TV Gripes: Be Still My Beating Heart!

I’m not usually captivated by trailers and promo clips but when, during The Voice finale, NBC previewed the clip for SMASH— which seems to be based around the production of a musical about Marilyn Monroe and the team’s search for a star to play the lead role— there was no doubt that I would be watching. I love musicals and the idea that I will be able to see one every week for weeks at a time gives me the tingles. And, the potential leads (Katherine McPhee of American Idol fame and Megan Hilty of Wicked fame) both have actual talent so I anticipate that there will be some great musical numbers coming out of that show. With such a cast of esteemed actors and Steven Spielberg at the helm, SMASH can only be a hit. January can’t get here fast enough!

TV Gripes: Yes, I'm Still Watching The Voice

Since it premiered back in April, I have been faithfully tuning into NBC’s The Voice week after week, not because I was so enamored with the hodgepodge concept but because it’s taken me this long to decide whether or not I want to continue watching. Convoluted, I know. With American Idol, I knew that things would become dull after the auditions round but with all it’s gimmicks, The Voice manages to keep things fresh and interesting. Still, while they are the very things that I previously used to recommend The Voice, I’ve been finding myself less than impressed with the “talent” displayed by the contestants as the competition wears on. The performances didn’t suck entirely but neither did they prompt me to run to YouTube for a replay the next day. They were simply okay, not great. The judges continue to be an interesting factor and I enjoy the bromance and flirty banter whizzing back and forth but frankly, they give effusive praise where none is warranted. Without fail. This is becoming annoying. And, they don’t always make the right (read: my) choices when selecting who they want on their teams. But what I find most puzzling is that after the chair-turning gimmick and elaborate staging with the boxing ring, producers of The Voice could not manage to pull out another of their tricks and fit 8 performances into an hour-long show instead of stretching it out over two long hours. I understand why they would do this but it doesn’t make me any more appreciative. Still, after last night, I have decided to fully embrace the crazy that is The Voice. Last night I bore witness to true talent and am eager to see how far my picks for the final showdown will progress over the course of the competition.

I’ve always felt that Adam Levine had the strongest team and after listening to their group rendition of “A Little Help From My Friends” that opinion has not changed, although the backing gospel choir probably did more for that than Adam and the actual competitors. However, strong as Team Adam is one of Cee Lo’s charge, Vicci Martinez, clearly stole the show with her performance of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene”. Talk about raw! This girl clearly knows her talent and how to use it to engage the audience. Each team has at least one person with an interesting voice (Beverly from Christina’s team; Xenia from Blake’s team, Casey from Adam’s team, and Vicci from Cee Lo’s team) and if that was enough to win competitions, they would be the last four standing near the end of the competition. Since it isn’t, we cannot discount Javier Colon who, as Adam puts it, has amazing range (and is one of my picks for the final round) nor Jeff Jenkins and Nakia, both of whom have powerful, if not entirely unique, voices. Everyone has something to recommend them and that makes for good competition.

At this point in the competition, Both Team Christina and Team Blake have the two competitors I expected in Beverly and Frenchie and Dia and Xenia respectively so no surprise there. Cee Lo and Adam and have a tendency to go left when you expect them to go the other way so it is harder to predict who they’ll have at the end but I’ll go with the obvious in suspecting that Vicci and Nakia will represent Cee Lo while Javier and Jeff (with Casey Weston as a dark horse to win America’s votes) will stand for Adam. I’m not sure what the next gimmick will be after this round but I will be tuning in next week to see if my predictions bear fruit. However it shakes down, I expect to see Vicci and Javier battling it out to be crowned The Voice. IMO, the other competitors just aren’t as ready to take a singing career to the next level.

TV Gripes: The Voice

In general, CBS is my most-watched TV network and aside from Law & Order: SVU, I usually give shows on NBC a pass. I made an exception for The Voice which premiered on NBC on Tuesday night in the 9 pm time slot. Carson Daly serves as host (similar to Ryan Seacrest on American Idol) while Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton are judges, of a sort. So, The Voice is a singing competition with a panel of judges and a host who greets contestants before and after their performances. From this little bit it sounds a lot like Idol doesn’t it? However, what sets The Voice apart is the fact that judges cannot see contestants as they perform and they select talent for their teams based solely on what they hear, not based on an image (what a concept!). Also, once each judge chooses their teams of eight, they will provide invaluable coaching and pit contestants against each other until they whittle their number down to four. The final four from each team will then go head to head until a single contestant is crowned The Voice. From there things get a bit convoluted… but I’m sure the producers will work it out in due time.

The premise of The Voice captured my interest, even if it didn’t blow me completely away, and from what I saw during the premiere I’ll definitely be tuning in to take a second and third look. After years of watching Idol (with the original set of judges), I know how tiring it is to watch people with marginal talent perform week after week. Still, there are things to recommend The Voice and here’re four reasons why I’ll be watching:

1.) I love the chemistry between the judges. Carson is a bit of a nonentity for me but all four judges are interesting and mesh well together; as the only female judge, Christina holds her own and especially during her banters with Adam, lets her spicy personality shine through. Adam is much more selective in exercising his options but when he does, his sales pitches are so well crafted that he could sell his own mother. Cee Lo is a colorful character and although I was surprised at some of his selections, there’s always some fun to be had when he’s around. Since I’m not much of a country fan, I didn’t know who Blake Shelton was until he came on Chelsea Lately to promote the show (somewhat) but he seems to be a funny and entertaining guy.

2.) Some of these people can actually sing. Aside from the mediocre selections who slip through the cracks with seeming regularity, a few contestants display genuine talent and throughout the two-hour premiere I felt a bit like a talent scout who matches artists with the right management company. I was invested enough that I felt bad for those who were not chosen (and rightly so). If producers would allow judges to throw some back or switch out their selections for more talented contestants in a pool of leftovers, all would be right with the show.

3.) Frenchie is back! Of American Idol notoriety (she was kicked off the show when it came to light that she posed topless to pay her way through college), Frenchie Davis did not give the best performance but I’m glad that Christina decided to take a chance on her. I’ve heard this girl blow on Idol and in the musical, Rent, and know that she is capable of much more. Hopefully she won’t disappoint.

4.) I just plain love music. Musicals, concerts, even karaoke! If singing is involved I’m there and with the entire premise of the show built around singing, The Voice is a must-watch. For now.

*Photo courtesy of NY Daily News