HEH! Work It's been Canceled!

[MikaelaMuppet]

I don't know what to feel about ABC's mid-season replacement Imaginary Mary, which is premiering tonight. On the one hand, we have another sitcom with an animated character, much like Son of Zorn, giving it a bit of edge. On the other, there's a lot of overlap with the film Drop Dead Fred (which was a rightful flop in its time, and was totally forgotten about until the Nostalgia Critic reviewed it), though Mary doesn't appear to be an obnoxious troublemaker, but rather someone who may screw things up for her friend, but has her heart in the right place. Plus, there's Jenna Elfman as the star, whose last real career was in Dharma and Greg, and she was just annoying in that show.

However, like with SoZ, I'm really intrigued by the behind-the-scenes stuff. They shoot two takes: a rehearsal with Elfman and a large puppet stand-in of Mary to react to (that I would love to see), and the final take with just Elfman talking to thin air for Mary to be added later. The CG animators use puppet Mary as a reference point.

What show got canceled?

 

[mr3urious]

What show got canceled?

No shows have been cancelled yet. The Real O'Neals just finished off its 2nd season, though.

 

[mr3urious]

So, Imaginary Mary came and went, and while I don't exactly hate it, but I'm not too thrilled by it either compared to seeing Son of Zorn. Jenna Elfman is more tolerable in this -- a single careerwoman willing to get into a relationship with a divorced dad but is not entirely sure about motherhood -- but it's the title character who's annoying this time. Probably the squickiest thing about Mary is her apparent obsession with watching her creator doing it, along with that scene of her spooning with her after a bender at the bar, seen frequently in promos. Not a good start for a premiere episode, but maybe it'll get better from there.

 

[D'Snowth]

There's accusations going around that networks are trying to silence the voices of women since shows like CRISTELA and THE MINDY PROJECT were canceled (and UNBREAKABLE KIMMY SCHMIDT was dumped on Netflix).

 

[D'Snowth]

So, Imaginary Mary came and went, and while I don't exactly hate it, but I'm not too thrilled by it either compared to seeing Son of Zorn. Jenna Elfman is more tolerable in this -- a single careerwoman willing to get into a relationship with a divorced dad but is not entirely sure about motherhood -- but it's the title character who's annoying this time. Probably the squickiest thing about Mary is her apparent obsession with watching her creator doing it, along with that scene of her spooning with her after a bender at the bar, seen frequently in promos. Not a good start for a premiere episode, but maybe it'll get better from there.

I saw about five minutes of the pilot - not because I was seeking it out, mind you, it just happened to be on while I was waiting for something - and it's terrible. The dialogue is poorly-written, the delivery and performances are awkward and painful, and really, relationship-based premises are a beaten horse at this point.

 

[D'Snowth]

So apparently ABC is going to try a new . . . "sitcom" (?) where a dog watches his owner have sex with different guys in her bed and the dog offers commentary on that, and other things she does throughout her life.

Uhh . . . hasn't that been done? Didn't the dog on MARRIED... WITH CHILDREN pretty much serve that purpose? Heck, wasn't there an entire sitcom pilot about this from the 80s that didn't even sell at all? With actors in dog costumes trying to do social commentary from a dog's perspective? I think the guy who played Morty Seinfeld played the dad dog.

 

[Drtooth]

So, Imaginary Mary came and went, and while I don't exactly hate it, but I'm not too thrilled by it either compared to seeing Son of Zorn. Jenna Elfman is more tolerable in this -- a single careerwoman willing to get into a relationship with a divorced dad but is not entirely sure about motherhood -- but it's the title character who's annoying this time. Probably the squickiest thing about Mary is her apparent obsession with watching her creator doing it, along with that scene of her spooning with her after a bender at the bar, seen frequently in promos. Not a good start for a premiere episode, but maybe it'll get better from there.

