TV REVIEW: COSMOS [FOX]

IN TWEET: “COSMOS” IS AN EARNEST AND AMBITIOUS EXPERIMENT BY FOX. IT SWINGS FOR THE FENCES BUT FAILS TO SOAR.

I’m an unabashed science and space geek. That’s why I got so excited at the prospect of an updated take on the classic Carl Sagan series COSMOS. Even better, Fox was going to do something unheard of: air the series in prime on Sunday nights. While the network gets an “A” for effort, this version of COSMOS left me cold.

The opening hour was a disjointed affair that seemed to function as little more than six potential introductions for whatever direction the rest of the series decides to go in. There was the obligatory tour of planets and our solar system, an overlong animated segment dedicated to Giordano Bruno and quite a bit of intrusion by host/narrator Neil deGrasse Tyson. It all felt a little too random and a little too surface. I get the point of a set-up installment but, a pilot episode of any kind can’t be rudderless and drive long term viewership.

I like Dr. Tyson quite a bit (check out the excellent NOVA episode “The Pluto Files” if you’re not yet familiar with him) but, as our COSMOS tour guide, I kept wishing he’d get out of the way and let the visuals tell the story. Even worse, someone thought it would be a great idea to drop Dr. Tyson into a cheesy green screen holodeck for our journey through space and time. It felt more EPCOT than epic. That the exterior of this “ship of the imagination” looks like a cross between Queen Amidala’s Royal Starship and a suppository, doesn’t help matters any.

Production values are fine but surprisingly unremarkable. Save for a stunning (and all too brief) zoom-in on Jupiter’s Great Red Spot, it’s nothing you haven’t seen before. There were also some questionable choices in the locations department. Why, for instance, would you send Dr. Tyson to Italy and then limit him to wandering around what looked like back alley parking lots?

Seth MacFarlane is on board as one of the series executive producers which is why, I suspect, there are several extended animation sequences. I’m all for getting rid of silly re-enactments but, switching out low-rent live action with low-rent cartoons doesn’t render a sequence any more effective. In fact, where the story of Giordano Bruno is concerned, it ended up trivializing what could have been a compelling account of the conflict between science and religion. It’s an age-old battle that still rages to this day. It certainly would have given the lunatic fringe something else to whine about aside from President Obama’s brief on-air intro.

I hate to come down too hard on COSMOS because we certainly need more intelligent programming on television, especially in broadcast prime. Still, I can’t  give the series a pass just because it’s a peg that fills a hole. By no means is COSMOS terrible. It still has a dozen episodes to find its footing and make up for the missed opportunities in hour one. I’ll certainly check out the next few installments but I’m already lowering my expectations.

COSMOS airs Sundays at 9PM E/P on Fox and re-airs Mondays at 10PM E/P on the National Geographic Channel.

RONTHINK GRADE: B-

CLIPPED/SE: NEW FALL SERIES [FOX]

IN TWEET: IT’S ANOTHER SPECIAL UPFRONTS EDITION OF “CLIPPED” FEATURING EXTENDED TRAILERS FOR NEW SERIES COMING THIS FALL. UP TODAY IS FOX.

This is one of the shakiest slates I’ve seen from FOX in awhile. There’s one buzzy re-imagining here that might generate some numbers (hint: it’s pictured above) and a surprisingly funny rip-off of…er…I mean, homage to STRIPES but the rest of the lot runs the gamut from utterly conventional to outright wretched.

Again, because networks will continue to tweak and refine their new offerings, I am not going to include much specific schedule information. Like the NBC post yesterday, this list includes only new Fall series. We’ll cover the FOX midseason newbies at a later date.

ALMOST HUMAN

ALMOST HUMAN looks like castoff bits of ROBOCOP, DOLLHOUSE and “insert name of mismatched partners cop show here” were thrown into a blender and then reconstituted by the JJ Abrams TV assembly line. It’s clear that Abrams’ attentions are more on the big screen of late and his television efforts have suffered because of it. FRINGE left me cold and REVOLUTION is lucky to be on NBC or it would have (and should have) been given a mercy killing.

I love Karl Urban and Lili Taylor but little else in this promo jumped out at me. Zero humor, zero chemistry between the leads and visuals that look almost SyFy cheap.

VERDICT: FOX has found its new TERRA NOVA. That’s not something to brag about.  NOTE: the trailer for ALMOST HUMAN was pulled from the official FOX YouTube channel on 5/15/13 because of a “copyright complaint” by the studio that produces the show for FOX. Yes, that’s bizarre but, trust me, you’re not missing much.

 

SLEEPY HOLLOW

SLEEPY HOLLOW picked up the clue phone that ALMOST HUMAN ignored. We’ve got another fantastical take on the mismatched buddy cop drama but this one is quite intriguing. Kudos, too, for a cop show with a non-white female in one of the two lead roles. Maybe FOX has a new Mulder and Scully (with a 2013 makeover)?

