Inside Television with Alan Sepinwall

Review: 'Smash' - 'Chemistry': Roid rage

Ivy turns to performance enhancers, Karen plays a bar mitzvah and Michael pursues Julia

By Alan Sepinwall Tuesday, Mar 13, 2012 10:43 AM

Megan Hilty as Ivy in "Smash."

Credit: NBC

A review of last night's "Smash" coming up just as soon as bismuth is my favorite element...

I was almost tempted to skip over reviewing a couple of episodes, just to see if it changed my reaction to the show overall. But then they had to go and do a storyline about the dangers of steroids, bringing to life one of the many terrible "Smash: The Smash Williams Story" jokes I made on Twitter(*), and I couldn't resist writing a little something.

(*) So what "Friday Night Lights" story will they remake next? Seems too early for a murder plotline, but maybe someone can teach Julia's son how to read?

As for "Chemistry" itself, it didn't do a whole lot to sway my opinion on the show's various flaws. I've grown to outright despise both Julia and Michael at this point, and that's even though Julia's husband is among the show's most boring characters and her son the most irritating. Really, I'm not sure there's any character I genuinely like at this point. Karen's inoffensive but boring when she isn't singing (and couldn't be bothered to Google the lyrics to "Hava Nagilah" on the long train ride from Manhattan to Northport), and I still like Christian Borle's performance as Tom, even if I'm not particularly interested in either of his love interests. (With "Smash" once again telegraphing all its punches, anyone want to guess how many episodes it'll be before Tom drops the boring lawyer and hooks up with the sports-loving chorus boy?) And given that "Smash" has decided it's more interested in inter-personal drama than in trying to dramatize the actual creative process of taking a musical from idea to Broadway(**), the dearth of sympathetic personalities is becoming a large problem.

(**) Then again, the show doesn't have much profound to say about Marilyn thus far, and seems to know nothing about Joe DiMaggio save that he played baseball and was Marilyn's husband for a few years, maybe a version of the show that was more oriented around the musical itself might not be more interesting.

I want to like "Smash." I like many of the people in it. I like the idea of it, even if the execution is poor. Many of the musical numbers still have good energy. Kat McPhee's voice isn't as distinct as Florence's, for instance, but that was still a good rendition of "Shake It Out"(***).

(***) And I'm sure this was no more intentional than the steroid thing, but I was amused that the bar mitzvah kids assembled in front of the stage to recreate the arm-swaying "American Idol" mosh pit as our former runner-up sang.

But we're nearly halfway through the season, and the reality of "Smash" isn't doing a whole lot for me. NBC sent out a screener of next week's episode, which I'll watch soon, and that may be a good time to cut bait on these reviews if there's not a major change.

What did everybody else think?

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: Smash, Theresa Rebeck, Scott Wittman, Debra Messing, Katharine McPhee, Christian Borle, Megan Hilty, Anjelica Huston, Jack Davenport, Marc Shaiman, Alan Sepinwall

Thomas

Is it possible the SMASH writers have little to say about the creative process, because their process is identical to Julia's?
March 13, 2012 at 10:53AM EST Reply to Comment
klg19

As I think I've said before, this show doesn't do much to perpetuate that whole "there's no people like show people" myth. They've made Ivy too mean for reality ("I should have gotten her fired. Marilyn would have"? REALLY?), they've made Karen too stupid for reality (she honestly doesn't know the name of one of the biggest music producers anywhere), they've made Eileen too gullible for words (that she is an experienced producer who can't see through Ellis is laughable), they've made Michael too creepy for words ("If you don't talk to me I'll make a scene and then everyone will know!"--that's...blackmail, right?), they've made Julia second only to Michael in her creepiness (they've yet to explain why she finds him so compelling)...the list just goes on.

And yet I watch. Why do I watch? I love Broadway, I love old-time musicals, I love NYC...and the show gives me just enough of all of those to keep me coming back.

