"Playboy" Plays No More

Yesterday, The Playboy Club was the first new show of the 2011-2012 season to get the ax (one of the two new network Mad Men-lite shows).

The show's problem?  Not enough BUNNIES!!!

Not to say “I told you so” (and all other show issues aside) just thought I’d say "I told you so" and re-direct back to this post I did not too long ago about the perception of cable shows like Mad Men’s popularity vs. the reality of their low ratings (or at least, ratings that wouldn't fly on broadcast network TV).  Just like last season’s cable-esque Lone Star, Playboy couldn’t get enough viewers to stay afloat.  On the flip side, Pan Am, ABC’s Mad Men-lite show, has had better ratings so far (though that show suffered a big drop from week 1 to week 2…which is typical, but it does put them in the danger zone...I also imagine the show isn't cheap to make).

Overall, I’m not sure I totally have a point.  While it didn't really grab me, I thought Playboy was fairly enjoyable though it did have issues (like the target audience...men or women?) and even though it flopped, I suppose I'd rather see a network take a chance on a show like that than rehash a tired but more network friendly property like Charlie’s Angels (which by the way, hasn't fared much better in the ratings game).

But still, I don't want the demise of shows like Playboy to hurt the chances of other risk taking shows that might have more ratings appeal so all we have left are crime procedurals.  Nothing against crime procedurals, but I'd prefer that every show on TV not be a cop show.  And don't forget, not all crime procedurals succeed.  Prime Suspect, a crime procedural (and another new NBC show) is floundering big time...and that's despite a movie star in the lead role and good buzz from critics.

Is your film industry internship illegal? – UPDATE

You’ve probably read about the two interns on the movie Black Swan who are now suing for $$$ they say is due to them for the work they performed (and if not, here's the NY Times article about it).  As I wrote a while back, most industry internships are probably illegal under current laws, and while the internship system is pretty set in its ways, it has been mostly unchallenged until now.

Overall, this is a tough issue, but in case I didn’t make it clear in my previous post on the subject, I think interns are already paying to go to college and an internship if made available to a student should provide an educational experience in exchange for class credit.  It should NOT be a source of unpaid labor or a way for a production, studio, or company to save money.  Interns are college students, they are already paying tuition.  This notion of paying to work someplace is simply ridiculous.  If a production or company or studio wants (or probably NEEDS) to hire PAs to make coffee and get lunch and things of that nature, they should open their wallet and pay some folks and stop exploiting desperate students.  Otherwise, you know, change the law, hire interns, go nuts.

Now, on the flip side, I get that cracking down on internships, well, it cuts both ways.  What’s worse for students...paying (tuition) to basically work someplace for free in exchange for the hope of connections and future employment…or, having fewer opportunities for networking before graduation?  Let’s face it, there aren’t that many legal internships for a reason…who really wants to play teacher or mentor to someone when they’re busy working a job?  On the other hand, doesn’t the practice of replacing paid entry level employees with interns end up hurting students in the long run?  Think about it this way, you work hard interning and once you graduate you can’t find a job because productions, like Black Swan, are only hiring interns for the work you're most qualified for.  Like I said, it’s a tough issue.

I can only speak from my own experience, but as I mentioned in my previous post, I worked a couple internships and while I did get a job offer through one of those, I couldn’t take that job and in the end, after I graduated, I got my first job from a college friend whose show needed additional PAs. That friend got their job a month earlier because they answered an ad on Craigslist…yeah, Craigslist.  So yes, it’s possible for a person without a ton of great connections to “break in” to the industry without an internship to pave the way.  But hey, I do know unconnected friends that got excellent (even amazing) jobs via their internships, so they’d probably disagree with me big time about this matter.

So anyway, all that debate aside, what a lot of people are wondering now is, what exactly will happen with this lawsuit?  Will these two guys make serious waves?  Will they “never work in this town again?”  Will anyone care much either way?  As far as the outcome of the lawsuit, I’m gonna guess these two fellows get a little class action thing going on and that the end result is that everyone involved gets a small settlement (hush hush and out of court) and as a result maybe a few more interns who worked for other shows/studios come forward with their own illegal internship lawsuits (the economy being the way it is, needing to pay rent might trump fears of “career suicide” in the minds of former interns).  Beyond that, I think the only thing that is absolutely certain about this whole issue is that students will continue to get the short end of the internship stick.

You must watch..."Awkward."

For someone who claims not to follow comedy, here comes another half hour show I’m pushing to the masses.

While MTV is more known lately for shows of the Jersey Shore variety, they do have original scripted programming, and I think they’ve really scored with Awkward.

I love this show!  I watched all of season 1 in 2 days (granted, each episode besides the finale is only a half hour long and there are only 10 of them).  But yeah, clearly I really enjoyed it!  The dialogue has a fast talking Gilmore Girlsy vibe…which I like, mixed with a wacky Diablo Codyish teen slang thing (think Juno…which I’m not quite as into).  Overall, I think too much of either of these things might be irritating, but the writing never feels forced or strained.  Likewise, the actors are really exceptional and always do a great job.

Major props to Ashley Rickards who plays the lead, Jenna.  This young woman is really a star.  She’s one part snarky Ellen Page/Juno and one part wise beyond her years Claire Danes/Angela Chase.   I expect to see her in tons of things beyond this show in the future.

From a writing standpoint, I think the most important thing a writer can take away from this show is to craft three dimensional characters.  This is key on every show, but especially one with familiar character constructs (the awkward teen girl, the bitchy popular cheerleader, the popular hot jock, etc.).  I think this show just goes to show that no matter how high or low concept your show idea may be, excellent writing can shine no matter what and admittedly, Awkward. isn't really covering any new ground and yet, it always feels fresh.

Speaking of the characters, one character that stands out in particular for me is the main antagonist, Sadie Saxton, the bitchy rich popular cheerleader.  On paper she sounds pretty generic, but Sadie isn’t just some cardboard mean girl you've seen a million times before.  Sadie has issues of her own...she struggles with her weight, her mother, she likes a guy who doesn’t reciprocate her advances.  Sadie is also very smart, conniving, and does some pretty bad stuff.  Sadie always keeps me on my toes...I never know whether a scene is going to show her being horrible, or flip the script and put her in a situation that actually makes me feel bad for her...she's really fun to watch.

Anyway, the show is like this with pretty much every character and when you get to see the good and bad in everyone, it's hard to get bored.  Plus, there’s the whole fast/wacky dialogue thing which if you’re into, makes the show even more fun.

Speaking of good and bad (or pros and cons) the show also has a solid love triangle that’s really well done.  I’ve mentioned the importance of love triangles on teen shows before.  This show has one and neither guy is clearly better than the other...both have their pros and cons, which is great, interesting, and really keeps you guessing.

In a word, Awkward. is awesome…and if you missed it over the summer (like me) you can catch up on MTV.com where full episodes for the whole season are currently available.