Ichabod Crane is no longer a gangly nebbish. Instead, he’s a hotsy Colonial who has the misfortune of being revived in present day Sleepy Hollow. Not only does he hold the key to saving humanity (as hotsy Colonials, recently revived from a 250 year slumber, so often do), some doofus also woke up the Headless Horseman. Not only does this make for a potentially raucous good versus evil battle across time, it’s the perfect excuse to jazz up an already great promo with a really good beheading.

VERDICT: A promising cast of relatively new faces, an A-list production pedigree and what looks like a beautifully produced hour that doesn’t take itself too seriously, this could emerge as a sleeper hit (my bad pun not withstanding) against unscripted fare on NBC and ABC . It should at least score some decent sampling.

NOTE: YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO VIEW THIS VIDEO FROM ANY DESKTOP OR LAPTOP BROWSER. SOME MOBILE BROWSERS, HOWEVER, DO NOT SUPPORT VIDEO PLUG-INS. IF THAT IS THE CASE, CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO THE VIDEO AND OPEN IN YOUR YOU TUBE APP.

 

BROOKLYN NINE-NINE

BROOKLYN NINE-NINE has a lot going for it. It’s got folks from 30 ROCK and the criminally under-watched PARKS & RECREATION behind it. The talented ensemble cast features Andy Samberg, Andre Braugher, Terry Crews and Joe Lo Truglio, among others. It should be a slam dunk but the promo is dishwater dull and distressingly short on laughs (other than a few uncomfortable  pity chuckles). That doesn’t bode well for a comedy. My worry button is pressed pretty hard by the apparent lack of any on-screen sparks between Samberg and Braugher. 

VERDICT: Samberg has a following (me included) but I’m not sure they’ll stick with him if the humor he has aced in countless digital shorts doesn’t translate to a half=hour weekly. This promo runs under four minutes but it felt much longer. I kept fidgeting and waiting for that “oh yeah, this will be funny” payoff. It never came. Looks iffy, especially in a tough time slot with a weak lead-in (see next entry). I hope I’m wrong.

NOTE: YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO VIEW THIS VIDEO FROM ANY DESKTOP OR LAPTOP BROWSER. SOME MOBILE BROWSERS, HOWEVER, DO NOT SUPPORT VIDEO PLUG-INS. IF THAT IS THE CASE, CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO THE VIDEO AND OPEN IN YOUR YOU TUBE APP.

 

DADS

Oh dear! Where to begin with this stinkeroo? DADS looks so bad, it makes the cancelled TV Land crap fest RETIRED AT 35 seem positively brilliant by comparison. It looks so bad, I’d rather sit through a SMALL WONDER marathon than an episode of DADS. It looks so bad, if DADS didn’t come from the Seth MacFarlane tree house, it would never have gone to pilot.

Seth Green, Martin Mull and Giovanni Ribisi (my favorite Scientologist who isn’t Kirstie Allie) all deserve better than this. I don’t dislike MacFarlane (he was the only good thing about the Oscars this year) but I’m not in his “OMG! He’s, like, wicked f-in funny all the time” fan club. Even if you are a fan, I defy you to watch this promo and tell me you are jazzed about adding DADS to your DVR playlist.  I’m not easily offended, but the scene with the Asian employee made me embarrassed for all parties concerned.

VERDICT: Barring any schedule shuffling, it’s a crappy show in a crappy timeslot. Reality fans have THE BIGGEST LOSER on NBC, oldies and the undemanding flock to NCIS on CBS and ABC is launching what could be the hottest show of the Fall season: MARVEL’S AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. That leaves scraps for DADS. Only a miracle (and/or the need to kiss the ring of Seth MacFarlane) will save this.

NOTE: YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO VIEW THIS VIDEO FROM ANY DESKTOP OR LAPTOP BROWSER. SOME MOBILE BROWSERS, HOWEVER, DO NOT SUPPORT VIDEO PLUG-INS. IF THAT IS THE CASE, CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO THE VIDEO AND OPEN IN YOUR YOU TUBE APP.

 

ENLISTED

Wait! A comedy that looks funny? How did that slip in here?

ENLISTED certainly owes a thing or two to STRIPES but that’s not a ding. This was the FOX pilot I was the least excited about but, the trailer took me totally by surprise. It has humor to spare and quite a bit of charm, to boot. ENLISTED looks just arch enough for the network but it is clearly swinging for a mass audience. Sure, the three brothers look NOTHING alike and there is the distinct possibility that all of the good gags are shown here. Still, I’d rather bet money on a comedy promo that makes you laugh than the two previous ones that don’t.

VERDICT: It’s marooned on Friday nights and has the aging RAISING HOPE as a lead in but, it’s the only comedy in the timeslot. Even if it does marginal numbers, ENLISTED could find its way to a full season pick-up and renewal by FOX. Big potential.

NOTE: YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO VIEW THIS VIDEO FROM ANY DESKTOP OR LAPTOP BROWSER. SOME MOBILE BROWSERS, HOWEVER, DO NOT SUPPORT VIDEO PLUG-INS. IF THAT IS THE CASE, CLICK HERE FOR A LINK TO THE VIDEO AND OPEN IN YOUR YOU TUBE APP.