Just call them "Desperate Businessmen." I was all prepared to hate this show and be tortured by nearly every moment of it. Maybe that's why it didn't suck as much as I thought. The show wasn't terrible but I wouldn't call it great either. As a conissour of cheesy TV and film, there were parts of the show I really did enjoy and others that, well, were less than ideal.

Spoilers...if you really care.

I didn't bring up the Desperate Housewives comparison for no reason. The show really is set up in a similar fashion - all four men are friends and tied together by a common place (the golf club they're all members of) and each have what I'm guessing will be a season-long dilemma to deal with (most of which I'm sure will intersect at some point). They all have their archetypes and the predicaments they find themselves in play very much into that. Let's run the characters down one by one, shall we?

• Duncan Collingsworth - Played by the delicious Dylan McDermott. The "Alpha Male"/man-whore of the group, Duncan is Edie, for all intents and purposes. Sure, he's a bit of a womanizer and got arrested for..."receiving services" from a prostitute that ended up being a transvestite, the revelation of which would get him fired as CEO of Reveal Cosmetics if the female reporter who's gotten wind of it publishes the story in the Forbes-like magazine she works for 6 weeks from now, but underneath it all he's got some feelings that would qualify him as human. For example, he's having a torrid fling with his ex-wife (Paige Turco who I'll always remember as "Replacement April" in the second and third Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movies) who he's falling for again and he also has to deal with the daughter they had together, now 19 and just as stubborn and outspoken as he, who he must give a job to at the company. All in all, this is not necessarily new territory for Dylan - he's played the lovable rogue before - so it's no surprise that as much as Duncan is a jerk, you also kind of like him. Or maybe I'm just saying that because there was a scene of him exiting a pool in the club steam room...
• Brody Johns - Played by Christopher Titus (who, thanks to IMDB, I just found out was in Killer Clowns From Outer Space - I knew I'd seen him somewhere before he got his sitcom...). Ladies and Gents, I present the Whipped Boy. Pretty much the whole episode is him cracking jokes about how terrible it is for him being married while constantly taking calls from his wife and various vendors for the birthday party she's told him to plan. When the party goes well at the end of the episode, he does express a sentiment of actual love and affection for her but...dude, suck it up. The one thing that is interesting about his character is that he's the founder of an uber-successful crisis management company, making him the go-to guy for when things go wrong for everyone else. This could evolve into a somewhat interesting role if the writers lay of the hack "I'm a prisoner of marriage" jokes.
• Karl Mixworthy - Played by Joshua Malina (one of several Sports Night alums to end up on other ABC shows this season alone). His has by far the least appealing storyline. See, he's the otherwise honorable guy who couldn't bear the thought of losing his wife Wendy (Amy Sloan) yet is having an affair with a hot, young blond named Marla (Jessica Collins who was on Tru Calling, yet another show FOX killed before it's time). His big problem? Well, besides Marla wanting to go to couples counseling with him just because he and Wendy are doing it, Marla's decided to introduce herself to Wendy. Originally she was going to blow the whistle, but they hit it off and have now become friends since Marla will be redecorating the guest house. Cry me a river, jerkface. This is what you get for not only having an affair, but doing it with someone who so clearly has crazy eyes. I guess the point of this is to be interested in what will happen in this bizarre triangle but eh. If all the actors involved didn't play their parts so well, I'd just as soon see them all die in a random manhole explosion.
• Last, but certainly not least, James Auster - Played by Michael Vartan. Ah, Michael Vartan. How I do adore you. You were so great on Kitchen Confidential (which FOX shouldn't have canceled either). Your character, alas, is the only one that I can say I like without feeling a little dirty inside. Yes, your "Nice Guy Who Gets Screwed" character is cliche, but I'll allow it because it's you. See, James is having a rough few days - first, his boss tells him that he's fired at the golf club during a yearly BBQ; then, his boss dies after being struck by a cart (which has all the earmarks of a murder mystery, by the way); then, he finds out that his wife has been cheating on him with his dead boss at the funeral at said club. Sure, the boss didn't tell anyone about the firing so he not only still has a job, James gets to be the new CEO, but that doesn't make the affair go away. And, seriously, who would cheat on Michael Vartan with some old dude? Please. When James confronts her about it later and then she tries to talk to him at the end of the episode all weepy and sad, I had not a modicum of sympathy for her. Plus, she probably killed the old goat. Boo on you lady. At least there's co-worker/friend/possible hook-up Katie Graham hovering about. Nia Long is excellent in the role. When he tells her that he got CEO instead of her, her reaction was great. She better be around a whole lot.

