Techtite.com: TV reviews

What went so wrong here? Wasn't this series done by the same folk who did that other "decade flashback" sitcom? Well, yeah...however, unlike That 70's Show, this series had some major hurdles. Mistake number one: it didn't have teenagers as its core characters; a major letdown, when the 1980's were the birth of teenage pop culture icons galore: MTV, John Hughes movies, cheaply made thrillers, and teenager-oriented sales pitches by the basketful. So, what does this sitcom want to cover? Beats me; the pilot episode was a total mish-mash of sitcom ideas, only a few of which belong in the 1980's at all. This includes a music store manager right out of the 1960's, and her new employee, whose punk rocker image is supposed to salute 1984, though winds up saluting 1994 instead. D'oh!

The lead character of the series is Corey (Glenn Howerton), who --as the official web site for this show summarizes-- is "a creative soul who is trying to make it in the music world in a decade that only appreciates financial success." I know it's been a long while since MTV aired music videos, though for a show set in 1984, this is pure bunk. Look at all the singers in the '80s whose careers began in little more than shopping malls, including Debbie Gibson and Tiffany. It was also the era of musical sales jingles. When Corey is (briefly) employed by his dad (Geoff Pierson), neither of them consider this...?

Okay, so the main character's goals in life need a little work; how about the other characters? Well, there are some saving graces; particularly the punk-rock-loving Tuesday (Chyler Leigh, shown at the top of this review). As soon as she loses the ridiculous, one-joke visual gag of her spiked hair, I can see good things for this wise-talking, take-no-prisoners character. Likewise for Corey's flighty sister, Katie (Tinsley Grimes), who takes a head-on flirtation with her brother's bisexual ex-girlfriend with a giggle and a "Well, gee, yeah...thanks for dropping by!"

Of course, it never harms a series to have a blonde bombshell in the mix, who in this case is the bisexual vamp, Sophia (Brittany Daniel). Rounding out this series female talent is Margaret Smith as Corey's music store boss, who delivers her lines in the same comical monotone that made her standup routines such cult hits.

If only these actors had material that was funny. Most of the aforementioned actresses would clearly know where to go with their roles, if the scriptwriters weren't so lost. Other actors --like main star Howerton-- have it even worse. This goes double for Corey's friend Roger (Eddie Shin), who has been made into this show's Republican rodeo clown (no offense to Shin; I'm sure he's just doing his best with the role they gave him). Roger idolizes Reagan, lusts over corporate America, listens to motivational cassettes, and is thrown in each scene as if to say, "Oh, what a fool am I." In the real 1980's, when Michael J. Fox played Alex P. Keaton on Family Ties, a similar character would be played with a strong yet subtle blend of political humor. This show's writers have no such perspective, so Roger just looks pathetic.

The truest form of a flawed show are the number of places you can see that the series ripped-off better scripts. Look at Corey --a 1980's musician, working at a record store, who recently broke up with his girlfriend-- and see shades of both High Fidelity and The Wedding Singer. As for all the drug references in the background, they seem like the writers are stealing lines from some bad Cheech & Chong movie. In the more sober world of 2002, these scenes seem the stupidest. So why include them...? In one interview, one of the series co-creators mused that each scene in or near a restroom will have the sound of cocaine being in use, because that's what he heard "every time" he went to the restroom. Geez, pal; where did you hang out during the 1980s? I know there's the occasional brain-melted yuppie, who claims that drugs were "everywhere," though such illegal, underground hangouts were HARDLY the type of dance clubs you'd casually take your dad and kid sister to, like some happy go lucky scene from Happy Days. Get serious.

This show's creators, believe it or not, are veterans in the field of popular sitcoms...which is half the puzzlement here. Producers Marcy Carsey and Tom Werner seem totally ignorant of the era, yet they made two of the biggest 1980's sitcoms of the whole decade: The Cosby Show (1984) and Roseanne (1989). Yet as successful as they were back in the day, they aren't terribly successful now, which might be half the point. Maybe the message here is that sitcoms in 2002 demand "more" and that former 1980's sitcom heavyweights can't hack it. Or perhaps this sitcom is more bitter than comical for a simpler reason: the sitcom quite plainly sucks.

Regardless, these producers may luck out for one reason alone; the series' Wednesday at 8 time slot pits it meekly against some of the biggest Nielsen lightweights currently on network TV. I wouldn't be surprised if this series heralds itself as the best show Wednesday night, though I would be even less surprised if a guppy, in a pond of rainwater, flexed it's little fins over being the "biggest fish" in the pond. It's the same difference.

	Final Rating : Near Miss. If the series is nurtured by those who truly lived the era with a clear head, maybe it will succeed. If not, it will probably be cancelled two days after I post this review!
For more on this site's ratings system, click here.

Got a review you'd like to share? Techtite will post 2 of the best "guest" reviews received for any product, online, for all the world to see!

All text, Title graphics, and pix not of reviewed products, are created by Techtite, copyright 1999-2001; all rights reserved. Screen captures of program reviewed are used only for the purpose of review, and by no means represents any affiliation with Techtite and the distributors of this entertainment product. For further "legalese" & disclaimers, click here...

Techtite's TV Reviews!

That 80's Show

A Review by Techtite