Category Archives: Pilot Reviews

Review’s of pilot episodes of a series.

Masters of Sex (Pilot)

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Masters of SexRoze-Verdict: Its premise will attract viewers for all the right reasons, it’s a 50’s period piece exploring social themes of that era, with Mad Men coming to an end soon this may be the perfect series to turn to for our 50s – 60s cravings.

The series follows protagonists Dr. William Masters and Virginia Johnson who we know in present day as the pioneers of human sexuality. Based on the biography by Thomas Maier “Masters of Sex: The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson, the Couple Who Taught America How to Love”, we are taken on their journey as the duo risk their reputation and careers for science.

Starring;

  • Michael Sheen as William H. Masters
  • Lizzy Caplan as Virginia E. Johnson
  • Caitlin Fitzgerald as Libby Masters
  • Teddy Sears as Dr. Austin Langham
  • Nicholas D’Agosto as Dr. Ethan Haas
  • Beau Bridges as Provost Barton Scully
  • Allison Janney as Margaret Scully, Scully’s wife

The premise is entertaining, exploring a subject that almost everyone is curious about except it is taken from a time where sex was taboo, only meant for love and creating life. This makes it a hell of a lot more interesting and thought provoking as we get a genuine insight on the ideologies that society had given women and men about family, love and sex.

The title itself would attract enough viewers to make this successful because sex sells I suppose, as we all have our inner pervert. I’m happy to say that my genitalia did not have any input in watching the pilot (a first). I wasn’t surprised to find that it was a great pilot keeping me interested and entertained til the very end. It has a lot of potential and I’m looking forward to binge watching the rest of the season once it ends next month.

Michael Sheen and Lizzy Caplan look brilliant together, they seemed to gel really well in the pilot. It wasn’t just an instant connection but they gradually grew into this team who played off each other’s passion for the science of sex believably. Of course we’re left wondering where the next episodes will take us and what formula will be used but there’s a lot of potential for quite an entertaining chemistry between the two assuming they don’t take too much of a serious approach. Sheen performs as a cold, emotionless, egotistical doctor passionate about his work. He’s not a bad person, just too absorbed in his research. Caplan plays an unfamiliar character for her, as we see her cast as party girls and rebellious women, so this character should be a great challenge and way to push her acting abilities to its limit. her character is a strong woman driven by what she wants. Different from the women in those times who knew their place in society. A scene where she retaliates when getting hit by a man says a lot about her personality.

The pilot gave us a look at a few of the themes they may explore during the season. We get a glimpse of racial discrimination, pressures of having a family and the opinions of sex during the 50s. Most of all, I think the main theme will be women. As we hear both main characters explaining how their research will benefit women the most, for medicine and recreation. It’s an exciting time for women as they have just been given the right to vote and now the truth about female sexuality can overshadow society’s preconceptions on the matter.

Great pilot, only negative I think was the music. It felt out of place since it was quite modern but that is just my opinion. I like how Mad Men would stick to their time periods music, it really made you feel like you were there.

Trophy Wife (Pilot – Episode 6)

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Trophy wife ABCRoze-Verdict: Nothing new in terms of sitcom formula, but there are enough hilarious characters to carry the somewhat unique premise. Give it a go.

Kate was a party girl until a night out at a karaoke bar sends her and future husband Pete to hospital where she meets his two ex wives and kids, all in one night. This doesn’t startle her as we meet her almost a year into their marriage trying to fit in to the crazy family dynamics.

Starring;

  • Malin Åkerman as Kate Harrison
  • Bradley Whitford as Pete Harrison
  • Michaela Watkins as Jackie Fisher
  • Natalie Morales as Meg Gomez
  • Ryan Lee as Warren Harrison
  • Bailee Madison as Hillary Harrison
  • Albert Tsai as Bert Harrison
  • Marcia Gay Harden as Dr. Diane Buckley

Didn’t expect much from this sitcom even with the addition of Malin Akerman as the lead but after watching a few episodes I’m glad it’s not tainted with dated laughing tracks which seems to be the sign for cheesy comedies nowadays. The premise is pretty original and provides the show for a lot of potential in terms of future story arcs and episode plots. Once again I find that having a large cast with characters possessing varied personalities leads to a successful sitcom. So far within the six episodes they’ve utilized their large cast extremely well providing loads of laughs while exploiting the characters strengths. If a comedy makes you laugh then it succeeds in my opinion and this show definitely kept me laughing.

