JAM! - TELEVISION

Tuesday, September 1, 1998

Originality rare but well-done in new fall TV fare

TORONTO (CP) -- A few year ago, it was sex, nudity and foul language.

For fall 1998, it's a sequence involving drugs that represents the leading edge of network television's attempts to push prime-time barriers and to hold onto an audience that keeps melting away with each passing season.

"It's certainly not overt and it's quite humorous in the context that it's presented," says a defensive Doug Hoover, chief programmer for Global TV about the pothead scene in That 70's Show, a new and refreshingly-original sitcom from Fox that's already on the air.

As the title suggests, this is retro-hip stuff, about a group of American midwest teens coping with life in the tumultuous 1970s. In the pilot instalment, the gang has obviously just toked up and giggles foolishly as the room spins around their lecturing parents.

It recalls the fuss in 1993 when Stephen Bochco's NYPD Blue offered blue language and naked tushes as a prime-time first. Last year, it was the opener of Bochco's Brooklyn South that included a scene of a police officer sustaining a massive head wound.

Apart from such exceptions, however, the established broadcasters continue to breed familiarity over originality in 1998-99 despite steady losses of viewership to other, less-inhibited entertainment on home video or cable-satellite specialty services.

Invoking the sincerest form of flattery, programmers prefer to imitate material with a proven track record: more fractured families and single-parent sitcoms, fantasy horror in the Millennium-X-Files vein, and plots that strongly resemble hit feature films or earlier prime-time successes.

For example, with the rave reviews that followed Ally McBeal, one of last season's rare breakout hits, comes Felicity, a funky teen-angst drama featuring the stunning Keri Russell as a high-school graduate looking ahead with trepidation to university and her future life.

There's Maggie Winters, Faith Ford's series about a woman who leaves a cheatin' husband and returns to her small-town home complete with mom, apple pie and the high-school hunk she left behind (Sandra Bullock's movie Hope Floats anyone?)

Brimstone stars Peter Horton as the man hired by The Devil himself to track down a group of supernatural villains who broke out of Hell and are roaming the Earth. Good old Fantasy Island has been dusted off and given a darker tone with the edgy Malcolm McDowell as a Tattoo-less Mr. Roarke.

Even the CBC is looking to the past for inspiration with the always-watchable Nicholas Campbell as a crusading coroner in Da Vinci's Inquest (Anyone remember Wojeck?)

This is not to say there aren't oases of originality, even Canadian ones. CTV, now united under its new, single owner, Baton Broadcasting, is assembling Power Play, a smartly-written and long overdue series about pro hockey, specifically about an abrasive NHL player agent and his down-on-its-luck team. The inspiration drawn from Jerry Maguire, Slap Shot and HBO's Arli$$ is quickly apparent.

And Global, which admits its strength is in its returning hit shows, not the new stuff, has a two-hour movie called Justice to air after the New Year. From the creators of Traders, it has Justice Department lawyers in Ottawa tackling such trendy issues as Quebec sovereignty claims and Nazi war criminals.

Alyson Feltes, writer, creator and executive producer, is confident of an eventual series spinoff as is Loren Mawhinney, Global's Canadian production vice-president, who calls the TV movie "one of the most intelligent and powerful" she's ever seen.

"The pilot's going to cause a lot of controversy," Feltes promises.

"People are certainly going to watch. It looks for that gritty, take-no-prisoners attitude that Traders has."

But another regrettably-familiar trend that can be expected will be the knee-jerk schedule shuffling by jittery American programmers, always a headache for Canadian broadcasters who are contractually obliged to simulcast most imports. Only days and weeks into the new fall season many new shows will be moved around or summarily dismissed in the absence of instant acceptance by viewers.

"I think that they're reacting almost in a semi-panic mode," laments Jim MacDonald, president of WIC Television.

"First of all is the significant reduction of a core audience base as a result of fragmentation, and second of all, the inability with that smaller audience to turn new programs into hits. It is an enormous problem leading to an even higher failure rate."