Honestly didn't bother with it. I was recently watching the short form sitcom miniseries (as in I doubt they're going to get a second season, even though it was sequel baited pretty hard) "Trial and Error" instead for the past few weeks. I wasn't looking forward to it or caring at all to watch it. I don't even want to get into the "They canned the Muppets but greenlit this" worn soap box again. However, I am impressed by the quality of the CGI imaginary monster. TV animation CGI is still no where near theatrical quality (Father of the Pride showed that was too darn expensive to continue), and even TV shows that use it only go as high as Disney's CGI line up. Very good, but not Pixar movie. Yet, the kind of CGI hybrid they're going for in this sitcom is shockingly better than the average Chipmunks/Garfield type movie. So I have to give credit where credit is due, just... it's in the end wasted.

So apparently ABC is going to try a new . . . "sitcom" (?) where a dog watches his owner have sex with different guys in her bed and the dog offers commentary on that, and other things she does throughout her life.

It's no secret. I HATE live action talking dog movies. Love cartoon dogs. Love Scooby, Martha who Speaks, the pets of Secret Life of Pets, Hong Kong Phooey and all them. But I can't stand how talking dogs look in these sort of things. Now I really don't want to be the "I'm going to hate it before I see it" type because that usually either proves me right or make me feel like an idiot when I do like it, and I don't care for those odds. But I don't know who said "Hey! Let's make Santa Buddies type things for adults! That sounds like a great idea" Didn't they already fail that with "Oh Heavenly Dog?" (yeah, I watch Cinema Snob).

Plus... I get the feeling someone saw "Secret Life of Pets" and said, "The movie was perfect 2 minutes in, let me just rip that off."

 

[mr3urious]

However, I am impressed by the quality of the CGI imaginary monster. TV animation CGI is still no where near theatrical quality (Father of the Pride showed that was too darn expensive to continue), and even TV shows that use it only go as high as Disney's CGI line up. Very good, but not Pixar movie. Yet, the kind of CGI hybrid they're going for in this sitcom is shockingly better than the average Chipmunks/Garfield type movie. So I have to give credit where credit is due, just... it's in the end wasted.

Mary herself does look very good, which may explain why the series has been slashed from 13 to 9 episodes, and why she has barely appeared in eps past the first.

It's no secret. I HATE live action talking dog movies. Love cartoon dogs. Love Scooby, Martha who Speaks, the pets of Secret Life of Pets, Hong Kong Phooey and all them. But I can't stand how talking dogs look in these sort of things. Now I really don't want to be the "I'm going to hate it before I see it" type because that usually either proves me right or make me feel like an idiot when I do like it, and I don't care for those odds. But I don't know who said "Hey! Let's make Santa Buddies type things for adults! That sounds like a great idea" Didn't they already fail that with "Oh Heavenly Dog?" (yeah, I watch Cinema Snob).

It's supposedly derived from a web series that I've never even heard of. So, there's that.

Also, so awesome to see you back, even if it's only for a short while!

 

[D'Snowth]

Apparently JANE THE VIRGIN is still a thing. I honestly had no idea that show still on, in fact, I hadn't even heard or seen anything about it in a couple of years or so (and weren't they trying to do a black version of the show at some point?)

But what's the deal with SUPERGIRL? Is it canceled or not? I keep hearing that it's getting canceled because of low ratings, but it keeps coming back . . . or, is this like what kept happening with THE ODD COUPLE in the 70s where it got canceled every season, but then renewed after summer reruns when the numbers were better?

 

[Pig'sSaysAdios]

Apparently JANE THE VIRGIN is still a thing. I honestly had no idea that show still on, in fact, I hadn't even heard or seen anything about it in a couple of years or so (and weren't they trying to do a black version of the show at some point?)

Yeah, I forgot about it too, which is interesting because I remember them advertising the heck out of it when it was first starting. I guess that's the big problem with modern TV: It doesn't matter how good the show is, if there's a lot of stuff on TV it'll eventually get forgotten. It's sad in a way. I mean, we're in a golden age of television, there's more great shows to choose from than ever before, so i'm not complaining about that. But, I wonder if their are too many? Also, Jane the Virgin got a little tedious over time, but that's beside the point...