Pivoting- 3/5 stars. Going into these pilots, I had different expectations. I've been seeing reviews for "Pivoting"- starring Ginnifer Goodwin (Once Upon a Time, Big Love, Judy Hopps in Zootopia), Maggie Q (Mission Impossible III, Divergent, Nikita, Rush Hour II), and Eliza Coupe (Happy Endings, Scrubs, The Mindy Project), about changing their lives in response to losing the fourth friend in their group. It's as touching, hilarious, and inspiring as any of us could hope it would be. Recommend- it takes a bit to get its feet under it but I think will be amazing in time.
How I Met Your Father....1/5 stars. Ok, so I like the original series a lot, have watched several times and it always makes me laugh and smile. Yes, it's hella problematic in big and small ways (it's a bunch of skinny white people drinking all the time and living in fabulous housing without jobs that could reasonably support that- AND one of their friends is more than a little bit rapey, and the other one is manipulative in "nice guy" ways) but i love it. This version? Notsamuch. Hillary Duff can be fun- I like her in Younger, but it's either the script or direction or something, but she just doesn't hold this part...and the other characters- again, just like not QUITE funny enough, not QUITE where the chemistry needs to be, a little TOO far-reaching in the plot lines and joke set-ups. It's just not doing it. Plus, I'm SOOOOO tired of boring attractive people. The cast just lacks spark. No one is quirky enough for me to give them the benefit of the doubt or to give a shit about what happens to them. But I do love seeing Kim Cattrall being gorgeous, funny, sassy, and a mom. She gives me hope. (And for the record, she wouldn't have been fairing any better with a different reboot of an old fave show right now- that one's pretty much equally bad).
Somebody Somewhere--- 5/5 stars. This is my new favorite show, hands-down, easily, sliding in just behind Ted Lasso. It's not a shock as it's a Duplass brother project. SO vulnerable and just the right balance of sad and funny from the very start- one of the best pilots I've seen and the episodes have just gotten better. The actors are all perfectly cast (the sister took a while for me to warm up to, but now I dig her) and feel like real people living real lives. The quiet moments are potent, the humor is subtle and fantastic ( the negative comments are all about how it feels arthouse-y and it's not BIG funny), and the set and world they encompass are vivid. There's also enough frayed edges and clear pain that you know there will be big reveals/ past mysteries to solve, as the story unfolds. LOVE IT!!