The characters are all likable and have their own crazy characteristics which gives us a load of different jokes to giggle at. For example we have Dr. Diane Buckley who is incredibly arrogant, competitive and controlling. Characteristics we’d all be able to relate to, from mother’s to wives, even though their not great personality traits she’s probably one of the funniest characters as we get heaps of smart ass comebacks and insults. Eventually we end up rooting for her because she is simply a badass. Another character we get to indulge in is Jackie Fisher a hippie like character with little knowledge of the modern world and… most things, we don’t love her because she is just pure weird but because of the relationship she has with her adopted son Bert who is THE MAN. I hate to say it but their chemistry is so real that it exudes cuuuuute. The other characters have their own traits which make them likable and relatable which is why this show succeeds for me.

Malin Akerman may not steal all the laughs but she makes for a charming lead that we can root for. I thought with such complicated family dynamics there would be some drama in there, what if Pete falls in love with one of his ex’s again as they spend way too much time together. Once seeing the chemistry between Akerman (Kate) and Whitford (Pete), they seemed inseparable and if that story arc ever happens it would probably complicate the show as the different family bonds makes the series enjoyable.

I would say Trophy Wife is a cross between modern family and cougar town except with much crazier family dynamics. It’s weird, crazy and pleasant all at the same time.

Brooklyn Nine Nine (Pilot – Episode 6)

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brooklyn-nine-nine

Roze-Verdict: If you find “stupid” funny and weirdly witty jokes funny, then it’s a MUST WATCH.

Plot: Detective Jake Peralta is one of the best in his department showing his love for putting away bad guys and solving puzzles. The only puzzle he hasn’t solved, is how to grow up. Once a new captain is appointed to the department, Peralta has to learn to respect the rules.

Starring;

  • Andy Samberg as Detective Jake Peralta.
  • Stephanie Beatriz as Detective Rosa Diaz.
  • Terry Crews as Sergeant Terry Jeffords.
  • Melissa Fumero as Detective Amy Santiago.
  • Joe Lo Truglio as Detective Charles Boyle.
  • Chelsea Peretti as Administrator Gina Linetti.
  • Andre Braugher as Captain Ray Holt.

I didn’t even know Andy Samberg had a comedy show coming out up until I saw the Jame Franco Comedy Central Roast, and watched him get constantly roasted about it getting cancelled within the first month (LOL). I knew I had to watch it especially after Samberg’s hilarious “roast”, I don’t think many people got it but he totally channeled into my sense of humor which is why I was pretty stoked that his brand of humor totally comes out in Brooklyn Nine Nine.

I think there was a lot of negativity about this show, just because so many shows get cancelled every year and why would this be different right. From the pilot alone I’m expecting some great things from the show. First of all the cast is awesome, we have the likes of Andy Samberg, Chelsea Peretti and Joe Lo Truglio who rarely fail to get laughs and their combo of funny is a match of gods. That is if their brand of humor resonates with you. The mix of overconfident, immature, boorish, eccentric behavior that exudes when their characters clash makes for a lot of funny situations and jokes. We also have Terry Crews who is a legend for many reasons, first being his sensual peck flexing and of course his badassness in general. We are also gifted with the casting of some lesser known actors who have just as big roles as the others, not breaking stride.

I think for a comedy series to be successful it needs to have an ensemble cast so that there’s a lot to play with in terms of character development and subplots. A lot more ideas can be generated when there’s more characters than just a few, this way we aren’t getting the same old generic episode plots. Of course there are the likes of “Two and a Half Men” and “2 Broke Girls” which seem to thrive but eventually the characters get dull. What I like about Brooklyn Nine Nine is that we’re given a large cast of different personalities and characteristics which opens up a massive door of joke opportunities which they utilize successfully making for a hilarious show. The characters are likable and interesting resulting in a fun and relaxing watch.

Based on the pilot I thought that each episode would present a case that the characters would have to solve, which posed a problem for me. If they were to go in that direction, 1) 21 minutes is not enough to sell a smart-ish crime plot, 2) what’s stopping it from becoming a carbon-copy of CSI but in spoof form and 3) eventually it would get boring. Luckily the show doesn’t emphasize too much on the crime solving but more on the wacky office antics.

If I was to find a description for Brooklyn Nine Nine, I would say it’s a cross between Archer and The Office with an awesome theme tune (not an overstatement). Just because we have a protagonist who feels he can do what he wants for being the best, who is surrounded by odd sometimes incompetent colleagues and the one perfectionist (Lana = Santiago). But then we have the humor of The Office and borderline Family Guy because, well a lot of the time they’re in the office doing a lot of dumb crap.