(I will also say that "Shake It Off" seemed like a peculiar choice for a Bar Mitzvah, with all that "the devil will take his pound of flesh" stuff...)
March 13, 2012 at 10:58AM EST Reply to Comment
- sara I completely agree with everything you say above and I too keep tuning in. I think I have just decided that it is going to be cheesy (not musical fun cheesy but lazy writing and character development TV cheesy) and just live with it. Unless something really changes in the writing room this is never going to be great TV story telling ala Justified or Friday Night Lights. Maybe they are going the route of many musicals, thin plot and characters in service of great song and dance. Maybe not, I don’t know, until I do I am going to keep watching and generally being annoyed and I guess that is something. I haven’t decided to turn it off yet and read a book, so there is that.
  March 13, 2012 at 1:07PM EST
- Alanna "I should have gotten her fired. Marilyn would have"
  
  And that's one of my biggest frustrations with the show. I'm already sick of Marilyn, especially the characters constantly talking about what Marilyn would do. It comes across as artificial and shoehorned in by the writers, to remind us of the musical's topic. And that's not a good thing for me to already hate.
  March 13, 2012 at 4:19PM EST
- diane I watch this to laugh at. It`s incredibly stupid show and what makes it so laughable is how samrt they think it is. Anyway, I would be thouroughly pissed off if anyone or anything from it garnered any serious award nomination. This is Hawaii 5-O level, lets not pretend that big names elevate it in any shape or form.
  March 13, 2012 at 5:23PM EST
DonBoy

They're obviously remaking the entire basic plot of FNL, once the star inevitably goes down and the backup leads the team to victory.
March 13, 2012 at 11:17AM EST Reply to Comment
- sepinwall Oh, God. Is Ivy going to end up playing wheelchair rugby?
  March 13, 2012 at 11:22AM EST
- GR Angelica Houston is going to open up Buddy's Bar, with Big Buck Hunter and (relatively) cheap drinks.
  March 13, 2012 at 12:51PM EST
Stav

Just saw the amazingly powerful, smart and Pulitzer and Tony winning "Next to Normal." What a great creation story. Guys graduate college. See contest for musicals. See a segment on Dateline and enter a 10 minute musical sketch based on that segment. Get jobs working in theatre, but on other people's projects. Keep coming back to that sketch. Eventually create snarky show based on the sketch and it plays off, off Broadway. Grow up a little more Realize the subject matter (mental health) shouldn't be so snarky. Trim a few numbers and add some new, more compelling pieces. Play goes off-Broadway. Tours to DC. There they kill off the contest winning song that had started it off 10 years ago and play gets really, really good reviews. Wins Pulitzer Prize for drama even though Drama Jury did not nominate the play. Opens on Broadway to rave reviews. Wins a few Tony's.

That is a good compelling story. Watching a lot of unlikable people compete for a role on a show that went from germ of idea to completion in three episodes is unwatchable.
March 13, 2012 at 11:20AM EST Reply to Comment
Liz

This show really needs to stop trying to convince us that Michael is the perfect choice for DiMaggio. No. Wrong. Incorrect.
March 13, 2012 at 11:25AM EST Reply to Comment
- pamelajaye cause everyone knows that Scott Bakula should play Joe DiMaggio. (I can't actually imagine that either, but it happened. On Broadway. In the 80's)
  March 13, 2012 at 10:21PM EST
edwina

It's really a shame that Smash is so disappointing. There is a guaranteed audience for an entertaining, smart show about Broadway and unfortunaely, this isn't it. I actually feel sorry for the talented cast, they and we deserve better.
March 13, 2012 at 12:09PM EST Reply to Comment
nic919

I know the show wants me to hate Derek, but Jack Davenport has been the best part of this show for many episodes now. He is the smartest and most realistic character with more nuance than anyone else.

And yet still I watch in the hopes it improves.
March 13, 2012 at 12:28PM EST Reply to Comment
- ChampSkins You are right on about Derek. He is easily the most enjoyable character so far. Everyone else has just gotten worse as the show has gone on, with maybe a slight exception for Tom.
  