Tom Fontana, creator of the critically-revered police drama Homicide, agrees it is a "staggeringly stupid way" of doing business, in which most new shows are almost certainly doomed to failure.

For his next series, the acclaimed prison drama Oz, Fontana went to cable's HBO instead.

Some trends to watch for in the 1998-99 prime-time TV season:

Old gals out, young ones in: Gone are Cybill and Murphy Brown, replaced by teen heroines like Felicity's Keri Russell.

Gays are in: Despite sour-grapes grumblings from Ellen Degeneres, there are more gay characters in the new sitcoms. They are in supporting roles but sympathetic nevertheless, without descending to swishy stereotypes. In NBC's Will and Grace, a woman and a gay man live together.

Everything Irish: An unusual number of new U.S. series involve Irish Catholic families. From serious dramas like Trinity and To Have and To Hold to comedies like Costello.

Adult Cartoons: The runaway success of The Simpsons, King of the Hill and South Park is breeding clones like Global's Bob and Margaret and Family Guy (in which both the baby and the dog talk and the baby, gasp, appears to be trying to assassinate his mom!)

Movie plots ripped off: From the aforementioned Will and Grace (a clone of The Object of My Affection) to Faith Ford's Maggie Winters (Hope Floats). Also watch for direct spinoff series like Total Recall (although Strange Days, despite similar millennial angst, might undergo a title change to avoid comparisons to last year's feature film)

Radio-TV settings: Hits like Newsradio and Larry Sanders mean more shows set within the broadcast industry. Sports Night takes place behind the scenes of a cable show, while Brian Ben Ben plays an insecure TV anchor in his new series.

Fractured families and dysfunctional relationships: Will there ever be a stable TV family again like Ozzie and Harriet or Father Knows Best? Even the Olson twins are back with a widowed dad. It seems single moms and embittered families tend to yield more comedy and drama possibilities.

Some of the new network programming coming to prime-time in the 1998-99 TV season:

CBC:

Cover Me: Described as a sexy post-Cold War action/adventure series pairing an Alberta Mountie and a separatist-minded Quebec woman who works for CSIS, the intelligence service. Winter.

Da Vinci's Inquest: Nicholas Campbell in a Wojeck-inspired hour-long crime series about a Vancouver coroner and his forensic pathologist ex-wife. Fall.

Nothing Too Good For a Cowboy: Spinoff from the CBC movie about B.C. cowboys in the 1940s. Ted Atherton and Sarah Chalke (Roseanne) co-star. January.

Pit Pony: Another TV-movie spinoff about a boy miner in Glace Bay and his mining-pit pony at the turn of the (last) century. Winter.

Casting Couch: Also known as The Industry, with Rick Mercer in a six-episode comedy as a Canadian film executive trying to claw his way to the top. Fall.

The Broad Side: A six-part comedy series from Jane Ford depicting women throughout history as played by an ensemble cast of Canadian stars. (TBA)

Dooley Gardens: Six half-hours with Mary Walsh (22 Minutes) and Andy Jones (Codco) and a dilapidated St. John's hockey arena. Winter.

Sketchcom: A 13-part series showcasing some of the best sketch troupes in the country. (From Air Farce's Roger Abbott and Don Ferguson) (Oct.)

TV movies and mini-series: The true right-to-die story of Sue Rodriguez; Big Bear, the true story of the great Plains Cree Chief; External Affairs, all about murder and intrigue involving Canadian diplomats, and In the Blue Ground, a movie finale to the already-cancelled North of 60.

CTV:

Flesh and Blood: In the tradition of Upstairs, Downstairs, the intersecting lives of Toronto's rich and poor. (TBA)

Power Play: Filmed in Toronto and Hamilton, the story of a shrewd but morally questionable pro hockey agent and the NHL team he's asked to run. (Oct.)

