Smash..

[shadowkat]

Just finished watching the third episode of SMASH - Enter Joe Dimaggio...and this show continues to rock. It's great. Refreshing. New. Wonderful songs. Wonderful performances. Fun. Yeah, it's possibly cliche in places but no more so than anything else that I've watched.

I'm surprised it's as good as it is. Wasn't expecting it to be. Was expecting something more mediocre like Glee.

So far the best new series of this year are Revenge, Once Upon a Time and Smash - all female focused.
Theresa Rebeck is really putting a feminist spin on Smash, the female characters are strong.
And the politics of showbiz on target. Finally figured out where I'd seen the actor playing Derek Willes, the Director, before - Coupling. He played Steven on Coupling (the role that Stephen Moffat based on himself). I loved him in that and I love him in this.

If you like musicals and haven't tried this? You really should. It's that good.

Comments

[buffyannotater.livejournal.com]

Otoh, it's on NBC, so it has a much better chance of lasting. Success has to be graded on a curve there or...they'd have no shows, heh. Also, each season (if it lasts) is going to be a self-contained arc about the production of a different Broadway show, with only some characters carrying over year to year, so even if it isn't renewed, we should get a complete story. With the amount of money NBC pumped into the show (and some high-profile actresses and actors not only on the series now but appearing in future arcs), it's highly doubtful they won't at least air all 15 episodes of the first season.

[shadowkat67.livejournal.com]

Thank you. You articulated what I was thinking as well.

I've found that I don't really pay close attention to ratings any longer...partly because the expansion of cable, increased use of DVR's and Tivos, as well as DVD and itunes purchases has changed how ratings can be realistically viewed. They are only one part of the picture that advertisers and marketers as well as networks utilize to determine the long-term viability of a tv series.

Demographics is in important. Critical response.
Number of songs downloaded on itunes. Cross-marketing potential. Price of the series. Whether it can build on word of mouth. And what channel it's on.

You really can't tell if a show will live or die on ratings alone. If you could? Ringer wouldn't have lasted more than two episodes. And Grim would have been canceled.