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cjlasky7Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (available on Hulu and Sling TV)
Musicals are a special case of heightened reality. When simple words cannot adequately describe your feelings, music and dance lift you out of your dull, day-to-day conversation and into another realm, so your whole body can express your soul.
Screenwriter Austin Winsberg lost his father in 2011. His father succumbed to a rare form of cerebral palsy that left him unable to communicate with his family the year before his death. Winsberg wondered if there could have been some way to communicate with his father, to hear what he was thinking and feeling--a heightened reality. Winsberg thought of musicals.
This was the idea behind Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. Zoey Clarke gained the power to experience a person's innermost feelings through "heart songs"--Hollywood-style song and dance numbers only she could see. (Never mind how she got the power--that part was kind of silly...)
For the length of Season 1, Winsberg followed the downward path of Zoey's father, Mitch (Peter Gallagher), step by step in parallel with his own father's death ten years before. Through Zoey's gift, Mitch could express his love for his wife, Maggie (Mary Steenburgen); and when the time came, we could hear him say goodbye to his family in a way that honored their lives together.
[My own father never got to see his grandson before he died. So when Mitch sang Billy Joel's "Lullaby" to his unborn grandson, I nearly lost it completely.]
**************
In following the Clarkes through Mitch's illness and unflinchingly detailing his deterioration and death and its effect on the family, Winsberg hit almost every note perfectly. If this plot line had been the drama's primary focus, Season 1 could have gone down as an all time great.
But it wasn't. And the other running plotlines didn't quite work as well.
I think my main problem with s1 was when the writers shifted focus from the Clarke family to Zoey specifically as a character. Zoey (to me, at least) isn't a particularly well-rounded character at this point. She's bright, personable, and has a subtle, sarcastic wit--but she's primarily defined by her relationships to others, not by what she wants out of life. What does Zoey do when she's away from work and family? Does she have dreams bigger than SPRQ Point? Does she realize that her new power has opened up new possibilities for her future?
Zoey is unformed in a number of ways, and nowhere was that more obvious than her almost episode-by-episode vacillation between Max and Simon. First of all, she shouldn't have been thinking about starting an intimate relationship with a huge, traumatic family crisis hanging over her head. She really needed to step back and work through the crisis at hand. She'll have plenty of time to sort through what she wants in a relationship when the pain of Mitch's death subsides a little. (Plus: I don't think Zoey fully realizes her indecision is emotionally damaging to both guys.)
This is not Jane Levy's fault. The incomplete characterization and the romantic triangle hubbub were kind of baked into the character by Winsberg. It's also very difficult to be proactive when your main job in the big song and dance numbers is to get the hell out the way and let the pros work. It's no coincidence that my favorite episode was "Zoey's Extraordinary Glitch," when her power inverted itself and she compulsively sang and danced to everyone around her. (I still giggle thinking about "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"; the "little kid tip toe-ing" dance steps were hysterical.)
******************
OK, I complain, but overall, I was happy with Season 1. The musical numbers went a long way to papering over some of the rough spots. Mandy Moore's choreography was fantastic all the way through, and the regular cast and the guest stars (Bernadette Peters! Renee Elise Goldsberry!) were stacked with Broadway ringers, so everything looked and sounded top level. (Even non-singers like Levy, Steenburgen and Lauren Graham brought the right amount of emotion and enthusiasm.)
For Season 2 (cross your fingers), let's get more of Zoey's internal struggles (I want her to take charge of a big dance number!); more of the dynamic duo of Mary Steenburgen and Bernadette Peters; bigger and more awesome Broadway and/or pop stars (Patty Lupone? Chita Rivera? John Legend? Dream big!); and definitely more Mo (his backstory with the church choir was so much more interesting than his deal with Eddie).
Winsberg has said in interviews that some of my wish list is definitely in the works. Here's hoping he has the chance to pull it off.
Season One: B+
Musicals are a special case of heightened reality. When simple words cannot adequately describe your feelings, music and dance lift you out of your dull, day-to-day conversation and into another realm, so your whole body can express your soul.
