The New Normal Pilot.- Page 2

[ljay889]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 3:01am

I was hoping for better, but I'll give it a chance. Bartha is a adorable. Rannell's displays every damn gay stereotype, but that's the fault of the writing. Barkin is funny, as expected. And it's fun to see NeNe in an acting role (I don't watch Glee)... hopefully she'll get more than one liners.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 8:40pm

I know I shouldn't have even read it--but BWW's "official" review of The New Normal was brilliant ad copy. Wow. Utterly fabulous? A modern All In the Family??

[Bettyboy72]

Posted: 8/31/12 at 11:34pm

It was cute, but groundbreaking, as they keep touting-NO. Not even close. If someone wants to make a cutting edge show about gay man, don't make them archetypes or stereotypes. Make them like anyone else.

Rannells character is pretty repellant. He pretty much personifies why people don't want gays to have children. He's horrendous.

Barkin is great and funny, but good God, talk about pandering to the gays. Let's make a boozy nasty mouthed diva for all the gays to gush over. I'm kinda over that whole Karen Walker moment too.

I think Bartha and Georgia King are just inspired and so delightful. Nene was surprisingly good. I was impressed with her organic acting. I thought she would stink.

I'm sick of gays living in Pottery Barn catalogs with oodles of disposable income. I'd like to see a gay couple that lives middle class like Roseanne's show and has friends over for chips and dip and cards.

It's far from ALL IN THE FAMILY and its really treading over Wil and Grace turf, so I dont see it as cutting edge other than the men cuddling and kissing.

I think people will invest in the characters and I think the show will be a big hit, but I hope they tighten it up some.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 12:03am

"Barkin is great and funny, but good God, talk about pandering to the gays. Let's make a boozy nasty mouthed diva for all the gays to gush over. I'm kinda over that whole Karen Walker moment too."

I love her, and I admit I found myself laughing at her persona despite myself, but it does seem to be something we're seeing too much of right now with these older, great actresses. As you say, it's pandering (while not a comedy, Jessica Lange is basically a gothic take on the same character, with the same shocking comments in American Horror Story, and while a much more sympathetic and likeable character, even Ellen Burnstyn seemed to fit that role in Political Animals). I suppose, in its way, it's not all that far from the campy older women in the 60s/70s Grande Dame Guignol horror subgenre.

I admit, Georgia King is just great on screen. I still find her character baffling (if the loser she had been with for 9 years was at least her daughter's father there could have been SOME explanation as to why she tried to make it work for so long), but she makes her material work.

[MrMidwest]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 12:51am

If Murphy wants to continue to write semi-interesting roles for seasoned actresses (that they can then hopefully springboard into more solid roles) like Barkin, I'm cool with that. Can he write one for Rebecca De Mornay next?

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 1:52am

From Ent Weekly's Fall TV predictions:

Biggest Mystery: NBCs The New Normal

When: Tuesdays at 9:30

Why: Two networks' polling data suggests the gay-friendly comedy, which one NBC station refuses to air, has the odds stacked strongly against it. Yet Ryan Murphy has twice in the last few years proved he can win viewers with a premise that some networks would say is too risky (Glee, American Horror Story). Whether a hit or a miss, expect pundits to make it sound like the comedys fate should have been obvious.

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 2:33am

Of course his characters change so wildly from episode to episode without any motivation that maybe Rannell's well be butch in episode 2 (actually, I can already imagine a "hysterical" episode where he decides he has to be more butch, and goes through the motions poorly, only to learn the life lesson that everyone should be who they are...).

He did this on Glee in season one with Kurt, I'm sure he'll do it here.

I watched the pilot, and it was alright - nothing to write home about or rave about, but serviceable and amusing. Yes, Andrew is playing stereotypical gay, and I agree with one of the above posters that he's essentially playing a less endearing and interesting version of Kurt Hummel, but many have made comparisons to how the couple on the New Normal feels like an adult version of Kurt and Blaine from Glee, so it's not surprising. Barkin was hilarious, Nene (like on this past season of Glee) is just such a ridiculous character that you can't help but enjoy, and the lead female and Justin Bartha are pretty adorable. I absolutely despise Ryan Murphy, what he's done on Glee has utterly repulsed me to the point of where I question why I still care and watch.

Ryan Murphy has this way of - at least to me, creating characters you want to root for - and then proceeding to show you every which way but up they can fail. He's made the character of Kurt on Glee a victim every single season, despite how much he self congratulates himself otherwise. How are young gay males suppose to feel represented when their supposed role model can't catch a god damn break? Ryan Murphy wouldn't know how to develop a character beyond mere seconds if he tried, and that's been proven time and time again on his shows - he creates characters, has no idea how to develop them, and simply let's them run around doing, saying, and acting however he feels at the moment.

