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'Ringer' - 'Pilot': Mirror, mirror, on the wall (and floor, and ceiling...)

What did everybody think of Sarah Michelle Gellar's CW comeback?

By Alan Sepinwall Tuesday, Sep 13, 2011 10:00 PM

<p>Ioan Gruffudd and Sarah Michelle Gellar in the "Ringer" pilot.</p>

Ioan Gruffudd and Sarah Michelle Gellar in the "Ringer" pilot.

Credit: CW

I offered my review of Sarah Michelle Gellar and "Ringer" yesterday. Now it's your turn. Were you just so happy to have Buffy back on the small screen that the rest didn't matter? Did you actually enjoy it? And how did the green screen work (particularly in the scene on the boat) look in the finished version, given that the screener the CW sent out months ago looked even more ridiculous than those scenes on "Justified" where Raylan is driving? 

Though I'm usually a believer in giving shows at least a second episode before passing final judgment, there was almost nothing here that would inspire me to come back next week, other than professional courtesy. What say you? 

Alan-sepinwall-sm
Alan Sepinwall
Sr. Editor, What's Alan Watching
Alan Sepinwall has been reviewing television since the mid-'90s, first for Tony Soprano's hometown paper, The Star-Ledger, and now for HitFix. His new book, "The Revolution Was Televised," about the last 15 years of TV drama, is for sale at Amazon. He can be reached at sepinwall@hitfix.com
Related Searches: Ringer, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ioan Gruffudd, Kristoffer Polaha, Nestor Carbonell, Fall TV 2011

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  • Default-avatar

    vmaxxwell

    I absolutely hated it, and I am both an SMG fan and a Buffy fan. It was cheesy, melodramatic, and far too expository. The green screen work was, as you mentioned, laughable, particularly in the boat. Both of the roles Sarah is playing are devoid of any personality; she is essentially being wasted as an actress. The rest of the characters are flat and unlikable as well. I too usually like to give a show the benefit of the doubt and return for the 2nd episode, particularly when someone I like is involved, but I will not be doing that here. I have better things to do with my time.

    September 13, 2011 at 10:10PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Shannon

    That was...not good. I can see this one will be putting my Buffy loyalty to the test.

    And the green screen effect was laughably bad. I can't lie, I'm a little embarrassed for SMG at the moment.

    September 13, 2011 at 10:12PM EST Reply to Comment
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    ChampSkins

    Reminds me a little like the reboot of Melrose Place. Just really not good at all. I gave that show like 6 episodes - I guess I can do that for Ringer. But wow, really SMG?

    Feels like a complete was for Buffy and Richard Alpert. So so much potential, for really crap.

    September 13, 2011 at 11:04PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Chrissy

    That green screen was one of the worst things I've ever seen on television. And I'm someone who has to be told what is so awful about Dr. Who's pre-Moffat production values. Every scene with Gellar playing against herself was awkward in the extreme, and reminded me of those shots on Buffy where you could tell someone was about to vamp out. "I'm going to get us some drinks, awkwardly, so that the director can make sure to put my stand-in in the frame with me."

    The show itself would be better if it were brasher (think Dirty Sexy Money). So dour! I'll give it one or two more watches for old time's sake, and because not much is on Tuesdays.

    September 13, 2011 at 11:09PM EST Reply to Comment
    • Default-avatar

      webdiva I liked Buffy for the silly froth that it was, but ... Indeed: *this* was like a soapy, washed-out CW version of Dirty Sexy Money, which at least went for camp and knew how to laugh at itself (I'd take that show over this one in a heartbeat). This? Tedious. I kept waiting for Gellar's character(s) to give me any reason whatsoever to care about her/them, and it didn't happen. I won't waste time on the next ep, or any after that.

      Strangest thing: watching Gellar interact with Ioan Gruffudd and Nestor, I kept wondering when she was going to grow up and get roles written for adults. Guess that would mean giving up the CW for something that would genuinely require her to act. But oh, wait: that's not the same as riffing off snarky quips on Buffy, is it? Can I imagine her holding her own against anyone on, say, Boardwalk Empire or Justified? Or even Fringe? Sadly, no: and there's the difference. Gellar is a teen actress and scream queen who hasn't graduated to adult roles. She'd better hurry, or she may never graduate.

      September 21, 2011 at 8:38PM EST
  • Batfink_talkback_profile

    chuchundra

    The green screen was so bad, I almost wondered if it was meant as a tribute to 70's era shows with their awful rear projection.

    As for the rest of it, yeah it's not very good. A lot of stupid things and ridiculous coincidences driving the plot (such as it is) forward. Did she really just leave that gun in the unfinished apartment in a folded newspaper? Bleh.