Screenwriter Austin Winsberg lost his father in 2011. His father succumbed to a rare form of cerebral palsy that left him unable to communicate with his family the year before his death. Winsberg wondered if there could have been some way to communicate with his father, to hear what he was thinking and feeling--a heightened reality. Winsberg thought of musicals.
This was the idea behind Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist. Zoey Clarke gained the power to experience a person's innermost feelings through "heart songs"--Hollywood-style song and dance numbers only she could see. (Never mind how she got the power--that part was kind of silly...)
For the length of Season 1, Winsberg followed the downward path of Zoey's father, Mitch (Peter Gallagher), step by step in parallel with his own father's death ten years before. Through Zoey's gift, Mitch could express his love for his wife, Maggie (Mary Steenburgen); and when the time came, we could hear him say goodbye to his family in a way that honored their lives together.
[My own father never got to see his grandson before he died. So when Mitch sang Billy Joel's "Lullaby" to his unborn grandson, I nearly lost it completely.]
**************
In following the Clarkes through Mitch's illness and unflinchingly detailing his deterioration and death and its effect on the family, Winsberg hit almost every note perfectly. If this plot line had been the drama's primary focus, Season 1 could have gone down as an all time great.
But it wasn't. And the other running plotlines didn't quite work as well.
I think my main problem with s1 was when the writers shifted focus from the Clarke family to Zoey specifically as a character. Zoey (to me, at least) isn't a particularly well-rounded character at this point. She's bright, personable, and has a subtle, sarcastic wit--but she's primarily defined by her relationships to others, not by what she wants out of life. What does Zoey do when she's away from work and family? Does she have dreams bigger than SPRQ Point? Does she realize that her new power has opened up new possibilities for her future?
Zoey is unformed in a number of ways, and nowhere was that more obvious than her almost episode-by-episode vacillation between Max and Simon. First of all, she shouldn't have been thinking about starting an intimate relationship with a huge, traumatic family crisis hanging over her head. She really needed to step back and work through the crisis at hand. She'll have plenty of time to sort through what she wants in a relationship when the pain of Mitch's death subsides a little. (Plus: I don't think Zoey fully realizes her indecision is emotionally damaging to both guys.)
This is not Jane Levy's fault. The incomplete characterization and the romantic triangle hubbub were kind of baked into the character by Winsberg. It's also very difficult to be proactive when your main job in the big song and dance numbers is to get the hell out the way and let the pros work. It's no coincidence that my favorite episode was "Zoey's Extraordinary Glitch," when her power inverted itself and she compulsively sang and danced to everyone around her. (I still giggle thinking about "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"; the "little kid tip toe-ing" dance steps were hysterical.)
******************
OK, I complain, but overall, I was happy with Season 1. The musical numbers went a long way to papering over some of the rough spots. Mandy Moore's choreography was fantastic all the way through, and the regular cast and the guest stars (Bernadette Peters! Renee Elise Goldsberry!) were stacked with Broadway ringers, so everything looked and sounded top level. (Even non-singers like Levy, Steenburgen and Lauren Graham brought the right amount of emotion and enthusiasm.)
For Season 2 (cross your fingers), let's get more of Zoey's internal struggles (I want her to take charge of a big dance number!); more of the dynamic duo of Mary Steenburgen and Bernadette Peters; bigger and more awesome Broadway and/or pop stars (Patty Lupone? Chita Rivera? John Legend? Dream big!); and definitely more Mo (his backstory with the church choir was so much more interesting than his deal with Eddie).
Winsberg has said in interviews that some of my wish list is definitely in the works. Here's hoping he has the chance to pull it off.
Season One: B+
no subject
Date: 2020-05-08 06:48 am (UTC)First off, the caveat I mentioned in my recent post, that I've only see about five episodes of this show, not realizing it was a broadcast network effort, and so never looked for it in the early days. Thus, do take the following with that in mind.
I think a lot of people would be looking, consciously or unconsciously, for anything that takes their mind off of a serious family trauma. You are right in that ideally, they usually shouldn't, but... it seems very human to me, especially for someone as young as Zoey. The same goes with her indecision over the men she's attracted to.
There is the time factor to consider also. A year, or even several months, seems to stretch on and on and on in your mind with any illness of that type. Even an external illness, like the virus we're now dealing with, makes a single month or two seem far more stretched out and oppressive.
