full of either incredibly lame or 'Look, aren't we clever!' dialogue. They're cutesy peanut brittle drivel posing as 'original' drama to mask superficial and insensitive looks at love and dreams, life and death.
I'm just getting started....but it's Friday, and this was supposed to be fun. I'll continue my rant another day.
:)
12 comments:
Oh you poor man. You're just so wrong about Pushing Daisies it hurts :) Not at all about Viva Laughlin though.
The funniest thing about Viva Laughlin was the fact that they play the original (although truncated) version of the song, while actor sort of half-sings, buried low in the mix.
It's like they couldn't decide if they should go full-on karaoke or just play the song and have the people dance but not sing.
I was embarrassed for them while I watched.
I had almost convinced myself that the 3rd broadcast episode of Pushing Daisies was meant, by the creators of the show, to be the 2nd episode. . .except then I remembered that they worked off of the whole touching her through plastic won't kill her trick.
But yeah, I agree that the 3rd episode was kind of repetitive and semi-weak compared to the first two episodes.
I do like the cutesiness and Tim Burtoness of the show, though.
I'm afraid you may have to get used to Pushing Daisies being around. It's the only new show that's really good.
You won't be watching it, but the rest of us will.
You nailed it Callaghan..."What should we do? What should we do?!" I dunno, so let's go halfway and hope people who like it notice and those who don't, don't.
Diane and Emily, I'd love to be wrong. But in your desperate quest to find some new show to like, I think you're cutting it way to much slack. I predict all of it will come crashing down when you fall asleep during episode 5 because of repetitive narration and nothing's really happening plus you're starting to wonder how two people can spend every waking moment together and not even once accidentally touch.
Hrrrumph.
I missed Laughlin last night for the season ender of Mad Men (sadly, I have a one-channel cable box and no TIVO) but I do want to catch an episode Sunday... thanks for the dose of Stones
Yeah, the whole not touching by accident issue has gotten annoying, especially since they've been very close to each other.
"Your desperate quest to find some new show to like"
Wow. That's a bit insulting and patronizing, don't you think? You're implying that you know what I like better than I do.
It's fine if you don't like the show. You don't have to watch it. I'll be watching it and enjoying it and so will many others. If it gets repetitive, so be it. But right now I like it, and I will continue to like it unless I don't.
Yeah, I'm with Emily on this Will. I love it, you don't, don't judge. If I couldn't suspend disbelief I wouldn't be watching TV at all. If formula could kill a show, CSI and House wouldn't be at the top of the ratings. I love that it's getting into the ethics of Chuck's powers, and the love triangle, and the motivations of not only the killers but the victims and don't find it repetitive yet.
You don't seem to have liked it from the start, but before it even aired, the Pushing Daisies critics have been pontificating on how the pilot might be great, but it won't last, because of budget, or lack of stories, or whatever. Meanwhile, despite its whimsy that could never be to everyone's taste, it's one of the most successful shows of a not-so-successful new season. The audience is obviously planning to judge based on what's actually on the air rather than what might be in the future.
Will,
When did you get into shouting down those who disagree with you? Some are going to like shows that you don't, and vice versa. Do you see us mocking you, saying that you're "desperate" to watch a show? No.
Pushing Daisy has it's market and I guess that you are not it. Same with Moonlight and Friday Night Lights. I'm still watching FNL even though I'd say that it has a pretty shaky start to the second season....
... hope that you don't tell me to stop being so desperate too just b/c of FNL, or liking Chuck or Life.
Jun
By "Chuck's powers" of course I meant "Ned's powers." You got me so mad I mixed up my genders :)
Looks like America agreed with us about Viva Laughlin:
"Laughlin" is the lowest-rated new scripted series premiere of the season among the big four broadcast networks. The show fell 63 percent from lead-in "CSI" to post a 2.4 preliminary rating among adults 18 to 49. Moreover, "Laughlin" lost 31 percent of its demo rating in its second half hour and was the night's lowest-rated program on the major nets. Among total viewers, the song remains the same-8.8 million, down 58 percent from "CSI."
CBS is going to wait until after Sunday night’s “Laughlin” airing in the show’s regular time slot before making any decisions about its fate. But if you’re working on the show, you might want to stop payment on the boat.
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