  This show has gotten worse every week, and I am really not sure much can save it at this point. If it does get renewed for a second season they need to do a massive remake and get rid of some of the more unlikable characters, especially Ivy.
  March 13, 2012 at 1:41PM EST
- diane I thought they totally ruined him last night. Does he do anything but uncalled for yelling? Usually this type of a character gets the ebst lines but this gets nothing except to twirl pornstache, which you can see the actor is fighting against but the script just feed him with more one-dimensional villainy.
  March 13, 2012 at 5:25PM EST
edwina

I watched a great series on Netflix called "Slings and Arrows" about a Canadian Shakespearean theatre company. It is incredibly entertaining and does a fabulous job of presenting the back stage side of the theatre as well as bits of the actual performances. It's probably one reason why I am so unhappy with Smash because having recently seen this series, I know it's possible to write a smart, funny and compelling show about theatre life. (Bonus points, Slings and Arrow also features a very young Rachel McAdams in a her first breakout role.)
March 13, 2012 at 12:49PM EST Reply to Comment
- Beat Hmm...makes me think of Topsy Turvy - a fantastic Mike Leigh film about Gilbert and Sullivan. I tried to watch Smash but it's just a waste of time. Life's too short.
  March 13, 2012 at 12:57PM EST
- klg19 Oh, man, Slings and Arrows: one of the greatest series EVER. Paul Gross is so wonderful in that it makes my head explode.
  March 13, 2012 at 3:41PM EST
Maeve

SMASH is disappointing, yet I'm still watching because with everything that's wrong about it, it's still not as crazymaking irksome as GLEE, which also started out so promisingly and went boom so fast and so far that...well, another time.
March 13, 2012 at 12:55PM EST Reply to Comment
GR

Overall, I like the show. Having said that, I tend to agree with your criticism of it. Last night, the Ivy song-within-the-show felt out of place. I actually laughed out loud when she hallucinated Karen as Marilyn in her mirror.

Two other things, Michael's "I'll make a scene" threat was ridiculous.

Derek's reaction to Ivy's melt down was hilarious.

re: DiMaggio. What about the other characters in her life? We saw "Arthur Miller" with speaking lines in one of the fantasy song sequences a little while ago, why not introduce us to the other members of the cast? Where are they?
March 13, 2012 at 12:59PM EST Reply to Comment
- klg19 Yeah, that Marilyn wig on Karen was TRAGICALLY bad.
  March 13, 2012 at 3:42PM EST
- cgeye And the worst part? Karen as Marilyn still acts as if she's sleepwalking -- if Ivy's going on a 'roid bender, that vision in the mirror should terrify her because that Karen's *good* -- good enough to replace her. If this show can't even place a hallucination of Karen as equal to Ivy, then the competition is truly on the level of the WWE, where there isn't even the pretense of suspense, just contract machinations.
  
  As as for Karen in the real world, howcum she's done several bar mitzvahs, and yet is still disrespectful enough to not only fail to memorize a relatively simple song, but also sing about the devil and debts in front of parents who are paying her fee? It bespeaks a lack of care, as does her lack of debt -- she takes no risks, not even to train or prepare? If anything, Karen's fundamental laziness makes her far less attractive than Ivy, who has the decency to care about what's at stake.
  
  March 14, 2012 at 1:31AM EST
- cgeye Oh, and has anyone noticed that there are no actors in this musical? We only see dancing singer chorus folk, not one older actor who could portray the adults only hinted at with "Natasha Lytess", or "Johnny Hyde". There are enough actors on Broadway of a certain age to sing, dance, act and kick ass, and they'd need to be in the workshop from day one.
  
