Skip to main content

5 Ways to Improve "The Crazy Ones"

Image
By

5 Ways to Improve "The Crazy Ones"

First of all, I love "The Crazy Ones". When the CBS sitcom premiered in September 2013, I fell in love with it. Robin Williams is a legend, Sarah Michelle Gellar is delightful, and David E. Kelley is an expert. The perfect combination of people to make a great show. Although I have to say more recent episodes haven't been the best. I think the show should makes some changes, and then it'd be fantastic.



1. Drop the Sitcom Aspect.

Yes, I know this show is a sitcom, but it really shouldn't be. It should be a one hour comedy-drama, similar to "Ally McBeal" and "Boston Legal". Williams is an Oscar-winner, Gellar is known as a dramatic actress, and Kelley can do it all, so a sitcom seems like a bit of a waste of their talents. It's holding them back, and the main reason the show's not perfect.

2. Add Some More People to the Mix

The cast is one of the greatest parts of the show. But after a few episodes, things are starting to seem a bit crowded. Adding some interesting supporting roles to shake things up would really help move stories along. Brad Garrett is a nice start, but let's get more. Also it's been less than 20 episodes and they've already tried every possible romantic combination between the main cast.

3.  More Shots of the City Set to Music

This was one of my absolute favorite parts of "Ally McBeal", overhead shots of Boston set to some song sang by the insanely talented Vonda Shepard. "The Crazy Ones" does this in their own way for maybe a couple seconds each episode. Part of the reason is that there are time constraints, which goes back to Number 1. "TCO" doesn't have a Vonda, and consequently doesn't have the same contemplative emotional feel that some of Kelley's earlier hits had.

4. Redress the Set

This is a minor thing, and the production design team does a wonderful job, but a couple of things really bug me. The gigantic portrait of Williams that on the wall next the elevators. What's the point of this? It's almost as obnoxious as the giant portrait of Gellar in "Ringer", but at least that was intentionally obnoxious. Also the random fake tree in the middle of the office, and the huge robot in William's office really make it hard to take the show seriously.

5. Have Kelley Do Most of the Writing

Usually, Kelley does most of the writing on his shows. He didn't write or co-write like three of "Ally's" 112 episodes. But he has only written 2 episodes of "TCO". And those two just happen to be the best of the series. Those are the pilot and "Dead and Improved". They had a really strong balance between humor and heart, which is something the other writers seem to miss the mark on. While this is most likely Kelley's choice, in my opinion, he should step up and do the heavy lifting. That's where his strengths lie.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Leave a comment!

Popular posts from this blog

Who is The Black Hood on Riverdale? Here are 5 Possible Suspects

By
There's a killer on the loose in Riverdale , the setting of the CW's dark adaptation of the Archie Comics, now in its second season. He's called the Black Hood, a reference to the vigilante superhero comic book of the same name published by Archie Comics. So far, he has shot Fred Andrews (Luke Perry), murdered Ms. Grundy (Sarah Habel) with a cello bow, and shot at Midge and Moose ( Emilija Baranac and Cody Kearsley), all while wearing his executioner's hood-style hood, which is how he got his name. His letter to the Coopers in the third episode of the season reveals he is targeting victims that he sees as criminals or hypocrites and the fourth episode revealed he got the idea from Betty's (Lili Reinhart) speech from the end of last season, where she pleaded that "Riverdale must do better." It's looking like figuring out the Black Hood's identity will be the big mystery of season two, so I have put together a list of possible suspects. Note: Th
Post a Comment
Read more

"My Mind Turns Your Life Into Folklore": Why Taylor Swift's "Gold Rush" Is a Song About Songwriting

By
"My mind turns your life into folklore." That line, from the song "Gold Rush," is the only time the word "folklore" is spoken on either of Taylor Swift's 2020 records, Folklore and Evermore , the latter of which is where the song appears. The presence of the line indicates that "Gold Rush" is a pivotal song not only in Swift's lockdown duology, but in her maturation as a songwriter.  Swift's early albums often drew heavily from her own experiences, with fans and the media scouring her lyrics for clues as to which ex-boyfriend her numerous breakup songs referred. Her tumultuous dating life made as many headlines as her music, in part because it informed so much of the music. The discourse was often ridiculous and reductive, and thankfully, that period of her career is over (Swift has been in a relationship with the actor Joe Alwyn since 2016).  Both of her 2020 albums have their fair share of autobiographical songs, but they also see
2 comments
Read more

A Great Show Rushes to its End: "Mom" Finale Review

By
It's never easy to end a TV show, especially a long-running, beloved show like Mom . "My Kinda People and the Big To-Do," the last episode of Mom that aired May 13 on CBS, was a good episode. It was maybe even a great episode. But was it a satisfying series conclusion? No, not really. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. Before we talk about what didn't happen in the episode, let's talk about what did happen.  The episode begins at an AA meeting, as many episodes have. The ladies - Bonnie, Tammy, Jill, Marjorie, & Wendy - all share. They're all happy and in good places in their lives, much to the annoyance of newcomer Shannon (played by Melanie Lynskey, independent film mainstay whose sitcom credits include Chuck Lorre's Two and a Half Men ). Bonnie wants to help Shannon, as she had been helped by others when she too was new to the program, and even chases Shannon in the rain when she leaves the meeting. Later in the episode, we see Shannon'
Post a Comment
Read more