When it burst onto the air two years ago, I wasn't sure what to expect. "Cybill" was replacing "Love and War", a show I, and apparently four other people nationwide, cherished. Sure, Cybill proved she was adept at pulling off quirky drama like "Moonlighting", but a sitcom? Was Cybill a comedian?
The answer was no, but that was OK. Cybill had enough supporting clout around her to make "Cybill" a success. Shepherd plays actress Cybill Sheridan, who grew up down South and broke into Hollywood early on in life(what a stretch). Sheridan has to suffer her family's problems as well as her own. Shepherd could be worse, but her comedic timing STILL needs work, even after years of practice. Baranski shines as jilted ex-wife Maryann Thorpe. She had the most insightful witty looks into life that TV hadn't seen in years. Maybe it was just Maryann's constant alcohol intake doing the talking, but I didn't care. Baranski was a hoot, and she won a Best Supporting Actress Emmy for her work, which is very tough to do on a midseason replacement show. Alan Rosenberg plays one of Cybill's ex-husbands, Ira Woodbine, a successful mystery writer who is suave on the outside, and in emotional turmoil on the inside. Tom Wopat plays the other former hubby, Jeff the stuntman, your typical neanderthal stereotype of a man. Sheridan's daughters always have some reasons to give Cybill more ulcers. Rachel(Dedee Pfeiffer) is Jeff's kid, and she has already become a mother with her stiff as a board husband Kevin. She is used to being pampered and Cybill has had just about enough of it. Ira's daughter, Zoey(Alicia Witt), is a delightfully cyincal oddity in this Hollywood family. The rest of the characters view her as quirky. From the viewer's standpoint, she's got more sanity than the others combined.
So, what's the state of "Cybill"? Baranski and Shepherd had the chance to become the next Lucy and Ethel. The problem is that Cybill would be Ethel, and a very bland one at that. I don't know who's cut Baranski's lines, but the show is rapidly becoming "The Cybill Shepherd Variety Show". While Maryann sits silently and sways to the beat, Cybill halts the episode to belt out tunes. "That's Life", "New Attitude", and "Respect" have all been Cybill-ized. Shepherd is no Streisand, and her drab crooning fits in quite uncomfortably with the show. Cybill Sheridan was a struggling actress. Now, she's got a steady job, where her main purpose is to flaunt excess cleavage. Shepherd does this shamelessly, as she tries to turn this once stellar sitcom into a one woman "Baywatch". Baranski does what she can, but Maryann is decidedly conservative these days. Rosenberg and Wopat are rarely used, and when they are, they are looked down upon in that same sort of "Designing Women" men-are-scum type indignation. Pfeiffer is simply blah as Rachel, and the character has outworn her welcome. Witt's Zoey, on the other hand, is still one of TV's funniest daughters, and her lines have thankfully gone undiminished.
On the whole, "Cybill" is off a few steps slower than last season, and while one Witt continues to entertain, another wit, from the mouth the grand divorcee Maryann, has been inexplicably smothered. Note to Ms. Shepherd: never underestimate the power of Baranski.
Step back into the Saloon