  Why don't we see them -- and their perspective of this artificial diva battle, which they've no doubt seen since the days before CATS? There are really no mature adults in this show, which, considering the intended demographic, is a damn shame.
  March 14, 2012 at 1:37AM EST
Captain Hammer

It really is a shame. I genuinely enjoyed the pilot, and the show was a really ambitious undertaking with a lot of potential. But since the first episode it's been average at best, abysmal at worst.
March 13, 2012 at 1:05PM EST Reply to Comment
Penny

I'll be honest, I'm not sure why I'm still watching, given that as Alan pointed out, the show has moved away from its initial supposed purpose of demonstrating the creative process, and is now just about everyone sleeping with each other and/or backstabbing each other, and generally just all being terrible people (except, of course, for Karen, who I gather is meant to be winningly naive, but mostly just comes across as stupid and kind of irritating - you go to a Bar Mitzvah, you're late, you wear that dress, you take off every eight seconds to answer your phone, and you can't be bothered to learn some lyrics? I was hoping for a brief moment that she'd royally screw it up and therefore be human, but once again, she pulls off a flawless number and everyone loves her. Blah). Plus, knowing that the Michael/Julia drama is more or less what happened in real life with Debra Messing and Will Chase makes me incredibly uncomfortable. Their scenes together are overwrought and not sexy enough (or at all) to make up for it. At this point, the only characters I find truly compelling are Derek and Tom. I was hoping for a little more fallout at the revelation that Derek and Ivy were sleeping together, but either all of the writers/producers already knew, or just no one gives a damn. Sure, it's probably not all that uncommon, but I'd rather have someone tell me that instead of leaving that semi-interesting thread hanging by having Ivy and Tom giggle in the hallway because diva moments are so hilarious.
March 13, 2012 at 1:09PM EST Reply to Comment
- eyecue Reply to comment...
  March 13, 2012 at 2:46PM EST
- eyecue What was the problem with wearing "that dress" to the Bar Mitzvah?
  March 13, 2012 at 2:49PM EST
- diane Karen is insufferable Mary Sue. Screws up Bar Mitzvah and lands a busness card from a major music producer whom she never heard of (but wants to breka into music stardom). Only a McPhan can call this crap groundbreaking.
  March 13, 2012 at 5:27PM EST
- a Eyecue, it seemed like it would be awfully easy for the 13-year-old boys to look up her skirt when she was on stage.
  March 13, 2012 at 8:27PM EST
- psinca Debra Messing and Will Chase? Eew.
  March 15, 2012 at 1:27AM EST
Helene

How many minutes till Julia becomes pregnant with Michael's baby? Why am I watching this? More questions to come...
On a whole other note for those who've read The Art of Fielding, the guy who plays the odious Ellis should definitely be cast as Owen when HBO puts that show into production.
March 13, 2012 at 1:09PM EST Reply to Comment
- diane I predict not just Julia`s pregnancy but Debra`s real-life pregnancy with Will Chase (Michael) written into the show. Justw atch for both happening.
  March 13, 2012 at 5:28PM EST
M

I'm not a performer and I've taken prednisone twice and it was not a big deal at all. You can't stay on it for more than a week anyway and whatever side effects they're talking about aren't anything I ever heard about let alone experienced. To me, this was as ridiculous as Jessie Spano's caffeine pill addiction.

I'm so excited! I'm so excited! I'm so...scared!
March 13, 2012 at 1:25PM EST Reply to Comment
- M Oh, and Julia's son may be the worst character currently on television. Nevermind that he's one of the annoying TV teenage boys you guys discussed in the last podcast, he's also played by one of the worst actors I've ever seen on television. If the show comes back next year they either need to ship him off to boarding school or just recast the role completely.
  March 13, 2012 at 1:28PM EST
- pamelajaye I've been on prednisone, and usually just for a week, though back in the early 80's it was at least a year, and it was great - I imagine it's what normal people with no allergies feel like. But it does mess with your body. Screws with your immune system, heard it messes with your bones and makes you puffy... not sure what else. But the wild mood swings? I sometimes wonder if people confuse corticosteroids with anabolic (and what the differences really are).
  March 17, 2012 at 4:00PM EST
shmrck14

So glad you mentioned the gathering around the stage at the bar mitzvah. Show is not great as it is, but at that moment I just thought...Um, no! Guests at a bar mitzvah, wedding, prom, compnanyy Xmas party, etc DO NOT gather around the performer like it's a concert, they DANCE.
March 13, 2012 at 1:46PM EST Reply to Comment
- nic919 I thought that she was going to get reprimanded at the end of the bar mitzvah because she had done such a horrible job. Instead, she gets a producer's number. The show needs to match what we see to realistic outcomes. Karen gets so many undeserved breaks that this is practically a fairy tale.
  March 13, 2012 at 2:31PM EST
eyecue

I agree that Joe DiMaggio is horribly miscast – for television. For theater, maybe just miscast due to his physical type not evocative of DiMaggio at all.

