You Scream, I Scream, We All Scream For SCREAM QUEENS

Article originally published as SCREAM QUEENS Review on Seat42F.

FOX’s SCREAM QUEENS is the comedy version of Ryan Murphy’s other, much darker show, American Horror Story. That is the best way to sum up the two hour pilot, which airs next week. It is ridiculous, but intentionally so, satirizing the modern horror film. It isn’t scary, but it isn’t supposed to be. I enjoyed it a great deal.

The most central figure in the first episode is Chanel Oberlin (Emma Roberts, American Horror Story, We’re the Millers), a rich, spoiled brat who is head of the Kappa sorority due to the untimely death of the previous president. Supported by her minions, Chanel #2 (singer Ariana Grande), Chanel #3 (Billie Lourd), and Chanel #5 (Abigail Breslin, Little Miss Sunshine, Zombieland), whose real names she refuses to learn, Chanel is determined to not only rule the school, but become a successful television journalist.

Of course, SCREAM QUEENS isn’t going to make it easy for her. First, Dean Munsch (Jamie Lee Curtis, Halloween, New Girl) decrees that the sorority must accept all pledges, no matter how pathetic (enter Glee’s Lea Michele, among others). Then, Chanel’s boyfriend, Chad Radwell (Glen Powell, The Dark Knight Rises), decides he can’t be with her if she’s no longer popular, due to the dean’s decision. Oh, and then of course there’s a serial killer starting to pick people off, mainly girls in and around the sorority. So there’s that, though that isn’t Chanel’s main concern.

Roberts is fantastic as Chanel, channeling her previous AHS Madison character, but without the depth. No matter what happens, nothing phases Chanel, nor makes her care about others. She is what she is. And what she is is a perfect match for Curtis, who is an equal in the amazing department. I could watch SCREAM QUEENS even if it were just the two of them going head to head. Every scene they are in is magic.

SCREAM QUEENS boasts a large cast (required to keep the body count going), and while Roberts and Curtis essentially own the spotlight, others manage to steal it for brief, wonderful moments, which come more and more frequently as the pilot goes on. Of particular note is Boone (singer Nick Jonas), who has an extremely memorable bedroom scene. But others, including national sorority president Gigi Caldwell (Nasim Pedrad, Saturday Night Live), security guard Denise Hemphill (Niecy Nash, Reno 911!), and “white mammy” Ms. Bean (Jan Hoag, Wild) also make good use of their chance to pop.

Honestly, where the plot drags is when the focus shifts to the ‘normal’ hero of the piece, Grace Gardner (Skyler Samuels, The Nine Lives of Chloe King), and her would-be boyfriend and wannabe journalist, Pete Martinez (Diego Boneta, Rock of Ages). I guess every horror movie has this type of character, and presumably they will be the ones to stop the killer. But I’m not sure they’re needed in a piece that subverts convention so much. If anything, they just drag the show down a bit. Hopefully, they, too, will be used in unexpected ways later in the season.

That being said, overall, I still think SCREAM QUEENS is great. If you don’t understand at first what the mission of the program is and instead take it seriously, you may be confused and disappointed. Once you embrace the utter lunacy and twist on archetype of many of the characters, though, it becomes very enjoyable. Ryan Murphy has taken his earnest cartoonishness of the best parts of Glee and mixed it with what he knows of horror from doing AHS to create something memorable and unique. In an age where horror is all over the television set, this is something original and different.

Plus, I just can’t wait to see who dies next and Chanel’s reaction to it!

SCREAM QUEENS premieres Tuesday, September 22^nd at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.

GETTING ON And On And On

Article first published as GETTING ON Review Season 2 on Seat42F.

HBO’s GETTING ON is back! For those that missed the six-episode first season a year ago, feel free to jump on into season two when the premiere episode, “No Such Thing as Idealized Genitalia,” airs this weekend, no prior knowledge needed. But for fans, you’ll delight in seeing the staff of the Billy Barnes Extended Care Unit of Mt. Palms Hospital in Long Beach, California again, who are basically up to the same things they were when last seen.

Dawn Forchette (Alex Borstein) is continuing to work for Dr. Jenna James’ (Laurie Metcalf) research study. Dawn doesn’t like working for Dr. James, and why should she? Dr. James is emotionally abusive and takes advantage of Dawn whenever she can. But for Dawn, who isn’t feeling well (something explored with a very unexpected twist late in the episode, and that will extend to future installments), she’s tired of bending over backwards to fit Dr. James’ requests in with her regular work and getting absolutely no appreciation for the effort. In fact, Dr. James expresses the opposite of appreciation.

