Parenthood, "Perchance to Dream": It's tricky

A review of last night's "Parenthood" coming up just as soon as I unleash the fever...

Parenthood (whether the concept or the TV show) isn't a competition, but I couldn't help noticing that the parent doing the best job in "Perchance to Dream" is Crosby (and Jasmine, too). Adam freaks out over Haddie's sexuality, Sarah again tries to project all of her regrets onto Amber, and Julia took the broken mug issue way too far to overcompensate for the old lawyer=liar saw. Crosby, meanwhile, had no problem interrupting his date with Jasmine to help Jabbar through his fear of pooping in strange places, and he and Jasmine both recognized that they don't want to send the wrong message to the kid if their attempt to go from co-parents to couple doesn't work out.

Now, I'm not complaining about any of the others this week. Some of the most interesting stories on this show involve parents screwing up, as we saw with the scene where Haddie called Adam on his double-standard treatment of her. But just as no one would have expected Dax Shepard to give one of the best performances among this cast, who would have thought after the first few episodes that we might get a night where Crosby was so much more on his game than his siblings?

I don't want to give short shrift to Kristina's decision, by the way. The whole work/kids dilemma is a familiar one, in life and on TV, and Kristina has the added complication of a special needs kid. As much as she enjoyed her time back in grown-up world, I can understand her reluctance to go back full-time not long after finding out about Max's Asperger's (and not long before Haddie goes to college). And it was interesting to watch Adam throughout that scene, because you could tell he was trying to do right by his wife even as he very clearly didn't want her to go work for Sundra from "Survivor: Cook Islands."

"Perchance to Dream" was one of the show's more thematically and tonally consistent episodes. It was also a fairly light one, not only with Adam's goofy dancing, but Sarah and Amber listening in horror to Mike O'Malley's poems about Sarah's va-jay-jay, everyone else's reaction to Julia's cordoned-off area, and Drew's reaction to Haddie taking off her bra in the kitchen. Plus, Run-DMC! (Which gives me an excuse to link to the original video, with Penn & Teller.)

What did everybody else think?

Parenthood, "Rubber Band Ball": Our little genius

A quick review of last night's "Parenthood" coming up just as soon as I leave my sock and take your innocence...

First, in case you missed the news yesterday, NBC renewed "Parenthood" for next season. So no worries on that front.

"Rubber Band Ball," meanwhile, did a good job of addressing some holes the show has left in previous episodes. We got our first extended time with grandparents Zeek and Camille (so much so that I'll try to refrain from calling them Coach and Holly McClane from now on), as they began to tell their own story rather than just offer wisdom and/or comic relief for the adult siblings. It finally occurred to Crosby and/or the writers that he might have a reason to feel angry that he missed the first five years of Jabbar's life. And Amber finally pointed out the unintended subtext of all of Sarah's "don't repeat my mistakes" lectures to her mom. All those developments were welcome/overdue.

Meanwhile, the Asperger's/gifted story nicely humanized Kristina and Adam in their reactions to the idea that Max might not be the only "different" kid in the family - and then to the news that Sydney's difference is something to be celebrated rather than managed. My only complaint with that subplot: after the show made such a big deal about how hard it was to get an appointment with The Bob Dylan of Autism in the second episode, Julia managed to get in to have him evaluate Sydney awfully quickly.

There have been some episodes so far that have felt all over the map tonally, but "Rubber Band Ball" managed to feel all of a piece while servicing all of the different groups, including the grandparents. Nicely-done, show.

What did everybody else think?

Having said that... here's some more news

Busy busy busy day in TV land. I mentioned the "Mad Men" July 25 return date earlier, and several other developments have happened since:

• Larry David agreed to come back for an eighth season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" to air in 2011. Basically, HBO extends an open invitation for Larry to continue whenever he wants, and then they wait around for him to say yes. Presumably, he wouldn't be back if he didn't have an idea he thought could top the "Seinfeld" season, just as he came back after TV Larry died and went to Heaven, or after TV Larry joined the Black family.

• NBC has renewed "Parenthood" for next season, which pleases me. I haven't written about recent episodes due to vacation and/or the problems of it airing while I'm busy trying to analyze "Lost," but overall the show's doing more good than bad, and I'd like to see more.

• Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert signed contract extensions with Comedy Central to continue "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" through the 2012 elections.

And that's all... for now, anyway. The way this day's going, I expect six more renewals or premiere dates to be announced before I go home.

UPDATE: And, of course, I was right. FX just announced that the penultimate season of "Rescue Me," and the funny new Louis CK sitcom "Louie," will both premiere on June 29.

Parenthood, "Wassup": The five-timers club

A review of last night's "Parenthood" coming up just as soon as I look for anything that smells like Yo-Yo...