For the record, they were married for only a scant eight months, not "a few years".
March 13, 2012 at 3:07PM EST Reply to Comment
- sepinwall Yeah, just leave personality out of the equation for a second. DiMaggio being a very swarthy-looking Italian-American was a huge part of his identity and his appeal, and Will Chase is maybe the most whitebread actor appearing anywhere on American television that isn't the Disney Channel.
  March 13, 2012 at 5:01PM EST
- berkowit28 Right. Let him play Micky Mantle instead, some other show.
  March 13, 2012 at 10:43PM EST
Melanism

Given the height of the stage, the height of those kids and the length of Karen's skirt, many boys really became men that Bar Mitzvah.
March 13, 2012 at 4:19PM EST Reply to Comment
- Penny THAT'S why they were gathering around the stage...
  March 13, 2012 at 9:38PM EST
Dean Winchester

so if I'm following the ham-handed symbolism correctly, the darkness right before Karen's dawn is... a bar mitzvah on Long Island?

Congrats kid, you're a man. Also, NBC thinks you're pathetic.
March 13, 2012 at 4:50PM EST Reply to Comment
War Chief Shake Zula

On Twitter, you were calling it "Smash: The Brian Williams Story."

I remember that distinctly because it induced a Freudian Slip that now causes me to add "with Smash Williams" onto the end of Rock Center.
March 13, 2012 at 5:04PM EST Reply to Comment
- sepinwall I've gone back and forth between the two. "Smash: The Brian Williams Story" really only picked up after this picture was made with that as the caption: http://yfrog.com/h8i9n5j
  March 13, 2012 at 5:23PM EST
AP

This was really the most ridiculous episode yet. I wasn't sure what the point of that episode-ending bartender flirtation, either.
March 13, 2012 at 5:25PM EST Reply to Comment
txt

FULL of UNLIKABLE characters. I don't know what the writers were smoking when they conjure up that chemistry-free unfaithful affair between Julia and Michael, I hate them. HATE those two. It would've been just a bit more tolerable if one of them was single...but nooooo, the writers made a point to show us their loving spouse before the ridiculous cheesy sex scene. hate all the overly dramatic romance novel cover shoots between those two. yuck.

I also don't know what's the deal with Tom texting Karen to give her updates on Ivy's deteriorating condition. What was the point? to get her hopes up? Why couldn't he wait until he knows for sure they needed Karen to be the new lead before giving her the news? It just made no sense whatsoever considering that Tom and Karen are not friends, so I don't think he would text her so casually.

Thankfully, the episode does finally give that Ivy outburst we desperately need. Derek is a narcissistic sociopath. why did the writers made him such a douche is beyond me, considering the pool of jerks they have on the show.

Now...finally...Karen. Still lack personality. I want to root for her, but I just find her so boring compare to Ivy. now in real world, i don't think there is a competition at all, Megan Hilty is just a better Marilyn by a mile, but at least in the fictional world they could give me more compelling reason to why Karen should be, so far, I get nothing.
March 13, 2012 at 6:43PM EST Reply to Comment
John

Interesting read. I quite watching the show two weeks ago, but I'm still reading these recaps to see if it's worth getting back into. Apparently not. Sometimes, you just have to cut your losses. I quit watching The Killing midway through, and I'm really glad I did, given how that turned out.
March 13, 2012 at 6:51PM EST Reply to Comment
jlschaefer