Felicity: A 17-year-old decides to defy her control-freak parents and gamble her entire future on a spontaneous decision to go to the same university as the young man she has a crush on (Torontonian Scott Speedman). Ron Howard executive produces. (WB)

L.A. Doctors: Ken Olin and Canada's Matt Craven are part of a group of young, dedicated doctors who decide to say no to big bucks and open a storefront practice instead (it's NOT supposed to be fantasy!) (CBS)

Charmed: Forget the wisecracks about typecasting as Shannen Doherty plays one of a trio of young women in San Francisco who find out they are witches. More Craft than Clueless. From Aaron Spelling. (WB)

Sports Night: Like Larry Sanders this series takes place both "on-air" and behind the scenes of a fictional TV show, in this case a sports program. Snappy repartee and quick wits are the order of the day. Again Ron Howard is an executive producer. (ABC)

The Secret Lives of Men: Peter Gallagher leads a group of touchy-feely divorced men in this low-key who-cares dramedy. From Warners. (ABC)

Trinity: Intense drama about The McCallisters, an Irish-Catholic family, whose younger members are trying to break out of New York's Hell's Kitchen. One son's a cop, one's a priest and the third is a bad-boy union goon. Canadian Justin Louis featured. (NBC)

Costello: Comic Sue Costello recalls Cheers as a barmaid in a south Boston pub called The Bulldog. Dan Lauria co-stars, from Disney. (Fox)

TV movies and mini-series: The David Milgaard Story; The Sheldon Kennedy Story, and Sarah Polley in Class Rebellion at Burger High, a timely tale about a teen who tries to unionize a fast-food chain outlet.

Global:

The Brian Ben Ben Show: Ben Ben (cable's Dream On) plays an insecure TV news anchor in yet another comedy series in a media setting, from Warners.

Bob and Margaret: This Canadian-UK co-production is a Simpsons-style adult animation series about a middle-class dentist and his family. Based on the Oscar-winning short, Bob's Birthday. Global programmers are pleased and hopeful but are holding its debut until December.

Brimstone: Peter Horton stars and executive produces this filmed-in-Toronto Millennium clone about a man who must hunt down 113 demons who broke out of Hell and are roaming the Earth. (Fox)

Cupid: Larry Sanders' acerbic Jeremy Fiven has potential as a guy who insists he's the real Cupid roaming Chicago (filmed in Vancouver). Each week he will clash with a lovely but skeptical therapist. Fiven also produces. (ABC)

Fantasy Island: Malcolm McDowell replaces Ricardo Montalban in this new, darker version of the old series that owes more to The Twilight Zone. Mr. Roarke clearly has supernatural powers, but no Tattoo, although someone still yells "The plane! The plane!" (ABC)

The Hughleys: Recalls The Jeffersons as a black family with a lot of issues movin' on up into a white 'burb anticipating racism, but so far finding little of it. Chris Rock executive produces this comedy. (ABC)

Hyperion Bay: A computer yuppie returns to his coastal home town to set up a new software business but runs smack into some old family issues. Lots of prime-time angst and soap bubbles all set to the tune of a pop soundtrack. Canadian Dylan Neal is featured. A mid-season replacement at this point. (WB)

Jesse: Formerly called All My Life. Christina Applegate finally gets a chance to break from her Married With Friends bimbo image. She's a smart, single barmaid-mom preparing to re-enter the dating world. In Buffalo, N.Y. no less. (NBC)

That '70s Show: Formerly Feelin' All Right. Retro teen comedy set in 1970s Wisconsin and the age of the lava lamp and bell bottoms. Already on the air, Global says not a single complaint about its maiden "pothead" episode. From Carsey-Werner. (Fox)

TV movies and mini-series: Justice, an ambitious two-hour movie and possible pilot about Justice Department lawyers in Ottawa; a two-parter on The Reichmanns based on Anthony Bianco's book, and Tickling the Dragon's Tail, a documentary about Louis Soltin, the Winnipeg scientist who helped build the atom bomb.

