Peacock scores with at least 2 original shows with heart.
On the flip side, Netflix shoots out a Hitchcock-eqsue "Rear Window" with lofty intentions based on the bestselling thriller "The Woman in the Window" that doesn't go anywhere.
I downloaded the NBC streaming service, Peacock’s app on Roku this weekend. It’s free if you don’t factor in the commercials you have to sit thru to pay for the price of admission and the invaluable personal data NBCUniversal/Comcast are collecting about you as you stream joyfully, almost guilt-free trying hard not to think about those pesky interrupting cow thoughts.
Now you know why it took me so long to find my way to Peacock. Secret’s out. Ok, it’s not the interrupting cow meme, but I did have to think carefully about adding yet another streaming service to our family fare of programming options. Not to mention the fact that I literally had to be bored senseless by a Netflix movie to come to the conclusion that there was no more worthy original content to be had on Hulu, Netflix, or Prime worth my time. This led me to discover two shows on Peacock that I’d been recently introduced to either by way of Tina Fey’s Smartless interview or courtesy of my hubby who likes Ed Helms (Andy from The Office).
I really like Ed Helms too and for anyone jonesing for The Office, watch Helms’ (a notable singer in his own right) sing a cover of Sarah McLachlan’s “I will remember you” infused with tearjerker worthy scenes from The Office in the video below that will make you wish it was 2009 again. Oh yeah and you can also watch The Office on Peacock as well. It’s no longer on Netflix.
So we’ll start with not to watch. Don’t waste your time on Amy Adams’ turn as Dr. Anna Fox, an agoraphobic, in director Joe Wright’s homage to Hitchcock, The Woman in the Window. While some of the scenes are artistically interesting to watch, seeing a woman come apart over the course of 2 hours, while slightly better than watching her unravel over a limited series’ run like the one Eve Hewson does in Behind her Eyes (yet another pretty entertaining thriller novel that should never have made its way to Netflix) is less than ideal. There is some high-hitting talent in this The Woman in the Window. Amy Adams does a convincing job in the role of an anguished woman who just may be a reliable narrator but everyone thinks she’s crazy, so it doesn’t really matter.
Gary Oldman comes out of hibernation and that’s always a good thing but I wish it was for something a bit better than this. Then there’s the someone that convinced Julianne Moore to take a part in this schlock but was wise enough to allow her to constrain herself to 10 minutes of screentime, so you know, there’s that…If I’m being harsh here it’s because gosh, all this talent and what a waste and second to that is that I wasted valuable weekend time watching this and I’m mad about that.
What to watch:
Rutherford Falls on Peacock. Ed Helms (Andy, The Office) plays privileged male, Nathan Rutherford with just enough likable “aw shucks” bravado that you really buy the schtick he’s selling. And to be fair, he is a “good” guy - nice, smart, has integrity and lives by a code. That code is to ensure that his family’s good name be upheld and to teach the good citizens of Rutherford Falls, NY about a version of his-story that is centuries old and the residents of the town no longer care about. To make this story more interesting and nuanced, Rutherford Falls was originally Native American land and those indigenous peoples are very much apart of the cultural and community fabric of the town - as witnessed by the casino where Nathan’s (Ed Helms) best friend is played by Reagan Wells works. Reagan (Jana Schmieding) is director of the cultural center which is literally a storefront in the casino and even with her 2 Masters degrees and undergrad degree from Northwestern can’t convince the casino’s owner, played by Michael Greyeyes, to invest in a proper cultural center. The first episode sets up what promises to be a good arc this season with Helms’ figurative faceplant during a very public event in which he basically pisses off everyone and sets a crisis management fiasco in play, ironically putting Rutherford Falls on the map.
What I really dug: It shows Reagan and Nathan as caring, platonic friends but Nathan has never walked a nanosecond in Reagan’s shoes and has no idea what it is to not have agency. He’s a Rutherford, after all. There’s moments with Reagan looking at Nathan with disbelief after he behaves with a certain lack of self-awareness but it will be good to dig there a little more, maybe even have Nathan come to certain realizations about the power he holds and how others aren’t entitled in the same ways he’s had the fortune to be. And by “others,” his best friend.
I also ship the fact that Schitt’s Creek Ted, is possibly playing Reagan’s love interest. I can ship that love story.
Girls5eva on Peacock. Sara Bareilles, Renée Elise Goldsberry, Busy Philipps and Paula Pell as 4 of the original 5 members of an all-girls band from the late 90s/early 00s (think Danity Kane) who decide to get the band back together after 20+ years. Cue the laugh track and Spanx jokes, but really it’s sharper than that and better than that. It’s reminiscent of 30 Rock in its self-deprecating style of humor and why wouldn’t it be? It has Tina Fey behind it.
While it’s not great television, it is fun television and entertaining. Sara Bareilles and Renee Elise Goldsberry make the transition from stage to camera with ease (not to mention they bring the singing chops) and Busy Philipps steals the show as a self-obsessed, but not entirely vapid, does her best to be like a Real Housewives of one those places type caricature without being an actual caricature. Paula Pell is naturally pretty funny, but then again she’s the actual comedian-by-trade of the bunch. She wrote for SNL for a number of years as well.
Until next week, enjoy your watching and be sure to leave a comment below to share your own thoughts. I’d love to hear them.
Wanted to say that Oldman was in Mank recently but I don't know anyone who actually watched it....