Dr. James is under a lot of stress, admittedly. She is still fighting Dr. Paul Stickley (Mark Harelik) to get her research funded, something far from a certainty in her business. She has to put up with the hospice corporate vulture she hates (Jayma Mays, Glee) trying to make inroads in the hospital (again, something that will continue throughout the season because of another beautiful twist). She is drawn into a fight with an obnoxious patient (played by a familiar face I can’t quite remember – feel free to let me know who she is in the comments) for bed space. And she has to deal with the annoyance of Nurse Patsy de la Serda’s (Mel Rodriguez) “green” program, which results in lights turning off in the bathroom after mere seconds. But does that justify her behavior towards Dawn? Nope.

Technically, GETTING ON is a comedy. The laughs come at the characters’ expense, though. Is it fun to see Dawn get dumped on my Dr. James? No, but there’s something inherently amusing in the way Borstein shows the pathos of the downtrodden character. Does one laugh at Dr. James issues in the bathroom? Of course not, but again, there are some sight gags that will elicit a smile, even as we feel sorry for her. It’s smart, slow-burn comedy.

In “No Such Thing as Idealized Genitalia,” Nurse Didi Ortley (Niecy Nash) emerges as the heart of the show. This is something she’s been seen as before, but the role is reinforced in her behavior this week. Whether it’s taking care of her family or her co-workers, whether they could actually be called friends or not, Didi is a person who has compassion for others. This, all while making next to no money, and meeting much resistance for requesting even the smallest of raises.

This hospital highlights the ridiculousness of bureaucracy and the flawed nature of human beings. It does so without judgment, reflecting familiar traits in slightly exaggerated ways. There are very few moments you’ll laugh out loud at, but you will be amused as much as depressed by the proceedings. Though a scene where the characters finally get to air some grievances will come close to getting a chuckle.

In considering quality television, GETTING ON excels. It’s an authentic piece with nuanced characters. The cast is across-the-board excellent, both the stars and the supporting players. The world is well-developed, and if anything has changed in season two, it’s that the writers know their parameters better, making for a more fully realized premise. I highly recommend checking it out.

GETTING ON airs Sundays at 10:30 p.m. ET on HBO.

Got to be GETTING ON

Article first published as GETTING ON Review on Seat42F.


HBO’s GETTING ON, premiering this week, is a very dark comedy. So dark you might not realize you’re supposed to be laughing until late in the episode. Based on the British series of the same name, and running only six episodes (at least for now), it follows the doctors and nurses in the elderly care wing of a hospital that’s having hard times. Their jobs suck, they are forced to do things they don’t like, and they are neither the brightest nor the most compassionate people in the industry, jaded and exhausted.

This actually gives it a feel of realism. We’re used to our doctors being beautiful and energetic and our nurses being sexy and sassy on the small screen. GETTING ON actually downplays the looks of its cast. Not that anyone on the series is ugly at all, but they come across as regular people, concerned with real things. This label applies to both the hospital’s staff and its patients, though the former get much more of the focus.

As the pilot, “Born On the Fourth of July,” begins, it’s Independence Day and Doctor Jenna James (Laurie Metcalf, The Big Bang Theory, Roseanne) is stuck running the wing again. She doesn’t consider this duty part of her “real” job, but it’s been three months since the department lost its overseer, and she’s frequently been forced to pull shifts here.

Also working the floor are Nurse Dawn (Alex Borstein, Family Guy), a by-the-book suck-up and coward, new staff member Nurse DiDi (Niecy Nash, Reno 911!), who is caring and has sense, and Beverly (Telma Hopkins, Family Matters), who does not get along well with Jenna at all. By the end of the day, this beleaguered crew of four will be down to three, though that is just as depressing as everything else going on.

Yet, as sad as the lives presented are, there is something humorous behind the events of “Born On the Fourth of July.” It may be misunderstandings, or debates over meaningless things, or the way you just know things are going to get worse before they get better, but there’s a constant flow of energy that will amuse.

I credit this to the performers. Sure, the writing has to be excellent to make this all come together right, but if the actresses were dropping the ball even a little, or not so darned talented at punching up small things in sly ways, it also wouldn’t flow. A look or a mannerism has as much to do with the humor of GETTING ON as a line of dialogue does.

Not that GETTING ON is terribly complex. One might read much into it and come up with an in-depth explanation, but the surface is enough because it’s a layered, nuanced surface. The characters are weird, but familiar. It’s very accessible, and while not everyone will laugh out loud while watching it, most people should find something to connect to.

There are some poop jokes at the very beginning, if you’re into that sort of thing, which I’m not. But thankfully, the rest of the comedy tends to skew a bit smarter, including the continuing use of the fecal situation for comic effect, which goes on for quite some time, but develops in more interesting ways than first expected.

Honestly, I find it hard to pinpoint exactly what the best elements of “Born On the Fourth of July” are. But I know I liked it, and I know I want to watch more. And I also smell some Emmy bait in a short-season dramedy sure to set itself apart from the competition and showcase the amazing skills of some wonderful ladies.

GETTING ON premieres Sunday at 10 p.m. ET on HBO.