WIC/ONtv:

Becker: A mid-season replacement waiting in the wings has Ted Danson (Cheers, Ink) back, this time as an inner-city doctor who has brains but also a nasty attitude. Titles come with a warning that Becker's views do not necessarily represent those of the writers, producers or network. (CBS)

Turks: One of the more promising shows, about the patriarch (William Davane) of a Chicago cop family. Canada's David Cubitt (Traders) gets second billing playing one of the sons. (CBS)

Encore! Encore!: Nathan Lane (The Birdcage) as a pompous, overbearing opera star who loses his voice and returns in disgrace to his family's California vineyards. An already-funny pilot was reshot this summer, adding Glenn Headly to the cast. (NBC)

Total Recall: The Series: Based on the Schwarzenegger sci-fi film, this F/X-filled made-in-Canada series from Alliance is set in the lawless frontier of a Mars of the future.

Two of a Kind: A sure-fire hit with the Olson twins playing their own namesakes, Mary-Kate and Ashley. Now 11, one is a tomboy, one likes boys and makeup, which proves scary to their widowed dad, who then meets a cute babysitter in a Nanny-in-reverse development. Not for diabetics. (ABC)

Maggie Winters: Murphy Brown's Faith Ford gets her own series, a Hope Floats-ripoff with As Good As It Gets' Shirley Knight as mom. Not to be confused with the other new fall series, Maggie Day with Ann Cusack. (CBS)

Maggie Day: aka just plain Maggie, about a 40-something married woman with a boring hubby (Ed Begley) who is enduring a midlife crisis and falling for her veterinarian boss. Ally McBealish with its fantasy trends and dream sequences. (USA) To Have and To Hold: Moira Kelly (Drive, She Said) and Jason Beghe in a romantic blue collar-white collar comedy about a lawyer and a neighbourhood cop in love. Another pop soundtrack and more Boston Irish flavor. (CBS)

Seven Days: Jonathan LaPaglia (Anthony's lookalike brother) in a sci-fi series about a man who can be sent back in time for a week to undo various world disasters. Canada's Alan Scarfe co-stars. (UPN)

Strange Days: Executive-produced by Howard Gordon (The X-Files) and Yim King (Chicago Hope), the weekly sci-fi adventures of a man who investigates "crimes of science," whatever that means.

Buddy Faro: Dennis Farina in the title role, paired with young Frank Whaley (remember Brad with the big brains in Pulp Fiction?) as two L.A. private eyes who hope to lure two separate viewer demographics. Buddy fell into a bottle back in the '70s and is pulled out by his new partner, but he is still timewarped in the P.I. age of Cadillacs, booze and babes. (CBS)

Wind on Water: Dallas in the South Pacific as recently-widowed rancher Bo Derek (10) plays a recently-widowed rancher in Hawaii with strapping sons that prefer extreme sports to herding cattle. Lush scenery (but with no native Hawaiians) and terrific surfing photography in the pilot. (ABC)

Conrad Bloom: Low-key sitcom with Mark Feuerstein as a Madison Avenue type with a domineering mom (Linda Lavin). Steve Landesberg and Victoria Jackson are ad-agency second bananas. (NBC)

Will and Grace: Recalling Jennifer Anniston's film The Object of My Affection, she likes him and they become roommates, but he is gay. Gay played for laughs, but not with limpwristed stereotypes. Canadian Eric MacCormack featured. (NBC)

Mercy Point: Brian McNamara (Arachnophobia) in a shot-in-Vancouver sci-fi series about the human and alien patients that pass through a space hospital. Borrows expensive-looking spaceship footage from the movie Starship Troopers. Canadian Maria Del Mar is featured. (UPN)

The King of Queens: New York-based blue collar comedy about a big guy who just wants to be alone with his big-screen TV but who must take in his eccentric father-in-law (Jack Carter) and his sister. A disappointingly unfunny pilot. (CBS)