Why NBC’s “SMASH” is so terrible, and how it can still be saved
Even now, one episode away from the finale, I want so badly to love SMASH. It has the makings of an incredible show: heavyweight support behind the scenes from co-producer Steven Spielberg and songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, an outstanding cast featuring talent like Anjelica Huston and Debra Messing (and Jack Davenport, who I personally love), and above all an intriguing premise that could inspire seasons’ worth of drama. Unfortunately everything it has going for it has been pulled into the toilet by the writing, and two huge flaws in particular.
The most obvious letdown with SMASH’s writing is that all of its drama revolves around romantic relationships. While early episodes featured side stories like Julia’s family’s attempts to adopt another child, Dev’s problems at work and Ivy’s tension with her mother all of that has evaporated in the last half of the season, leaving nothing but crises stemming from characters falling into or out of relationships. Julia and Frank, Julia and Michael, Ivy and Derek, Karen and Dev, Tom and Boring Lawyer Guy, Tom and Bobby, Eileen and Creepy Bartender Guy Who’s Probably A Murderer, Eileen and her ex-husband… it goes on and on. The last few episodes have seen the writers shuffling the board trying to make sparks with random “twists” like Derek and Rebecca and Ivy and Dev, but the theme’s already been run into the ground. Taking characters spanning all sides of a fascinating industry, in one of the most dynamic cities in the world, and reducing them to this type of brainless middle school drama is cheap and insulting both to the characters and to us, the audience. But above all, it’s just fucking boring.
Creating more original situations for the characters would only be a band-aid, however, as there is an even larger and far more critical problem to address: most of the characters’ reactions and decisions are simply unbelievable. After 14 hour-long episodes we should know and care about these characters, but we don’t—and it’s not our fault. Once you understand a character’s core principles and experience you can understand why he makes certain decisions or has certain reactions, which then allows you to become emotionally invested—either positively or negatively—in his plight. The characters on SMASH are so fluid and indistinct that this is impossible. They are not relatable human beings so much as walking grab-bags of bad choices and (over)reactions, wandering through immaculate scenes only to crash into each other and ricochet in arbitrary directions. The given premise of Dev’s character, for example, is that he’s willing to sacrifice his job for the sake of his relationship and expects Karen to do the same, forcing her to make a dramatic choice. If devotion is central to his character, why would he not tell her about his demotion at work nor his choice to forgo a job in DC for her sake, then resent her for not knowing this and spring it on her at the most selfish possible moment? Why would he feel horrible enough about kissing a colleague to tell Karen and profess his love anew, then actually sleep with her castmate and subsequently hide it from her? Because Dev’s core values are so inconsistent his decisions and overall character just come across as bizarre and unsympathetic.
Eileen is far and away the worst example of this problem, though. The given premise of her character is that she is attempting establish herself as a competent producer within her industry yet the choices she makes are constantly at odds with this. In the midst of a painful divorce, with all of her assets frozen, and with the Marilyn musical nowhere near complete, why would she rush the musical’s development to the point that the resulting financial and artistic strain almost derails everything she’s working for? No competent producer would do this. Worse still are her actions while trying to fund the musical. Multiple references have been made on the show (many of them by Eileen herself) to the gossiping nature of the theatre industry and the power of gossip blogs to shape a production’s fate. Yet Eileen willingly partners with a known crime boss to fund her musical, then publicly scorns and embarrasses her other potential investors by burning their contracts in a bar. Forget competent producer—what sane adult would ever do this? Not only does Eileen risk horrible gossip about the source of her production’s funding (and maybe even legal trouble) but she pulls a childish stunt that’s sure to make those investors refuse to fund any of her future projects and gives them just cause to spread horrible views about her to everyone else in their industry. Even Anjelica Huston can’t make us like Eileen when the choices she makes are so contrary to everything she claims she’s working toward.
Seeing as creator Theresa Rebeck is relinquishing writing duties to Gossip Girl writer Josh Safran next season, it’s obvious that the people in charge of the show have noticed these problems too. That gives me hope that with some better writing SMASH may finally become the excellent show I and many other viewers want it to be. Judging from the sinking ratings, though, it better happen quickly, as their audience doesn’t seem willing to stick it out for very much longer.
Bake Sale
Just launched this fun new website for a bakery/catering company in Austin, TX. This version replaces a smaller, simpler site I did for them about a year ago. It was designed by Cody Haltom and is built on WordPress with heavy customization/streamlining via Magic Fields. The gorgeous photography makes me hungry!
Because every blog should begin with a cat photo. These are my boys, Bonk and Moose.
Moose (the white one) is a purebred Ragdoll I adopted as a kitten about three years ago. He’s very friendly, curious and playful but not particularly cuddly—great with new people and animals but not much of a lap cat. He’s also the dumbest cat I’ve ever had, which provides constant amusement. I can’t remember exactly how he got his name; I think it was just a temporary name that stuck. But nowadays he’s the perfect embodiment of a Big Moosie.
I adopted Bonk about a year ago from an Atlanta-based network of no-kill shelters named Furkids. They do amazing work, taking in all cats—young, old, sick, healthy—and providing them excellent care until they’re adopted or peacefully live out their lives. I spent several hours at Furkids over two visits trying to find a good companion for Moose, wandering through the rooms of their main adoption center which houses dozens and dozens of cats. There were cats more beautiful, young and outgoing than Bonk (original name: Peter Piper), but something about him resonated with me. Whenever I would go into his room the more social cats would jostle and fight for my attention but Bonk would calmly walk over, climb into my lap and stare up at me. He was about four years old at that point and had lived his entire life at the shelter.
Even now, over a year later, his personality is still unfurling a little more each day. He’s very timid, abnormally smart, incredibly affectionate and cuddly with me, and rarely makes a sound. He also has a habit of headbutting things when he’s happy which is how he got his name. Moose is the cat that my houseguests flock to because he’s so social and beautiful (and because Bonk hides under the bed whenever someone comes over), but it’s Bonk that curls up against my hip whenever I’m on the couch and in the crook of my arm when I stretch out in bed every night.
The two of them are best friends and almost complete opposites and I couldn’t imagine my life without them.
