Time for another round of “Is It Worth My Time?” Now that we’re well into summer and a number of new shows have aired, we can start assessing which ones are worth the time. (And is it just me or does it seem like there is not a lot of downtime with all the shows this summer? I need all the time I can get to keep up.)
Mystery Girls (ABC Family)–
I am not sure of my feelings on one of ABC Family’s latest forays into comedy, reuniting Beverly Hills 90210 co-stars Jennie Garth and Tori Spelling in this bubble gum and Barbie-colored series about two former starlets who become private investigators. The series doesn’t make complete sense (a friend of mine wonders if they are perhaps airing the show out of order, which would explain why characters and plot lines are not being well-established or explained), but there’s something oddly endearing about it. Charlie (Garth) is the more buttoned up straight shooter while Holly (Spelling) is a self-absorbed, but well-meaining airhead. It’s hard to imagine them being friends in real life, but there’s still a nice push and pull to their relationship (Charlie is not always the one who has the answers and Holly surprises everyone with moments of real intuition). I certainly would not put this show on par with comedies like How I Met Your Mother, Modern Family, Friends, etc., but I am still finding it enjoyable nonetheless.
Verdict: No award-winner, but a good time.
Young & Hungry (ABC Family)–
Emily Osment (Hannah Montana‘s bubbly Lily Monroe/Lola Luftnagle) is all grown up and playing an aspiring chef who gets hired as a personal chef to a rich entrepreneur. Gabby is not particularly competent (she can cook well, but she’s sort of incompetent at all thing’s life), creating drama where drama isn’t needed. Gabby is sort of uber-cheerful to the point where, though the crazy colored wigs are a thing of the past, it is clear that being a Disney kid has clearly left its mark on Osment, yet she is still funny and charming. The series also has some other familiar faces with bonafide comedy credits—Rex Lee (Suburgatory) and Kym Whitley (Sister, Sister)—which is always fun to see. Like Mystery Girls, the series has charm and potential, but isn’t quite there yet.
Verdict: May not be appointment TV, but worth the time.
Finding Carter (MTV)-
Remember that book (and movie), The Face on the Milk Carton? I was always fascinated by that story, not as much by the first book as what came after. How does someone handle discovering that everything they have ever known is a lie? That the people who raised her are not her parents, but that they actually stole her from her real parents? This is what Carter (formerly known as Linden) must deal with when a chance encounter with the police reveals that she was kidnapped when she was three years old. Despite this knowledge, Carter has a hard time letting go of the the loving mother she was raised by for the uptight, stiff mother who birthed her. The show explores everyone in the family, from the confused Carter to the siblings she never knew and who spent their lives in in the shadow of her absence, from her detective mother who could not solve the mystery of her disappearance to the father who capitalized on her kidnapping by writing a bestseller about the experience. Hopefully Finding Carter can become the network’s second successful drama series. (I want it to pave the way for the success of The Elfstones of Shannara.)
Verdict: A lot of promise.
Dominion (SYFY)–
Syfy has certainly started embracing butts. Until Bitten, nudity was something I do not think I had seen on the channel at all, but with that series, and now Dominion, such chastity might be a thing of the past. (Which is not to say they have gone to embrace the HBO style nudity of True Blood or Game of Thrones. I think that is a long way off.) This series, about a guy who discovers he is the Chosen One meant to save humanity in their war against God’s angels, leaves something to be desired. Alex and Claire, the central characters (and couple, of course), simply do not draw me in the way similar characters in their position have. I also hate to say it, but that is the least cute child I can ever think of seeing on TV. (Reminds me of that Friends scene where Rachel and Ross are looking at pictures of babies at the doctor’s office.) The one light in this otherwise dim series is the tension between sibling angels Michael (who champions the humans) and Gabriel (who seeks to destroy mankind), and Uriel (who appears to be playing both sides).
Verdict: If you love sci-fi, it might be worth it. If not, you’re not missing anything.
The Last Ship (TNT)–
In this post-apocalyptic thriller, a naval vessel emerges from radio silence after a long mission to discover that most of the world’s population has been wiped out by a deadly virus. It turns out, their long mission was actually a cover for the scientist on board, who has the best chance of developing a cure, to collect samples of the disease’s original strain. But things are complicated—supplies are low, enemy threats are high, and time is running out. The best thing about this series is that it brings McSteamy back to our screens, even if Eric Dane’s Commander Chandler is less charming than our dearly departed Marc Sloane. It’s not his fault that he is happily married with kids and has to be in charge and more aloof. What this series needs is to delve deeper into the histories and personalities of the main characters. If they can do that, the series could really pick up.
Verdict: Well, not as exciting as I was hoping for, but not bad.
What do you think TV watchers? What new TV shows have caught your attention?
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