I do my weekly DVR Purges, but let's be frank: they are crap. I don't proofread them at all most weeks. They're collections of scattered thoughts that barely even make sense a week later. What I've decided to do is, with most of these shows I watch taking a break, reflect on where I stand with them, assessing what is in the show's favor (assets) and what could get it in trouble (liabilities).
Now, not every show I watch will be included. In general, I'm sticking to shows that I've kept notes (be them from Purges or otherwise) as I've watched. That means, shows like The Bridge, Looking, Sherlock, and Dexter will not be included. To get my thoughts on those, ask me. This project, supposing I stay on schedule should take all month and I hope it does a good job summing up where these shows stand. In some cases, I'm hoping to convince you to start watching. Other times, it'll be nothing more than a postmortem for a show that's gone.
I hope you enjoy.
Favorite Episode(s): "The Offer" and "I'm Still Here"
Assets:
The Bravermans: This is a cheat, isn't it? I don't care. The Braverman clan, the family dinners, the joining together to take care of their own. That's the heart of the show. The more personal the moments and the more insulated it is, the better. Despite all the craziness with Kristina and Adam this year, their best moment is still in the car with Max after they pick him up from the field trip. The family dinners, like the one before the baptism or the one that closed out the season (among countless others) are the show at its finest. Or, take the episode when all the siblings separately come to cheer up Julia. How great was that? No one likes when Camille is gone to Europe or Joel isn't living in the house or Haddie disappears of the face of the planet. It's good to have things change. Equally as important is remembering what makes something work in the first place.
Hank: He's not a Braverman, but no one's perfect. Ray Romano is as good as I've seen him* as Hank and every bit as essential to this season as the people in the credits. Before this season, I thought the writers had beat Asperger's into the ground with Max. It turns out, they just needed to show it through some new eyes. Early in the season, Max and Hank's were my favorite scenes each week and later, Hank trying to figure out what to do with Sara was equally enjoyable, as frustrating as it could at times be. After season four, I didn't expect we'd get much more Hank. He's much more important now and I would be disappointed if they move away from him in season six.
*I haven't seen Men of a Certain Age. I'm tempted to now.
Mae Whitman crying: When you have someone who cries as well as Whitman, you better use her for that. It was a rough year for Amber, what, with Ryan kicking the crap out of one of her band friends, calling off the wedding, and coming back after getting in an accident on tour. Lots for her to cry about and lots of good moments where that's exactly what she did. It feels diminutive to strip her performance down to that, but...how can I put this. Reggie Miller is a Hall of Fame basketball player with so many skills, but he's still going to be known as "that guy who shots 3 pointers". Sometimes, it's best to single-out the superlative greatness rather than the all-around talent. Hopefully, next year gives Amber a few more opportunities for happy cries.
Liabilities:
Kristina & Adam: Supercouple.: The season four cancer arc was great. It would be completely understandable if Adam and Kristina took it easy this year. Talk to Haddie on occasion. Maybe get Max out of a couple binds at school. Not the case though. There's a full season order to fill. Adam starts a label. Kristina runs for Mayor of Berkley. Both of them start a charter school for Max. Any of those stories could've filled a season and still sounded implausible. All three in one season is ridiculous. I get that these are the stories of a bunch of affluent, mostly white families, but the show still functions best telling more grounded stories and this was a turn into less familiar, less effective territory. Assuming that next season is only about the school, that would be all that is needed to get them back on track.
Focus: There were some odd choices for which stories to follow last season. Sure, it makes sense to be Julia and Joel-heavy, given what was going on. The rest was confusing. Amber disappeared all the time it felt like and Drew got some major story time for all his dating woes. Here's a little perspective: they spent so much time on him that I was able to hate his roommate and get enough time to start liking him. His roommate! That is not a character a should know this well. Crosby and Jasmine showed up long enough to a mini-Van commercial every once in a while and not much else. Their big story, I think, was termites. It was a highly imbalanced season for the Bravermans.
Dragging: Parenthood's last full season order was Season two. Season five leaves me wondering if the smaller orders fit it better. A lot of the stories dragged longer than they needed to. How else do you explain getting so many beats of Drew's dating saga. Crosby and Jasmine were out of the house for half a season which felt a little severe. With all the story beats that Kristina and Adam had, they still needed to dip back into the cancer well on occasion to fill time. Then we have Camille going to Europe which at times was a beat for beat rehash of the same story from earlier seasons. For god's sake, they got so desperate for plot that they had to bring Haddie back for an episode!
Outlook:
Parenthood is coming back for a 13-episode sixth and final season. That sounds about right. It isn't a show about suspense or betrayal, corporate takeovers or hospital emergencies. It's about a family and how they get through each day with one another. It's a simple premise that works best when telling simple stories. There's only so long that you can do that though*. Season five saw the show get away from that some and it's not a surprise that it was the bumpiest season yet. At some point, you can't stop a series from aging. This is a show with a huge cast too, almost all of them capable of being the sole lead in a series and it has always been a balancing act. Peter Krause and Lauren Graham in particular are actors who make almost any show great simply by being in them. Erika Christensen and Dax Shepphard are two actors I'd written off after their early 2000s heyday. I though Craig T. Nelson was past the point of trying anymore and where did Mae Whitman come from (Oh yeah, Arrested Development...)? It'll be sad to see them all go, but first, I'm excited to see what Jason Katims and company do with the Bravermans in their final act.
*Even Roseanne won the lottery at some point, remember.
Previously this Offseason...
Community
Brooklyn Nine Nine
New Girl
Suburgatory
Modern Family
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