Definitely not too early for a Landry-crossover. First on his hitlist should be Ellis, closely followed by Leo and Michael.
March 13, 2012 at 8:54PM EST Reply to Comment
pamelajaye

Even I know the words to Hava Nagila, off the top of my head, despite not knowing what they mean or how they would be spelled.
And I have no idea how I know them... was it a movie, a church dance? Quantum Leap? (I was once on the wrong end of two people kicking their legs up - they crossed in front of me, taking one of my legs with them and deposited me on my bum on the floor)
March 13, 2012 at 10:05PM EST Reply to Comment
CraigH

What's with the new change of direction with characters breaking out in song? And my Debra Messing have a gay partner in all of the television shows in which she stars? This show has gone from intriguing promise to guilty pleasure very quickly.
March 13, 2012 at 11:46PM EST Reply to Comment
david

I almost turned it off when Messing had a little, artfully placed smudge of flour on her forehead while making pancakes. I bet she comes home from the grocery store with a baguette and some greet topped carrots sticking out of her bag too.
I so wanted to like this show but I'm finding myself embarrassed (for the actors) watching it.
March 14, 2012 at 10:55AM EST Reply to Comment
lily

OMG this review is so lame, I just want to vomit by these accusations against Debra and Will for adultery because it's not true, this review is just BULLSHIT
March 14, 2012 at 12:32PM EST Reply to Comment
Doug

The whole Julia/Michael plotline is actually a metaphor for the show itself; the writer is just screwing around because she doesn't know what the heck she's doing.
March 14, 2012 at 4:39PM EST Reply to Comment
meoskop

I dropped Smash from my DVR for gender issues last week. Unlikeable characters is one thing, poorly written & punishing women (Ivy) for their sexuality is another. I checked your review to see if I was making a mistake. Thanks for letting me know that I was right to say goodbye.
March 18, 2012 at 2:56AM EST Reply to Comment
Liliane

I have to disagree with most all of you. Sure, the show has many, many flaws, such as Karen, and the acting of Julia's son. Those things need to be worked on, along with Ellis. That character needs to go. But Julia and Michael are the two good things about this show! How you all think that they have no chemistry is insane! When Michael "threatened" her it wasn't a threat. It was trying to get her attention. Obviously none of you know what its like to be in love, because that man is deeply in love with Julia. He wasn't trying to be creepy, he was trying to show to her that he was serious, that he wanted, needed, to talk to her. They married the wrong people. I know that they need to break things off with their spouses before they have a relationship but I have to say that their relationship is so legitimate. The pain and passion between them, cannot be ignored. This show is most certainly my guilty pleasure, because it is not very well written at all, but Julia and Michael are two people that I think have done a pretty good job.
March 22, 2012 at 7:55PM EST Reply to Comment

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Review: 'Smash' - 'Chemistry': Roid rage

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Comments

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

Thomas Is it possible the SMASH writers have little to say about the creative process, because their process is identical to Julia's?

DonBoy They're obviously remaking the entire basic plot of FNL, once the star inevitably goes down and the backup leads the team to victory.

sepinwall Oh, God. Is Ivy going to end up playing wheelchair rugby?

GR Angelica Houston is going to open up Buddy's Bar, with Big Buck Hunter and (relatively) cheap drinks.

Liz This show really needs to stop trying to convince us that Michael is the perfect choice for DiMaggio. No. Wrong. Incorrect.

pamelajaye cause everyone knows that Scott Bakula should play Joe DiMaggio. (I can't actually imagine that either, but it happened. On Broadway. In the 80's)

edwina It's really a shame that Smash is so disappointing. There is a guaranteed audience for an entertaining, smart show about Broadway and unfortunaely, this isn't it. I actually feel sorry for the talented cast, they and we deserve better.

nic919 I know the show wants me to hate Derek, but Jack Davenport has been the best part of this show for many episodes now. He is the smartest and most realistic character with more nuance than anyone else. And yet still I watch in the hopes it improves.

