Oh my god RIGHT?!? I'm sick of the Grey's Anatomy style on various other soapy dramas that don't get the intelligence of Grey's or the witty banter between interesting characters right while getting all the annoying melodrama between stuck-up self-centered jerks who are way too busy either trying to seduce one another or trying to avoid their personal issues by acting in completely inappropriate, sex-in-the-clinic-style ways.
That said, I really liked this show. I mean really, REALLY liked it. I'm finally watching it and you know what? It's way better than I thought it would be.
I just think ABC is super formulaic and it prevents the characters from really getting a fair shake or the opportunity to be more than just one-note, stereotypical imitations of characters that anyone who's watched a Shonda Rimes soap opera disguised as a drama has already seen.
I also thought the location complete with the many opportunities it presented for cross-cultural mingling and mix-ups was fantastic; I thought that some of the characters, particularly the younger guy, were surprisingly compelling; I thought that Ben even with his awful irritating traits made for a better compelling leading male character than McDreamy ever will, at least to me.
I thought that had the show been given the opportunity to spread its wings more it would have done so; I also thought it was crippled at the start a bit.
Each of Shonda Rimes' other shows was headlined by very experienced actresses and actors. Most of the leads in 'Grey's' had already had leads either in major motion features or in tv shows that lasted over a year when they started acting on the show; they were an experienced, well-cast, quickly gelled-together group.
This show was populated mostly with unknowns; that one guy was from Grey's, but he was only on there for a short time. Dr. Clark's actress had the most interesting career beforehand that I've read about, and even that was pretty minor parts in major films. They were all given a not-decent script to work with for that first episode plus the characters they were playing-the white Americans, that is-were all so obnoxious with the exception of Dr. Clark that had I been Dr. Z I would have strangled them all then thrown them in a taxi back to America myself.
Not to mention, c'mon-no more skinny brunettes [I don't care what you say, Shonda Rimes, Ellen Pompeo is a brunette] with bizarrely excellent surgical skills and an intuitive bedside manner who falls for all the wrong men and/or her boss. I am SO SICK of that storyline it's amazing-and the dead fiancee bit combined with the 'in love with her older-and occupied with a complicated-but-loving relationship with a fellow colleague' bit makes this whole story arc feel derivative of early 'House' Cameron with House with Cuddy. Stealing plots=BAD.
HOWEVER, had the show been slightly cast differently [I think Lily had she been intended to be and stay the center of this show, as she surely seems to be] needed to be a more experienced, more charismatic, more down-to-Earth seeming character-which to me comes with different casting primarily] I think it would have had a fighting chance. I also think they needed to make better use of the scenery in a more than 'someone's stuck on the far side of the island/the ocean/in a mind shaft/in an underwater cave' kind of way.
Oh, and they all needed to start learning friggin' Spanish, prento por favor.
Plus....it would be nice if they could have some more NORMAL problems to mix up the insanity. Y'know-someone steals someone else' shampoo [trust me, this leads to major fights among high-strung roommates-which both these women clearly are], someone's pickin' out a dress trying to impress the boss and gets caught.
NORMAL fights, of the type Meredith has with Christina and with her housemates, which in my opinion keeps that show grounded enough to carry it through some of the less-than-stellar plotlines.
Also, you know, less sex or even references to sex around the "sterile" equipment.
reply
share