So, yeah. That's it. It didn't partially devour my soul and there were some funny moments in it, so I'll tuck this in the drawer marked "Potential" somewhere behind Flash Gordon.

What did you all think? Were any of these guys likable? How many played marriage jokes can the writers fit in one episode? How cute are Dylan McDermott and Michael Vartan? Discuss, people, discuss!

Comments

I actually had the opposite reaction as I didn't like the show at all and thought it was much worse than: a) I thought it would be; and b) much worse than I'd been led to believe it would be.

I think the cast is way too large and that they really should have not introduced everything at once. Unlike Desperate Housewives or Lost where everyone had a place when they first started up it seems like there are too many extraneous parts here.

I think that they should have slowly introduced some of the characters a little later in the season and focused on certain parts of the story. It seems to me that the producers/writers just said these are all the stories we have and we'll put them all out there at once and then choose which ones to focus on as we go along. IMO, it would have been better served to focus on a few stories and then introduce the new stories as old once finished or started to fail.

It seems to me that each of the 4 main characters has about 3 stories each. I think they should have started with 1 story each and then filtered in the other stories as we got to know the characters a bit better.

Perhaps the writers do know where they are going and all the stories are needed together to make sense, but I know that I won't be there to find out if that is the case. This is the first new series that I watched this year that I have eliminated from my viewing pattern for the year. That's too bad b/c I no longer watch ER or Without A Trace.

As an aside, I'm still confused (and have been since the May Upfronts) as to why ABC decided to not put Private Practise in the post Grey's Anatomoy timeslot. I think that they should have placed it there for the first year and then moved it out of the slot in its second year.

After one week it looks like a good move for ABC with PP winning the Wed. 9pm timeslot, but I'll reserve judgement on this until the first break of the season in early Dec.

Rishi | Sep 28, 2007 1:13:04 AM | #

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I disagree with both of you. I thought the show was going to be stupid but watched it anyways. I was entertained.

I thought the mistress/decorator angle was a bit far fetched--including his wife taking her to the party. That part irritated me. That would not happen.

Other than that, I enjoyed the other's stories. I liked how Brody talked all tough about marriage and the drag that it is but it is obvious how much he loves his wife. I enjoyed Duncan hiring his daughter who hates him. I also liked the drama with James and his cheating wife.

Maybe they should find a blogger who hasn't decided not to like the show. That is irritating to read.

Bo | Sep 28, 2007 4:44:14 AM | #

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What an awful show. Even worse than Private Practice. Can the guys be involved in a tragic accident and have Michael Vartan as the sole survivor? Maybe he could make new friends that we could care about.

Tina | Sep 28, 2007 5:58:33 AM | #

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I took it for what it's worth...Sex and the City for men. It's entertainment. I'm not looking for Emmy award winning stuff here at all. That being said, I knew the pilot had been rejiggered a few times and they have brought in Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars) to pep up the dialogue so I'm looking forward to it more.

Duncan - Don't you think he's a man whore because he's got some lingering insecurity? He's the character that has the most ability to change and grow. I think the relationship with his daughter will be the catalyst.

James Walker (formerly Auster) - Well thank you for bringing back Michael Vartan to tv first of all. Second of all, I want to see how he reacts to his growing attraction to Katie. Will he go for it or will he feel like he's cheating on his wife?

Brody - Typical guy bravado about marriage but yet he's whipped and his friends know it. I'll be excited when we meet his wife.

Kyle - Geek with a gorgeous mistress and a pretty wife, I think this could be interesting especially when the wife eventually finds out.

I'll keep tuning in because I think it has potention. Plus MV and Dylan McDermott as eye candy, that I can live with.

Julie | Sep 28, 2007 6:16:49 AM | #

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I'm waiting to see the second episode before making a final decision, but all in all the show really wasn't that great. Of course, like Julie said, MV & DM are definite eye candy I too can live with and they may be just what keeps me coming back.

Shannon | Sep 28, 2007 7:50:53 AM | #

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a bit over the top but i related to the guys in a strange sort of way. I even caught myself laughing out loud at parts.

But how come we never see Brody's wife?