    The whole thing seems so cheap and badly written. I guess maybe these are the kinds of corners you have to cut when you move your show from CBS to CW.

    Anyway, I really only watched because this is kind of a dead week tv-wise and my wife is a big Buffy/SMG fan. I don't know if she'll be watching anymore, but I almost certainly won't.

    September 14, 2011 at 12:29AM EST Reply to Comment
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    linda_howard

    Come on give Sarah a break. I have to admit that when she played Daphne in the Scooby-Doo live-action movie, I saw nothing but Buffy the whole time, but in this show I didn't. I thought this new show was suspensful and it left me wanting more of the mystery behind why Siobhan seems to want her dead.

    September 14, 2011 at 2:38AM EST Reply to Comment
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    Lee

    For me, they either need to make this more campy or more film noir(ish). I felt zero suspense and it nearly lost me right near the beginning with the dull monologue in her support group.

    Could have been fun and mysterious with good writers but sadly, it was dreadfully written and directed. No humor at all. Sigh.

    The green screen was laughably terrible. Watching SMG try to drum up anticipated drama to excite the audience for future episodes was painful.

    If you are going to take a classic suspense story similar to the campy but fun to watch Dead Ringer with Bette Davis, they really need to bring something new to the formula.

    September 14, 2011 at 8:20AM EST Reply to Comment
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    Liz

    I think quality reviewers just don't know what to do with soaps. Was this perfect? Not at all- the technical visual stuff was pretty bad, the "twists" were pretty obvious and yes a bit heavy on the symbolism. But SMG started on soaps (Swan's Crossing & All my Children) and is perfect for them. And it gave us plenty of interesting fodder for characters and plots. If you judge this on a new soaps scale, I'd give it a 7.5, if you judge this on a new drama scale, I'd give it a 5.

    September 14, 2011 at 9:57AM EST Reply to Comment
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    troopermsu

    I couldn't make it past the half-way mark. During one break, Gellar and Gruffold commented that the characters would be revealed slowly over the course of the season. I groaned and decided I just couldn't take that.

    September 14, 2011 at 10:46AM EST Reply to Comment

    • But doesn't that speak more to your TV viewing habits than to the quality of the product?

      The season itself is a novel, played out over 6, 13 or 24 chapters.

      September 26, 2011 at 1:05AM EST
  • Godzillavseaster_talkback_profile

    Dezbot

    I was out by the first commercial break because it was so horrible. Checked back in later and it was still horrible. Ugh.

    September 14, 2011 at 10:52AM EST Reply to Comment
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    Tarasme

    Watched and couldn't believe how BORED I was. The whole twin thing is ridiculous from writing to post. The opening stinger fight scene was horrific. I'm amazed that, after all the rumors of SMGs power plays on BtVS, she would not insist on that being re-choreographed and re-shot.
    And that was just the first 90 seconds or so. I wish they'd have dispensed with the whole twin farce and allowed her Bridget character to mix into someone unrelated's life- actually caused the character to have to act and try to change her appearance. But that's been done too- whatever. The whole thing was such a waste. How awful that all the nods to Bridget's drug skinny only made me smirk about SMGs body image issues.

    September 14, 2011 at 11:05AM EST Reply to Comment
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    Tubemaus

    I had to stop watching halfway through because I nearly busted a gut from laughing so hard.

    September 15, 2011 at 5:14PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Boricua in Texas

    There were entirely too many mirrors, with the cheesy symbolism that comes with that.

    I think I will give it a couple more episodes out of loyalty to SMG's glory days as Buffy. But I am not amused.

    September 16, 2011 at 4:11PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Ri

    I thought it had a bad case of pilotitis, but not so bad that I would not watch it another couple of episodes to see how it starts to shape up. It might be good for a season. If the show starts to drag, I'm gone. It would be very nice if, for a change, an end to this show, or at least this season, was planned in advance. If the story is good, I'll watch. If it is not, I won't. Dragging the story out will not make it good.

    September 16, 2011 at 11:51PM EST Reply to Comment
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    Something Suffices

    I think people are being way too hard on this. It felt to me as if there'd been a *lot* of interfering in the pilot (too many cooks spoiling the broth) and I'll definitely give the show a couple episodes to find its way.

    September 18, 2011 at 10:33AM EST Reply to Comment
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    ed_cidade

    I had to turn the contrast up to 11 on my TV.

    Note to producers: just because you darken the product visually doesn't mean you've darkened the mood of the plot.

    September 26, 2011 at 1:02AM EST Reply to Comment

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