Beat Hmm...makes me think of Topsy Turvy - a fantastic Mike Leigh film about Gilbert and Sullivan. I tried to watch Smash but it's just a waste of time. Life's too short.

klg19 Oh, man, Slings and Arrows: one of the greatest series EVER. Paul Gross is so wonderful in that it makes my head explode.

Maeve SMASH is disappointing, yet I'm still watching because with everything that's wrong about it, it's still not as crazymaking irksome as GLEE, which also started out so promisingly and went boom so fast and so far that...well, another time.

klg19 Yeah, that Marilyn wig on Karen was TRAGICALLY bad.

Captain Hammer It really is a shame. I genuinely enjoyed the pilot, and the show was a really ambitious undertaking with a lot of potential. But since the first episode it's been average at best, abysmal at worst.

eyecue Reply to comment...

eyecue What was the problem with wearing "that dress" to the Bar Mitzvah?

diane Karen is insufferable Mary Sue. Screws up Bar Mitzvah and lands a busness card from a major music producer whom she never heard of (but wants to breka into music stardom). Only a McPhan can call this crap groundbreaking.

a Eyecue, it seemed like it would be awfully easy for the 13-year-old boys to look up her skirt when she was on stage.

psinca Debra Messing and Will Chase? Eew.

Helene How many minutes till Julia becomes pregnant with Michael's baby? Why am I watching this? More questions to come...On a whole other note for those who've read The Art of Fielding, the guy who plays the odious Ellis should definitely be cast as Owen when HBO puts that show into production.

diane I predict not just Julia`s pregnancy but Debra`s real-life pregnancy with Will Chase (Michael) written into the show. Justw atch for both happening.

shmrck14 So glad you mentioned the gathering around the stage at the bar mitzvah. Show is not great as it is, but at that moment I just thought...Um, no! Guests at a bar mitzvah, wedding, prom, compnanyy Xmas party, etc DO NOT gather around the performer like it's a concert, they DANCE.

eyecue I agree that Joe DiMaggio is horribly miscast – for television. For theater, maybe just miscast due to his physical type not evocative of DiMaggio at all.For the record, they were married for only a scant eight months, not "a few years".

sepinwall Yeah, just leave personality out of the equation for a second. DiMaggio being a very swarthy-looking Italian-American was a huge part of his identity and his appeal, and Will Chase is maybe the most whitebread actor appearing anywhere on American television that isn't the Disney Channel.

berkowit28 Right. Let him play Micky Mantle instead, some other show.

Melanism Given the height of the stage, the height of those kids and the length of Karen's skirt, many boys really became men that Bar Mitzvah.

Penny THAT'S why they were gathering around the stage...

Dean Winchester so if I'm following the ham-handed symbolism correctly, the darkness right before Karen's dawn is... a bar mitzvah on Long Island?Congrats kid, you're a man. Also, NBC thinks you're pathetic.

War Chief Shake Zula On Twitter, you were calling it "Smash: The Brian Williams Story."I remember that distinctly because it induced a Freudian Slip that now causes me to add "with Smash Williams" onto the end of Rock Center.

sepinwall I've gone back and forth between the two. "Smash: The Brian Williams Story" really only picked up after this picture was made with that as the caption: http://yfrog.com/h8i9n5j

AP This was really the most ridiculous episode yet. I wasn't sure what the point of that episode-ending bartender flirtation, either.

John Interesting read. I quite watching the show two weeks ago, but I'm still reading these recaps to see if it's worth getting back into. Apparently not. Sometimes, you just have to cut your losses. I quit watching The Killing midway through, and I'm really glad I did, given how that turned out.

jlschaefer Definitely not too early for a Landry-crossover. First on his hitlist should be Ellis, closely followed by Leo and Michael.

CraigH What's with the new change of direction with characters breaking out in song? And my Debra Messing have a gay partner in all of the television shows in which she stars? This show has gone from intriguing promise to guilty pleasure very quickly.

lily OMG this review is so lame, I just want to vomit by these accusations against Debra and Will for adultery because it's not true, this review is just BULLSHIT

Doug The whole Julia/Michael plotline is actually a metaphor for the show itself; the writer is just screwing around because she doesn't know what the heck she's doing.

meoskop I dropped Smash from my DVR for gender issues last week. Unlikeable characters is one thing, poorly written & punishing women (Ivy) for their sexuality is another. I checked your review to see if I was making a mistake. Thanks for letting me know that I was right to say goodbye.

