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Premierewatch '08: 'Cashmere Mafia'
Well, ladies and gents, Cashmere Mafia is finally here - the show that will replace Sex and the City in your hearts, minds, and closets! No, not the one with Brooke Shields. The other one.
[Quirkily-dressed spoilers wearing incredible shoes, obviously, to follow.]
Sweeping shots establish that we're in New York. The good one! Not the poor people one. It's entirely possible, actually, that they're just swiping film from Dirty Sexy Money; the city just sparkles. And hey! speaking of sparkling, up trots Mia Mason (Lucy Liu) in a sequined leopard-print skirt with floral applique. Oh, Patricia Field, how I've missed you and your certifiably insane and totally fabulous wardrobe machinations! On her arm is boyfriend of a year (or 364 days, depending on who you ask) Jack Cutting (Tom Everett Scott), who proposes to her in a most winning way. As they make their way back to the publishing company at which they both work, they are stopped by their boss who tells them the firm is downsizing: whomever brings in the most ad sales before Friday is made publisher, and the other is fired. Mia and Jack, high off their engagement, don't care much.
Mia calls up her girlfriends for a lunch at "the usual place" and they arrive, one by one. First is Juliet Draper (Miranda Otto), the COO of a major hotel chain who is still looked upon to refill the coffee at board meetings. Zoe Burden (Frances O'Connor) is trying to juggle her two young children and careerist husband with her own high-powered career and the fact that another nanny has just been poached by the neighbors. And Caitlin Dowd (Bonnie Somerville) has just taken a breakfast break from her fashion marketing job to get dumped by her latest boyfriend; she assures botoxy Cilla Grey that she can use her leverage as a member of the Arbergast co-op board to get Cilla the penthouse there. As Mia shows off her new ring, Juliet wonders "what's the prize - the job or the man?" Although Mia protests that she can have both, you and I have seen too many Darren Star shows to know that's true. Does anyone else smell a Post-It in Mia's future? No? Just me?
At work, Zoe has to deal with her uppity assistant, and Caitlin is blindsided when a female potential client (Lourdes Benedicto) comes in for a meeting and Caitlin finds herself smitten. She runs to confess to her brother, a priest, that she thinks she might be gay. He tells her she should really find another source for dating advice. That night, at Mia and Jack's engagement party (at which both Mia and Juliet are wearing opera-length gloves, I kid you not) Juliet toasts them both and wishes them the same kind of happiness that she and her husband Davis have. Which, if you're taking notes at home, means that Davis is totally screwing...
Cilla Grey, that two-faced tramp! But nobody except you and I have noticed, because Zoe is busy hiring a new nanny, her husband is hoping for a job offer in Charleston, and Mia is wearing some total train-wreck of a kimono dress with her hair up in a cheerleader's ponytail. Mia and Jack thrust and parry while running around trying to book as many advertisers as possible. Meanwhile, Caitlin meets Alicia, that smoldering Latina of vague lesbianism, for drinks. After a pair of attractive men offer to buy them drinks and first Alicia, then Caitlin pointedly refuse, Alicia kisses Caitlin. Caitlin admits that when it comes to women, she's flustered and "flying without the instruments here."
On her way to work the next day, Zoe spies Davis and Cilla post-coiting their way out of the Gansevoort Hotel. She informs Mia and Caitlin, and the three women, after much Blackberrying, decide to tell Juliet together before her big fundraiser on Thursday. At work, Mia uses some knowledge gained through pillow talk to sandbag Jack at a golf meeting with a client, and Zoe has to leave a board meeting because her new nanny has set off the smoke alarm with her cigarette. The nanny is summarily fired, and Zoe has to finish the meeting via teleconference with her children running screaming through her office.