One of the best, most unexpected parts of "Friday Night Lights" is the portrayal of the Taylor family - not just the compelling equal partnership between Coach and Mrs. Coach, but how the two of them have dealt with teenage daughter Julie's growing pains over the last few years. And one of the stylistic trademarks Jason Katims and company took to that show, and specifically to depicting that family unit at the center, is how much is left unsaid in the dialogue and left to very expressive actors like Kyle Chandler, Connie Britton and Aimee Teegarden to convey. You learn as much about the Taylors' parenting style from what they don't say as from what they do.

With "Parenthood," Katims has taken a different, more overt approach. Everybody spells out their feelings and motivations at every turn. That's probably a more commercially-viable approach (people don't always look to their heartwarming family dramas for rich subtext), but the contrast in styles was particularly noticeable in an episode like "Wassup," which spent so much time focusing on the teenage members of the extended Braverman family (plus arrested adolescent Crosby). "FNL" hasn't always been perfect in how it shows Julie's teen rebellion, but watching Haddie at odds with her parents, or Drew shrink in embarrassment at everyone trying to talk about masturbation with him(*), or Amber confront her mom about being spied on, I found myself wishing for less telling and more showing.

(*) That plot, by the way, more or less comes from the movie, where Dianne Wiest catches Leaf (soon to be Joaquin) Phoenix with a paper sack full of pornos. I will say, though, that even in 2010, at 10 o'clock on a network that aired "Friends" at 8 o'clock forever, that seemed to be a franker, more extensive discussion of masturbation than I was expecting.

As I said on Bill Simmons's podcast yesterday, when there's a cast this big, there are going to be characters and stories that you like, and then others you have to endure to get to the ones you like. So beyond the speechiness (which I would say wasn't too different from previous installments), I also didn't love "Wassup" because they were spending a lot of time with characters I'm either not invested in yet (Haddie) or ones I don't particularly like (Julia). With the former group, sooner or later the show has to start giving the minor characters material if we're ever going to care about them, but with somebody like Julia (where Erika Christensen seems very miscast), what can you do? This isn't a hospital show where George Clooney can leave and Goran Visjnic can come in; the Bravermans are the Bravermans are the Bravermans, and if they have to resort to bringing in the long-lost second cousin from Duluth to fill the void of a sibling who isn't working out, that'll just be awkward. Julia's moment with Crosby on the houseboat was nice, but she still has a long way to go before I believe her as either a member of the family or the high-powered career woman she's been sold as.

Didn't love the episode (and have to assume there are easier ways for parents to find out what's on their daughter's Facebook page than to hack her own laptop), but hopefully next week the focus will shift to some other stories I care about more.

What did everybody else think?

Parenthood, "The Deep End of the Pool": Sir mix-a-lot

A review of last night's "Parenthood" coming up just as soon as I remember that I'm lactose intolerant...

"The Deep End of the Pool" was the first episode of the series that I didn't get to see in advance, and the first episode where my attention kept wandering. Those two might be related (staying up to write those Lost reviews kinda wears me out on Wednesdays), or it may be that the show has already fallen into some familiar rhythms, and I know which stories I want to tune in on (Asperger's, Crosby and Jabbar), where I'd rather avert my gaze (Julia making a fool of herself at the swim class), and where my interest comes more from previous affection for the performer than what's happening on screen (Sarah's car/boyfriend troubles, whatever is going on in Coach and Holly McClane's marriage).

Still, "The Deep End of the Pool" did some interesting things with the various stories. When I interviewed Jason Katims for the Asperger's story, he said he wanted to show how tough that situation is not only on the parents, but on the siblings who get less attention because their problems aren't as big or obvious. Max doesn't want to be the squeaky wheel, but he is and he gets the grease as a result. And the scene where Haddie first vented to her dad about it, then asked if Max got into the private school, was a really nice one.

And while the Julia plot was cringe-worthy at times, and still feels like a rehash of too many other shows, I did like the scene where her husband complained about her parachuting in and trying to run the show when she doesn't know anything about the situation. Even if he later softened and tried to make her feel better about her effort, the angry scene by the pool rang true.

Was expecting more fallout from Jabbar messing with the mixing board, given the band's earlier apprehension, but one of the problems with a show this crowded is that corners have to be cut to give everybody their moment. (Which is why, again, I hope we get some episodes down the road that don't try to be as balanced with the ensemble.)

Also, I know this will sound odd coming from someone who spent half this TV season complaining that the three groups on "Modern Family" don't interact enough, but it feels like the Bravermans have waaay too much free time to get together for each other's plays, and school interviews, and impromptu free swims. I know that's kind of the wish-fulfillment aspect of things: we sit through the tougher parts of the show because we can all enjoy the fantasy of having so much time to hang with our loved ones and help each other. But given how much the show likes to deal with the messy realities of parenthood, you would think they'd be more comfortable dealing with all the scheduling problems that would come with this many adults, children and personal issues. I like seeing the characters cross paths in smaller ways (Julia swinging by Adam's office, or Crosby asking Adam for help cleaning the puke off the upholstery), but I think the huge family get-togethers should be treated as more of a special occasion, rather than routine.