Jonathan Samuel | Sep 28, 2007 8:55:00 AM | #

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Did anyone else think that the old dead guy was going to turn out to be MV's wife dad instead of her lover? That would have seemed more believable... He was supposedly a jerk and MV's wife seemed like a nice lady although very surprise when MV told her his talk with his boss was about some report and he didn't tell her he had just been fired... I almost think the mystery there is worth exploring. I may give it another try but if the show does not pick up the pace I smell cancellation... Too bad I really like the cast!

| Sep 28, 2007 9:31:07 AM | #

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It wasn't that bad. I liked the actors...the clothes could be better. I could use an hour of Sex in the City with Men. But, I need to feel for the characters more before I witness what poor choices they are making. I never would have tolorated Carrie Bradshaw's life if it were exposed on the first episode. But....bring it on let's see what the boys got!

Nena | Sep 28, 2007 10:40:05 AM | #

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The show is crap. We're supposed to feel sorry for these guys and their problems? And what CEO's have that kind of time to spend with their pals? Titus leaves his wife's party when it's over to go have cigars with his buddies? Please.

Rich | Sep 28, 2007 11:05:48 AM | #

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I think this show has great potential. There is intrigue, romance, cut-throat business dealings, hot guys, murder mystery, class issues, race issues (potentially), gender issues.... this could run the gamut and become an all-around BIG SHOT SHOW.

adgirl007 | Sep 28, 2007 12:22:37 PM | #

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It should really be called Big Shits... I know that's a cheap shot, but considering how tired the script is, it's justified. This show and Private Practice are the breakout flops of this season. I have been waiting a long time to see Dylan Mcdermott in a meaningful role, but I guess I'll have to wait longer.

AC | Sep 28, 2007 3:00:15 PM | #

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I went into this knowing it was eye candy...but even I was dismayed at the incredible silliness of the plotting and dialogue.
Christopher Titus almost saved this for me. Almost. But not quite.

Mavourneen | Sep 28, 2007 7:48:15 PM | #

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I have been dying to see Michael Vartan back on TV so that's why I'm watching. He gave his usual stellar yet understated performance and was totally believable and sympathetic in his scenes despite the awkward plotting: why would his boss be holding the necklace he's going to give James' wife as he summons James to see him? Why would James' wife hold the necklace and openly cry at the coffin in front of anybody who might be looking? Strained and stupid. James could have just seen her wearing the neckace - simpler is always better. The plot with Karl and his 3-ring-circus is stupid and boring actually. Titus' character is engaging and endearing and the plot the only one without holes. I love Dylan McDermott but his character is over-the-top sleazy to me except when he is trying to help his daughter and putting up with her cheekiness; then he too is endearing - probably all the more because he is such a jerk the rest of the time. The cast - men and women both - are fantastic and deserve much better than this. Hopefully the new producer (I don't trust my memory with the name - Rob Thomas? the same as the singer?) will save this and we will get to keep watching these folks - especially the long-missed Michael Vartan - for a long while.

Janet | Sep 28, 2007 8:48:49 PM | #

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this was a great show, all those people who do not like the show have bad taste, thats all there is to it. Stop your complaining and enjoy the show, it is one of the seasons best

i am a small shot | Sep 29, 2007 6:19:08 PM | #

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Terrible show.... I give 7 episodes and it'll be canceled.

Jane | Oct 5, 2007 3:52:29 PM | #

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I just finally got around to watching the premiere, and I also enjoyed it much more than I thought I would.

Karl's story was really quite stupid (yay for a HIMYM crazy eyes reference though!). I actually really liked Brody as a guy, and I don't think his stuff was going the "marriage sucks" way as much as the "I'm whipped" way (I think there's a big difference), so I thought it was good. Duncan is pretty hilarious (but making hair products for wigs? and he's a CEO?). Michael Vartan... how delicious!! His performance was really amazing, every head tilt was dead-on perfect.

My favorite part of this show is really the interactions between the guys though. They were really funny together, and Brody really shines in that area, with James and Duncan being awesome too. Karl really didn't do anything for me. Ever.

I was pleasantly surpised that this show turned out to be interesting and fun without being miserably over-dramatic. I'm excited!

Sarah | Oct 19, 2007 7:28:31 AM | #

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What happned to the show, has it been cancelled? I have not seen it for couple of weeks now.

Lulu | Dec 20, 2007 11:38:41 AM | #

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What happned to the show, has it been cancelled? I have not seen it for couple of weeks now.

Lulu | Dec 20, 2007 11:38:46 AM | #

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