Tangled Up In Wires

When watching last night’s much-hyped pilot episode of NBC’s Parenthood, I got to thinking about some of the best and worst premier episodes of all time. On one end of the spectrum, you have pilots from shows like Lost or Mad Men, that instantly announce themselves as being “big” shows that will be supremely enjoyable to watch. Then you have a show like Heroes that has a pilot that’s not bad, but sets up a great season/show (definitely season in that case). Lastly, you have a pilot like that for Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, which fails to live up to the show’s ambition, and is ultimately an example of why a show will eventually meet its early demise. So the question is, where would Parenthood end up on the spectrum?

The show is certainly ambitious. A dramedy about the lives of four grown siblings, their parents, and their kids is not going to set the world on fire based on its premise alone, but more in its execution. The Braverman Clan is headed by parents Zeke and Camilla (Craig T. Nelson and Bonnie Bedelia). From there you have eldest son Adam (Peter Krause) and his wife Kristina (Monica Potter), and their two kids, Max and Haddie, daughter Sarah (Lauren Graham who took over for Maura Tierney) and her two teenagers Amber and Drew (Mae Whitman and Miles Heizer), daughter Julia (Erika Christianson), who is married to Joel (Sam Jager) and has a daughter, Sydney, and last, there’s ne’er do well son Crosby (Dax Shepard). That’s a lot of information to process right there, and that’s just a who’s who.

In the first episode, we learn that Zeke is a ultra-competitive guy who pushes Adam to be the same way, as is evident by the latter’s propensity to fly off the handle, such as arguing with the ump at Max’s baseball game. Adam and Kristina learn that Max’s generally odd behavior isn’t the result of him just being different, but rather him having Asberger’s. It’s hard to tell what Adam and Kristina’s reaction is, and it’s possible that they don’t even know yet. Meanwhile, they’re teenage daughter Haddie gets taken to the police station with Amber (more on that in a second), apparently because someone had weed and they got mixed up in it. They get picked up though, and the anger of Adam and Kristina subsides quickly as Sarah makes apologies for her daughter.

Meanwhile there’s Sarah, divorced from a drug-addled musician and moving back home with her parents until she lands on her feet. Amber is the rebellious type, initially refusing to move, but eventually being forced. Drew on the other hand seems more upset that he’ll be away from his father more than anything else. Sarah goes on a date with an old flame, who isn’t quite as good looking as he once was, but is still a good guy. They hook up, but not without being discovered by Drew, who runs off to his father. Sarah brings him home and offers an impassioned plea to him that she won’t ever desert him, even if his father has. On the other end though, Sarah dishes out the disappointment with Amber following the arrest, though softens when Amber’s sarcasm turns to genuine advice before Sarah’s date.

Julia is a high powered super busy attorney who’s as aggressive as Adam and Zeke, but there’s an arrogance there that is missing in the other siblings. Her biggest concern is that because of her constant absence, Sydney seems to prefer her dad to her mother, asking for him to cut her food or sing to her. Julia is hurt by this, but that doesn’t stop her from heckling Sarah, something it seems she does quite successfully.

Lastly, there’s Crosby, who has just gotten back together with his occasional girlfriend (if you couldn’t place her face like me, it’s Marguerite Morneau of Wet Hot American Summer). When he finds a container of sperm in her fridge, she pressures him into agreeing to have a baby, within three years. Meanwhile, an ex keeps emailing him and, surprise, he has five year old son he doesn’t know about!

The pilot definitely jumps right in to the story, not spending a ton of time introducing us to the characters, but rather telling us what we need to know to get the story going, with the promise of more exposition to come. Not only do they hit the ground running, but talking. The banter between everyone is fast and often overlapping, and it at times was challenging to keep up. One particular scene, where the four siblings end up in the same place, flew by so quickly, it was as if it were on fast forward. The thing is though, it wasn’t unrealistic, and rather seemed like the kind of thing this family has been used to for a long time.

The strongest thing about Parenthood is its cast, as would be expected based on the names on the bill. I was worried when I heard that Lauren Graham would step in for Maura Tierney was that it would be too similar to her Gilmore Girls role, but she plays the part really well. Peter Krause is also predictably strong, as is Craig T. Nelson. Surprisingly, Dax Shepard was pretty good in his role as Crosby, not being as annoying as he frequently is.

So what’s the final verdict on the Parenthood pilot episode? Right now I’m thinking it falls into the middle category, a decent episode of a show that has potential to be either really good or barely make it through the season. Parenthood has a lot going on, and a pilot is designed give the viewer an indication of what’s to come, so I can excuse the information overload for right now. The success of this show is going to rely on how the show can keep itself from veering into the “stock largely family drama” territory. I have a lot of faith in the team behind this show, including Ron Howard, Brain Grazer, Jason Katims (Friday Night Lights), and Thomas Schalamme (Sports Night, The West Wing), who directed last night. It was a pretty solid pilot that at the very least convinced me to tune in again next week.

Michael’s Score: 77

Tangled Up In Wires Grade: B+

Note: I haven’t decided if I’m going to keep reviewing Parenthood every week, but I’ll probably keep tabs on the first couple episodes to see if it’s worth a weekly review or not. We’d love to hear your thoughts on the matter in the comments!