Just watched the Michael J. Fox show -- pilot and first real episode, and also:

[capri0mni]

The show was pleasant to watch -- one pre-review of it that I heard on the radio, earlier this week, was that it "Wasn't as funny as it should be, considering..." but that it would likely grow into itself. I can kind of see where the reviewer was coming from, but on the other hand, two thoughts:

I don't really know if there should be a "should be" -- what was he expecting? The same sort of sitcom humor that was written into Spin City, thirteen years ago (I had to look up its original run on Wikipedia, I was sure it was more like 20 years ago)? Different character, different situation, different sort of humor...

And I'm pretty sure that the humor at the TABs' expense(s), where people gush about how "inspirational" and "brave" he is, went right over his able-bodied privileged head...

In other news (less well advertised, I only found out about it when I went onto NBC's website to double-check the info on the MJF show): NBC is also rebooting their old Ironside series, with Blair Underwood (able-bodied actor) in the titular role (so they can show him being a "normal" cop in flashbacks). The official premier is October 3, but they're previewing the entire first episode online. It follows your typical "Vigilante Cop" trope, but the self-pity is kept to a minimum, no whining for a cure, and no push handles on his chair. And in one scene, he's the first person to spot a key piece of evidence, because he's got a different line of sight than the other detectives, and I thought that was a nice touch. So I'll probably reward NBC with my eyeballs for a few more episodes, yet...

Comments

[gordon_r_d]

I don't tend to pay much attention to reviews of comedy stuff because humour and what people find funny is so subjective no review can be entirely accurate.

And why does he get to decide how funny somehting should be?

Anyways I enjoyed the first episode (got the second to watch still) and rather enjoyed it, a lot of that is entirely down to Michael J Fox who I@ve always liked. I though there was a nice range of humour and digs at things, although I did feel a bit guilty that I let out a big guffaw at the bit with the chair.

I wasn't sure wether to give Ironside a go* because I@ve already Elementary to scratch my crime solving itch, but will have a look at the first ep.

I've enjoyed this week's new shows so far, but I did roll my eyes heavily at a moment in NCIS:LA where yet again the threat of someone being disabled for the rest of their lives was used to get answers.

I loved Elementary, a lot of it due to the two guest stars who I'm a fan of and I@m really liking Sleepy Hollow so far. Most of the urban fantasy stuff has passed me by but I tried it out and it's fun.

* - a tiny part of this may be that I burst out laughing every time I hear the old Ironside theme tune due to a silly video I saw ages ago. I don't even need to be in the same room, as my parents found out.

[capri0mni]

We need to pull Robert Ironside from his fictiverse and sic him on the NCIS: LA writers...

NCIS original gets Disability Issues so much more right than a lot of other TV, it baffles me how much more wrong a spin-off can get.

I don't even remember if New Ironside has theme music... I know it has a long cold open. May have to go back and listen for it.

[butterflydreaming]

I watched and like the Michael J. Fox show, too. It's promising to me that I got an out-loud laugh at "We were beaten by Color Splash. That's literally watching paint dry!" I chuckled a lot because it's a little snarky but not mean, a little trope-y but not pre-fabricated. A fair amount of the humor is the joke that MJF is "an inspiration." I like that the girl's teacher called her out on that.

As for Fox, he's adorable. As a kid, I watched him in Family Ties & had a tiny crush on him; he's always charmed me; he's so charismatic. I think that the writing is pretty good.

My dude was a fan of the old Ironside & has been saying good things about this new one.

[capri0mni]

I like that the girl's teacher called her out on that.

Yeah, me too.

My laugh out loud bit was the hat thing.

I'm not really a fan of the "Cop not afraid to break the rules" trope in general, but what this Ironside does, it does well (and it's a lot more believable, now, to have everywhere he goes be wheelchair-accessible than it was for Raymond Burr in 1967 XD).