I don't know how much effort I'll put into the New Normal, I'll give it a go for a bit, but honestly - his work in the past has put such a bad taste in my mouth, it's hard to want to even try and like a project he's involved with.

Updated On: 9/1/12 at 02:33 AM

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:00am

What I admit Ryan is good at, is creating concept--even basic character types to fill that concept. That's his strength.

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:53am

I think Ryan Murphy has ADHD or ADD, because the man cannot keep anything in check for more than two seconds. Yes, he's great at creating the atmosphere and the inhabitants of said atmosphere, but ask him to sustain that? He loses it and sends his characters basically running for the hills screaming. He's half baked beyond the original conception, because he gets new shiny toys to play with.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 7:28am

Absolutely--I think you put it mildly in fact, LOL. And what's even more annoying is how he comes across in interviews--like he's some brilliant auteur. But the ADHD works too--I swear on Glee there are way too many instances to count, where someone will say one thing early in the episode--usually to set up a joke or something, and then behave completely the opposite by the end (and from episode to episode is even more of a difference--if the same actor didn't play certain characters, you wouldn't know they were meant to be the same person).

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 3:51pm

I actually attended the Glee: Inside the Actor's Studio, and other than telling an overzealous fan that he can't please everyone and they need to take things as they come, he was obnoxious, pompous, and overall his ever charming self. His self congratulation level must be off the charts, because I'm almost positive he thinks he's the second coming or something, which is far from the truth.

Exactly - the show is so inconsistent and it hasn't gotten any better, plus you can tell the show is on autopilot and he could give a fvck what happens, but he's right there - out in the spotlight, chatting it up like he cares. The show deserves better than him, as do his characters. I have no zero hope for this upcoming season, and I fear what's ahead for the New Normal.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 3:57pm

God, yoere in the same room with him? How awful!

I remember the Ent Weekly cover story for, I believe Nip/Tuck season 5, where they had an extended piece with interviews with nearly everyone involved. And all the actors--as politely as possible, basically expressed how unhappy they were with the previous season, how they never knew how to play their scenes because their characters would change so wildly, etc--except for Murphy. Who was extremely defensive, basically blaming people who didn't like it for not appreciating his brilliance.

It would be nice if he would set Glee free completely, and see what happens. Even co-creator (who seems eternally kept in the shadows by Murphy's "personality" alone) Brad Falchuk's individual episoes have been better. They took Marti Noxon on as a story consultant and writer last year, and I was hoping maybe she'd be promoted as she at least has done some better TV work (ie showrunner on Season 6 of Buffy), but it sounds impossible to really get away from him.

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:03pm

I was - and to top it off? Lea Michele, too. The egos in that room, I tell ya. Oh, it's absolutely hilarious watching the Glee cast fake any type of enthusiasm for this upcoming season, because you can tell with everyone except the ever plastic Lea Michele that they are getting tired of how their characters are treated [see: Chris Colfer].

My sole issue with Brad is that when he does do interviews and speaks about the show, he tends to condescend to the fans and treat them like they're morons - at least, as of late. He happened to be at the Inside the Actor's Studio taping, not as a panel member, but he did talk a little from his seat in the audience. The new writers never stood a chance, because I honestly believe they were brought in to take the blame on the writing being so piss poor and misdirected, also I don't think they really grasped the show and how the characters tick, and adding their little bits only made the characters more bi-polar.

Updated On: 9/1/12 at 04:03 PM

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:09pm

“F--- you, Kings of Leon,” he says, raising the volume of his monotonal interview voice ever so lightly. “They’re self-centered assholes, and they missed the big picture. They missed that a 7-year-old kid can see someone close to their age singing a Kings of Leon song, which will maybe make them want to join a glee club or pick up a musical instrument. It’s like, OK, hate on arts education. You can make fun of Glee all you want, but at its heart, what we really do is turn kids on to music.”

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:11pm

Updated On: 9/1/12 at 04:11 PM

[Phyllis Rogers Stone]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:18pm

He just looks like he'd be an absoliute peach, doesn't he?

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:20pm

I did actually read some article that said that Brad F declined to speak for the piece, because he claimed he really did badly at interviews--so maybe he's aware how he comes off (unlike his co-creator...).

I'd never read that quote about Kings of Leon--though I knew the drama. Words fail me. Of course they have the right to not want their song used--although obviously that means that they hate all arts education or music in schools... Sigh.

[ClumsyDude15]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:20pm

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 9/1/12 at 4:46pm

And from what I've seen of The Glee Project, he wears that expression... ALL THE TIME.