new show review: Back to You
September 25th, 2007 by screenwriterguy
In a way, I’m really rooting for this show to succeed. In a world where sitcoms have lost their footing, Back to You represents a network putting faith in a traditional, old school, three-camera, half-hour program. And while I have long since become more a fan of one-cameras that let me laugh when I want to, high ratings for Back to You would mean a chain reaction of copycat shows. Which means more potential jobs for me. Which is only a good thing.
There’s much sitcom power concentrated behind Back to You. The pilot was written by Steven Levitan (Just Shoot Me!) and Christopher Lloyd (Frasier.) It was directed by sitcom god James Burrows (Cheers, Will & Grace, every sitcom ever.) The cast has a combined 8,000 years of television experience.
Sadly, for the first 18 minutes, all that old-school experience comes off as… old.
However, the last four minutes had an unexpected twist, and gained real gravitas. Set-up, Set-up, punchline gave way to humor from circumstance and character. Jokes became secondary to story. Ah! That’s the stuff! The magic secret is that then each of those jokes is all the funnier.
Everything you’ve seen in promos for this sitcom leaves out the best and most important part of their “situation.” (Hint: The title isn’t just a reference to the news.) The surprise at the end of this episode, for those who didn’t get fed up and click away, promises to be a little unlike everything we’ve seen before. And, they managed to supply the heart at the end of the show without the sappiness that often accompanies it in a sitcom.
Best aspect: The promise of a very complicated relationship between Heaton and Grammer’s characters, to play out in the future. THIS episode was barely special, but the potential is there.
Worst aspect: The one-note characters of the r-trilling Latina weather girl and the sweaty nerd-child news director.
Verdict: Give it one more episode and see if they stick with the mature material.
Odds of success: Decent. FOX is the network most likely to let a show overstay its welcome. Back to You will probably need that time to mature. If they choose to tell jokes, it’s destined to be another schlocky pile of tripe. (Although the sad fact is that there is much of America who do not want their after-work entertainment to challenge them.) If they choose to focus on unconventional family relationships, and develop the surrounding characters a bit, this could (eventually) be a show worth tuning in to. Fingers crossed
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Sep 25th 2007 at 3:38 pm
uhhh…although it sounds like you want to give this show benefit of the doubt, it actually sounds not too great verging on highly mediocre….next!
Sep 25th 2007 at 5:36 pm
That’s a pretty fair assessment. I guess I mostly recommend it just to fans or students of sitcoms. And for other folks, pick it up later when and if it gets good.
Sep 25th 2007 at 6:50 pm
Odds of success: Decent. FOX is the network most likely to let a show overstay its welcome.
Au contraire, Pierre! FOX is the one likeliest to yank a show too quickly — i.e. Keen Eddie.
Sep 25th 2007 at 8:47 pm
There’s no doubting FOX doesn’t launch shows well, and SOME get too quick an execution. (Moment of silence for Firefly…) But if they decide to back a pony, they’re in it for good. Till Death is still on, and the life span of shows like Married With Children and The Simpsons is just silly. Back to You seems like the kind of show they might decide to keep too long, past its prime.
Of course, analyzing all of this history is moot, since Kevin Reilly’s calling the shots for them now.
Sep 27th 2007 at 7:22 am
As I have not seen this show yet, the important question to me is whether Kelsey Grammer can make us forget about his Frasier character. That he accepted a role as a TV news anchor makes it appear that Frasier took a new job with a Seattle TV station. I would find it more interesting to “see” him in a Sideshow Bob spinoff - now THAT character cannot be further away from good ol’ reliable Frasier.
Also, I would be interested in learning your thoughts on how comedic writing in dramas like the Sopranos may influence the future of sitcoms - as you stated “jokes become secondary to the story”.