The women converge, all wearing black, upon Juliet's townhouse to tell her about Davis's affair. She is visibly rattled but not entirely surprised: Davis has carried on affairs before but never in New York and never with someone in their circle. The girls offer her comfort but wonder why she puts up with his infidelities; Juliet says that it hurts but that she doesn't want to start over, to be "a single mother, blind date, third wheel." Under the circumstances, the girls say, she should be wearing a "braver" dress than the chic black one she has on. She changes into something a little redder. At the benefit, Juliet tells Davis that she knows about the affair and is going to take a lover of her own. Zoe dashes off to her little girl's recital and makes it there just in time for her husband to tell her he took the job in Charleston. And the next morning, Mia is made publisher, and Jack dumps her. The girls convene for lunch and champagne and gear up for the task of interviewing prospective lovers for Juliet.
What do you think? Will you tune in Wednesday? Were these plotlines a little formulaic for you? Are you currently wearing opera-length gloves? Dish!
I actually enjoyed the premiere. The show does need some work, but over all I thought it went pretty well. Although, I do have to say that Miranda Otto's voice as Juliet Draper about drives me crazy!! Does anyone else agree? This is no Sex & The City, but not bad either. I will be watching Wednesday.
Britney | Jan 7, 2008 8:56:56 AM | #I actually enjoyed the premiere. The show does need some work, but over all I thought it went pretty well. Although, I do have to say that Miranda Otto's voice as Juliet Draper about drives me crazy!! Does anyone else agree? This is no Sex & The City, but not bad either. I will be watching Wednesday.
Britney | Jan 7, 2008 8:56:59 AM | #Nothing can ever replace SATC. I watched the premiere of this show and it was just ok. I didn't like the fact that all the women were bad ass at work. They seemed to just be missing some male genitalia to show in your face, yes, we are succesful. I like the work side of "the city" but I missed the other side of being a woman. A little more sensibility maybe.
We'll see what happens.
I actually enjoyed the premier much more than I thought I would (especially as all the reviews I had read were quite bad). Frances O'Conner and Bonnie Sommerville were the stand out actors for me, O'Conner could play dramatic & comedic as the plot required (something Otto could not) while Sommerville's Lesbian storyline was quite sweet - although very Season 4 Samantha is a Lesbian Sex and the City like. Lucy Lui and Miranda Otto weren't bad, but they weren't exactly great either. Especially bad when Lui was supposed to be the main character. I think the biggest problem I had with her character was her fiance, for such a powerful and fashionable woman her boyfriend was very blurgh. He could do with a haircut and a face transplant. A more hunkier guy maybe would have him better, but at least he's gone. I'm looking forward to the second episode to see if Lui & Otto improve, and hopefully not see ugly fiance blokey back.
Richardm9 | Jan 7, 2008 9:47:03 AM | #I thought Bonnie S. was horrible as usual. How does she keep getting work? She's not always a low point on any show she is on -- The OC, Friends -- and isn't even powerful enough to be a show killer.
Also, since Tom Everett Scott is a name actor, it's obvious that he will pop back in Lucy Liu's life again.
Justine | Jan 7, 2008 10:16:07 AM | #I watched it because it was there and i was desperate, but it'll have to improve more than it can for me to watch regularly.
There's a strike on - it's the only reason I went near it.
I think that if absolutely NOBODY can identify with ANY of these women, the way somebody could with SOMEBODY on Sex & The City, it doesn't have much future.
Jan | Jan 7, 2008 10:47:56 AM | #The only character who I half-way care about learning more about (or seeing progress) is Caitlin. Her "Lesbian Encounter" was reminiscent of Abby & CJ Lamb on LA Law. I liked her interaction with her brother, the priest.
It was too obvious from the beginning that Lucy's character would get the job and lose the guy.
I quite enjoyed it. It'll take a while to get to know the women, but I found them all quite interesting. Was is just me or did Lucy Lui's fiance and Miranda Otto's husband look VERY similar? That was the very hunky Peter Herrman (Mr Mariska Hargitay) as Davis.
I liked the lesbian relationship, although it seemed like they wanted to tick all the boxes for today's modern women and their sexual dalliances. Hope it doesn't get written out in a few eps and she races back to men. If they are going to do it, do a REAL relationship.