What did everybody else think?

Parenthood, "Man Versus Possum": The Bob Dylan of autism

A review of tonight's "Parenthood" coming up just as soon as I forget my worry beads...

"Parenthood" has a huge cast, and this early in the series, I'm sure there's both internal and external pressure to service them all as much as possible. Down the road, I wouldn't be surprised to see episodes where, say, we focus largely on Sarah and her kids, with the other family members seen only from Sarah's perspective. For now, though, Jason Katims and company want "Parenthood" to be clearly an ensemble, and that means some stories wind up more undercooked than others.

Once again, the plot with the strongest sense of focus was Adam coping with Max's Asperger diagnosis - or, rather, living in denial of it until being set straight by "the Bob Dylan of autism."(*) Peter Krause did a very good job at playing the confusion and need for a quick-fix that many dads would feel in that situation, and I thought Adam and Kristina's half-intimidated, half-horrified visit to meet the Asperger-veteran parents was really funny without really seeming to make too much fun of the other couple. (By the end, you could tell the Braverman's were suffering from information overload but were also kind of impressed that the Lessings know so much, even if sometimes they just let their own kid jump around the house and play loud music.)

(*) Bob Dylan did, in fact, have several albums hit number one, both here and in the UK, so is Max limiting his definition of "record" to mean "single" (where he got as high as #2 a few times)? Or did the creative team screw up not with the Asperger's, but with the music knowledge? I also found it interesting that, after the pilot featured Dylan's "Forever Young" at several points, an episode that repeatedly namechecked Dylan instead closed with Paul Simon's "St. Judy's Comet." I suppose they don't want to get pigeon-holed as "that show with the Dylan soundtrack." That, or his songs ain't cheap enough to license every week.

There was also another very entertaining scene with all the siblings (plus their mom) coming together after the auction, and partaking of the weed Adam found in his yard. These actors work very well together, and while seeing the whole clan get together this often is probably the show's biggest fantasy, seeing the brothers and sisters interact helps give us a clearer sense of who they are when they're each off in their own stories.

And those other individual plotlines were a bit sketchier than Adam's. Crosby, in particular, feels like he's not getting enough screen-time - and I'm surprised to be making that complaint about the Dax Shepard character in a show that co-stars Peter Krause, Lauren Graham and Erika Christensen - as I really enjoyed his breakfast date with his son (the grown-up questions thing, delivered deadpan by Shepard, was quite funny) and want to have a better sense of his relationship with Katie, which is mostly played as a goof.

I feel like I've seen the exact story with Julia feeling jealous of the stay-at-home mom on another show, but I'm blanking on what show that was. (Did Rachel Griffiths go through the same thing on "Brothers & Sisters," maybe?) Right now, Julia's the sibling who most verges on cliche, so I want to see where they take her in the future.

And Sarah actually got two stories in one, with her losing out on the dream job (though it was ambiguous whether she ever really had a shot, or if even the positive first interview was the guy sucking up to Adam by proxy) and then going to bat for Amber with her principal. Graham has the most experience of anyone in the cast on trying to do comedy and drama simultaneously, and you can see the creative team leaning on her for that, as we get to see Sarah be amusingly bumbling at picking out a good interview outfit, then awkward but ultimately charming in that interview, and then full-on mama bear in trying to get Amber out of the 10th grade. I also think Graham and Christensen play well off each other (or appear to, since their interactions are usually over the phone).

What did everybody else think?

'Parenthood' review: Sepinwall on TV

I already wrote about the Asperger's syndrome storyline on NBC's "Parenthood," and in today's column, I review "Parenthood" itself. The verdict: thumbs up.

Because this is a busy week, and because I've already written a fair amount about the show, use this post to discuss the pilot episode after it airs tonight. When I get a chance, I'll bump it up to the top of the blog again if other posts get in the way.

UPDATE: Bumpity-bump-bump-bump. What did everybody else think?

How TV shows try (or choose not) to depict Asperger's syndrome: Sepinwall on TV

In today's column (a rare visit to Page 1 of the paper for me, unless there were five simultaneous huge breaking news stories last night), I use a storyline from NBC's new "Parenthood" to look at TV's depiction (or lack of depiction) of characters with Asperger syndrome, including comments from producers of some shows with Aspie-like characters like Sheldon on "Big Bang Theory" and Brennan on "Bones."

A more traditional "Parenthood" review coming on Tuesday. I like the show, though the Asperger story was definitely the strongest part of it.