Supporting cast outshines stars in ‘Back to You’
I watched the premiere episode of
”
Back to You
”
and I didn’t hate it. Then again, I didn’t like it, either. As a
matter of fact it’s hard to say how I feel about it. I do know one
thing
– if it never aired again I don’t think anyone would miss
it.
Supporting cast outshines stars in ‘Back to You’
I watched the premiere episode of “Back to You” and I didn’t hate it. Then again, I didn’t like it, either. As a matter of fact it’s hard to say how I feel about it. I do know one thing – if it never aired again I don’t think anyone would miss it.
“Back to You” stars Kelsey Grammer and Patricia Heaton as bickering co-anchors on the nightly news at a Pittsburgh TV station. Grammer plays Chuck Darling who left the station 10 years ago to work in L.A. and returns after being fired when an on air tirade is broadcast on Youtube.
On his last night in Pittsburgh he and co-anchor Kelly Carr (Heaton) had a one-night stand that resulted in her becoming pregnant and having a daughter. When Chuck comes back to Pittsburgh he finds out that he is the father of a 10-year-old girl. Kelly hates him for leaving and now Chuck wants to get to know the daughter he never knew he had.
So is it a good show? It’s OK. Grammer and Heaton don’t really have good chemistry together, which is disappointing, since they were both so good on their previous shows.
Grammer is at his best playing intellectual snobs such as the Frasier character he played for 20 years. He looks like an anchorman, but his personality isn’t suited for the role. It’s hard to see him play anyone else, but Frasier Crane.
He just doesn’t fit the mold as a womanizing newscaster. His old “Cheers” cast mate Ted Danson seems better suited. It isn’t funny watching the 52-year-old Grammer flirt with a twenty-something actress. It’s just creepy.
Heaton at 49 still looks good, but her character isn’t really developed. She earned her stripes by sparring with Ray Romano on “Everybody Loves Raymond,” but her character was a real person. In “Back To You” it seems like she was just put there to give Grammer someone to fight with. All the characters speak like they are from a Neil Simon play trading jabs and insults.
The co-stars come off better than the actual stars. While I was watching the premiere I was thinking how much better the show would be if they focused on the supporting cast instead of Grammer and Heaton.
Josh Gad plays the 26-year-old news director Ryan Church. He runs around barking out orders that everyone ignores. When Chuck first meets him, he asks Church to park his car. He has big sweat stains under his arms when things aren’t going right that by the looks of it is going to happen every episode.
Fred Willard is Marsh McGinley the sports broadcaster who is stuck in the seventies. Even though he is an old pro he still vomits before every broadcast. Willard is funny with the right material. The writers just need to bulk up his character.
Ty Burrell who was great in the remake of “Dawn Of The Dead” plays Gary Crezyzewski the field reporter. He desperately wants to be the anchorman and regrets Chuck’s return to the show.
“You told me that I was going to be the anchorman,” he tells Church. “You said you were grooming me.”
“We meant your eyebrows when we went to high def,” Church tells him.
Crezyzewski is also mad that everyone mispronounces his name. The funniest part of the episode was when he was trying to give an update outside in the pouring rain and howling wind.
He is great at giving out insults and directs most of his venom at Montana Stevens the weather lady.
Ayda Field plays Montana Stevens who uses her “Latinaness” to get ahead and speaks in an exaggerated Mexican accent while on the air. She wears short skirts and low cut tops. She is the perfect parody of every weather lady on Telemundo. When Chuck first meets her, he asks if he should call her the weather girl or weather lady.
“I prefer meteorologist,” she answers.
“You’re not a meteorologist,” Church butts in.
“But I prefer it,” she snaps.
She wants to sleep with Chuck because she likes men in power. She says that knowing powerful men want to sleep with her is the only way she feels comfortable at work. She is also good at hurling insults towards Gary Crezyzewski.
Montana Stevens was my favorite character. I had never seen Ayda Field before. According to imdb.com, she’s 28 and was born in Los Angeles. Some of her other credits are an episode of “Will & Grace,” “Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip” and the soap opera “Days Of Our Lives.” She’s very funny in the role and I’m hoping that she will be the break out star this season.
In recent years sitcoms have been in decline so it’s good to see FOX is trying to bring one back. This is a strange show for the FOX network. Most of their programming is aimed towards younger viewers. “Back To You” seems better suited for CBS or NBC.
As I said before the show wasn’t bad. It just wasn’t memorable. The producers should scrap the Grammer and Heaton characters and just deal with the supporting cast. Or just have the two main stars read the news and have the show concentrate on the backstage antics of the supporting cast. I think it would be funnier that way.
I hope the show does well. Maybe after a few more viewings it will grow on me. It better do well in the ratings because FOX is quick to cancel shows that don’t perform.
The show airs Wednesday nights at 8pm.