The show has possibilities, but it was trying a bit too hard in this first one.
Well, we knew it was going to be Sex and the City, The Next Day because Darren Starr is the producer. Being African-American, I couldn't relate to that show either, but it was on and mildly entertaining. I never even watched it while it ran. I watched the re-runs just to see what the hype was. Now that that curiosity has been satisfied...oh, well. I think Cashmere Mafia for me, will simply fill the strike void. I liked Miranda Otto, but overall, I'm not impressed.
Isis | Jan 7, 2008 5:14:18 PM | #Oh, if only there HAD been something as brilliant as a post-it break-up, I would have been happy to waste an hour of my life on these women. I'm jumping ship, and hoping that Lipstick Jungle will come through with more than just good clothes.
btw, Cilla was Big's first wife.
Jennifer | Jan 7, 2008 6:22:57 PM | #Possibly the only guy here but I enjoyed it. Yes I too was a fan of Sex and the City, but that aside it was good on it's own level. Remember it's only a "Pilot" and surely you can all agree SatC didn't exactly have the best one either. Just be gland that Terri Minsky wrote the next episode, she created Lizzie McGuire and also wrote a few eps for SatC. So don't give up on it yet.
Characters. I didn't really seem much resemblance, and usually that's tough for any Creator to try to even attempt. Do defiant props should be given. However, one that frankly stood out for me was Juliet, she felt like a complete rip from Samantha, dialog and straight down to the manipulative ways with controlling her man. With that said, on a light note it was great to see another non-cable outlet show to invoke one of it's main characters in a same sex exploration. At lease that you can see actually happening if not all the other stuff that happens.
Defiantly will be returning, sucky thing is no more Desperate Housewives and no more good pairing for Mafia.
Jeffrey | Jan 7, 2008 6:53:42 PM | #This was horrible! The women were insulting stereotypes. The storylines were beyond predictable. And there was not a single likable character in the whole show. Please AMPTP, settle with the writers so this can be canceled immediately!
Holly | Jan 7, 2008 8:53:02 PM | #Aren't those kids old enough to be in school so why are they worrying about a nanny in the first place? Even if it's summer vacation they should be in summer camp.
We knew the fiance wouldn't last cos poor old Tom Everett Scott was only a guest star and not even a special guest star at that!
why are lesbians in dramas so gorgeous looking - where are the dungaree wearing short haired ones and before anyone yells at me for being stereotypical - Cynthia Nixon's girlfriend looks just like that.
I was interested to see how Mia and her fiance were going to ravish each other with no blinds on the window??
Despit this I think I'm going to like the show. The clothes are gorgeous, the women get their point across without being ball busters and they are not perfect in fact they are quite foolish - anyone could see that nanny was going to be trouble, that at least one husband would be shagging someone else and someone would put their job before their relationship - at least the ring looked nice and sparkly!
Solly | Jan 8, 2008 1:19:32 AM | #I have never watched Sex and the City but I did enjoy the premier of Cashmere Mafia. I think the name is awesome and I do believe that this show does have potential. For anyone who didn't like it go back to watching re-runs of SATC ;-)
Xanthia | Jan 8, 2008 3:48:00 AM | #This show is horrible. Bad acting, bad story line, and no momentum. Boring!! Bring back Boston Legal!!! What an insult to put such a bad show in place of such a GREAT Show.
ABC you lost me for this time slot until you bring back BOSTON LEGAL!! Until then, I'm jumping ship.
This show is horrible. Bad acting, bad story line, and no momentum. Boring!! Bring back Boston Legal!!! What an insult to put such a bad show in place of such a GREAT Show.
ABC you lost me for this time slot until you bring back BOSTON LEGAL!! Until then, I'm jumping ship.
Didn't think it was too bad. It will HAVE to get better to keep me. I actually thought it was Mia's guy having the affair at first. They look sooo much alike!
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