So... not sure I'd blame the character for her reactions.
*******
BTW, have you ever thought of reviewing professionally, like for a paper or a magazine? You're pretty darn good at it, you know-- clear, concise, and you get both the intellectual and emotional aspects of the subject equally well.
no subject
Date: 2020-05-08 08:28 pm (UTC)Maybe I should give the kid a break.
Considering it a little more, I think you're right. In fact, the terrible circumstances actually bring her close to Simon, whose still processing the grief over his own father. And if Mitch were okay, maybe she wouldn't want to lean on Max so hard.
I lost my father long after I was married. (I lost my mom when my boy turned 10.) So maybe I didn't have to reach out for companionship the way Zoey did. Maybe I shouldn't judge.
Still....
I'm reading comments from ZEP fans online, and they're already splitting into Team Simon and Team Max, and my hackles go up. "No!" I yell (at the wall, I guess), "That's not the point of the show!" Shippiness on BUFFY always aggravated me, even though it helped make the show popular. I don't want Season 2 to be about "which guy will Zoey choose?"--because that would literally be the least interesting use of the premise. Just like Buffy, I want to see Zoey grow and develop over the seasons, until she can defeat the First Evil with a full cast version of "Being Alive."
no subject
Date: 2020-05-08 09:08 pm (UTC)MITCH/FE: Curse you, Heartsinger! I cannot endure against such a soaring melody!
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Thanks for the compliment. My thinking is: if I'm going to actually post on a full season of a TV show, I might as well give the post about the show as much (relative) time as I spend watching it.
no subject
Date: 2020-05-08 09:59 pm (UTC)Also, for me? The family story worked really really well but the romances/work place bit did not, making me wonder if the writer didn't know what to do there? He obviously understood the Mitch situation, that's what inspired him, but everything else he was struggling with. Also the combo of the two story lines was kind of jarring, the Sparkpoint story felt a bit too much like satire, while the Mitch story line was heartwarming and compelling. The shift in tone felt off somehow.
For me - the killer song was The Day Music Died - that made me lose it. A very good cathartic cry.
As an aside - God, people are shipping Zoey and Max? Eww. Just Ewww. LOL! Although not surprised. People love to ship for television shows, even if there is no chance in hell of the two characters getting together and if they did so...it would be...well, hmm, out of character and destroy the structure of the story? (Example? People shipped Dean/Sam on Supernatural despite the fact that they are brothers biologically, although to be fair to them - the show kind of pushes the bro-romance. But I've seen other oddities. It is called slash shipping for that reason.)
no subject
Date: 2020-05-09 01:38 am (UTC)Am I wrong here?
*rimshot*
But seriously, folks....
I'm a lot more sympathetic toward Max than you are, mainly because I suffered through a Max-and-Zoey incident in my past. (If you want the details, I'll tell you the story, in private, the next time we're F2F.)
However, I will admit that Skyler Astin--despite owning an impressive set of pipes--might be lacking in the charisma department. He was in all three Pitch Perfect movies; I watched a good chunk of all three Pitch Perfect movies...
I completely forgot he was in those movies until last week.
***********
If Winsberg integrated the dark undertones of the Mitch plotline into the work and romantic triangle plotlines, would the season have worked better? On the other hand: would the series have picked up the following it has if it went darker? Maybe Winsberg (or the network) thought the audience needed some light musical fun to contrast the grim goings on elsewhere.
no subject
Date: 2020-05-09 02:26 am (UTC)I completely forgot he was in those movies until last week.
Yep. That was part of the problem. He was in Crazy Ex-Girlfriend as well, took over for the much more talented previous "Greg"/unrequited love interest in that series. And by the way it worked better. Crazy Ex is kind of about the whole unrequited love bit but from the female angle. His character in that series was far better developed and as a result he was more likable. Even though he did in some respects play a similar role - it just was written so much better. Crazy-Ex was written better on multiple levels. It was also really dark - it was satirical comedy/parody about romantic love and mental illness.
At any rate he was much better in that series than this one, but also lacked screen charisma. Simon on the other hand - has plenty of screen charisma.