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Thomas

Is it possible the SMASH writers have little to say about the creative process, because their process is identical to Julia's?

DonBoy

They're obviously remaking the entire basic plot of FNL, once the star inevitably goes down and the backup leads the team to victory.

Liz

This show really needs to stop trying to convince us that Michael is the perfect choice for DiMaggio. No. Wrong. Incorrect.

edwina

It's really a shame that Smash is so disappointing. There is a guaranteed audience for an entertaining, smart show about Broadway and unfortunaely, this isn't it. I actually feel sorry for the talented cast, they and we deserve better.

nic919

I know the show wants me to hate Derek, but Jack Davenport has been the best part of this show for many episodes now. He is the smartest and most realistic character with more nuance than anyone else.

And yet still I watch in the hopes it improves.

Maeve

SMASH is disappointing, yet I'm still watching because with everything that's wrong about it, it's still not as crazymaking irksome as GLEE, which also started out so promisingly and went boom so fast and so far that...well, another time.

Captain Hammer

It really is a shame. I genuinely enjoyed the pilot, and the show was a really ambitious undertaking with a lot of potential. But since the first episode it's been average at best, abysmal at worst.

Helene

How many minutes till Julia becomes pregnant with Michael's baby? Why am I watching this? More questions to come...
On a whole other note for those who've read The Art of Fielding, the guy who plays the odious Ellis should definitely be cast as Owen when HBO puts that show into production.

shmrck14

So glad you mentioned the gathering around the stage at the bar mitzvah. Show is not great as it is, but at that moment I just thought...Um, no! Guests at a bar mitzvah, wedding, prom, compnanyy Xmas party, etc DO NOT gather around the performer like it's a concert, they DANCE.

eyecue

I agree that Joe DiMaggio is horribly miscast – for television. For theater, maybe just miscast due to his physical type not evocative of DiMaggio at all.

For the record, they were married for only a scant eight months, not "a few years".

Melanism

Given the height of the stage, the height of those kids and the length of Karen's skirt, many boys really became men that Bar Mitzvah.

Dean Winchester

so if I'm following the ham-handed symbolism correctly, the darkness right before Karen's dawn is... a bar mitzvah on Long Island?

Congrats kid, you're a man. Also, NBC thinks you're pathetic.

War Chief Shake Zula

On Twitter, you were calling it "Smash: The Brian Williams Story."

I remember that distinctly because it induced a Freudian Slip that now causes me to add "with Smash Williams" onto the end of Rock Center.

AP

This was really the most ridiculous episode yet. I wasn't sure what the point of that episode-ending bartender flirtation, either.

John

Interesting read. I quite watching the show two weeks ago, but I'm still reading these recaps to see if it's worth getting back into. Apparently not. Sometimes, you just have to cut your losses. I quit watching The Killing midway through, and I'm really glad I did, given how that turned out.

jlschaefer

Definitely not too early for a Landry-crossover. First on his hitlist should be Ellis, closely followed by Leo and Michael.

CraigH

What's with the new change of direction with characters breaking out in song? And my Debra Messing have a gay partner in all of the television shows in which she stars? This show has gone from intriguing promise to guilty pleasure very quickly.

lily

OMG this review is so lame, I just want to vomit by these accusations against Debra and Will for adultery because it's not true, this review is just BULLSHIT

Doug

The whole Julia/Michael plotline is actually a metaphor for the show itself; the writer is just screwing around because she doesn't know what the heck she's doing.

meoskop

I dropped Smash from my DVR for gender issues last week. Unlikeable characters is one thing, poorly written & punishing women (Ivy) for their sexuality is another. I checked your review to see if I was making a mistake. Thanks for letting me know that I was right to say goodbye.

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