John From Cincinnati, the most pretentious, plodding, pointless show ever to hit the airwaves, has been put to sleep after just one season on HBO.
I, for one, couldn't be happier.
I tried to get into this show, but it was like talking to the neighbor's 15-year-old Goth kid about gym class -- awkward and impenetrable.
I recorded the show on DVR and tried to give some episodes second viewings, but it was like being force-fed medicine (however, the show did force me how to learn to spell "Cincinnati").
I'm a guy who doesn't mind weirdo. I sat through all of "Carnivale." I've seen "I Heart Huckabees" more than once. Heck, I even journeyed to NYC to catch "Magnolia" when it was in limited release, so I don't mind a little pretension in my entertainment.
But "John From Cincinnati?" Puh-lease.
The moment that did me in happened in episode five, I believe. The porn star mom meets with the guy from "90210" in a bar toward the end of the episode. They chat about God knows what. But before they say each line, they pause and sorta look at the ground.
They're soooo world-weary everything . . . has . . . to be said . . . with (pause to take a sip of your beverage resting on the bar) such, I dunno . . . . . . . . deliberateness.
Ugh.
Critics, for the most part, looked favorably at the series and are lamenting the loss. I don't buy it.
Call me cynical, but "John" was a chance for critics to get in on some ground-floor coolness. HBO shows have a pattern of slowly building rabid fans --- "The Sopranos" being the ultimate example.
With "John" arriving after the last "Sopranos" episode, and HBO declaring it the next big thing, critics didn't want to be perceived as "unhip."
Man, they were forgiving.
That's why the show received so many positive reviews, even though articles also mentioned the fact that at least two members of the cast (the little surfer kid and the surfer girl) delivered their lines with a wooden cadence that rivaled Sophia Coppola in "Godfather III."
And this was the show that ended "Deadwood."
Sigh.
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4 comments:
HBO ended Deadwood. Production costs to expensive.
But they were supposed to finish it off with extended final episodes or a 'Deadwood' movie. That's all up in the air now, and ya can't help but speculate that it is due to Milch's devotion to 'John.'
It's all about money. Even at HBO. My wife and I actually loved JFC and were sorry to see it end. I think we needed a show like this. Instead, they (the man) :-) are going to shove more reallity junk down our throats. Someone shoot me........
I still say HBO is great, with "Big Love," "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and, of course, "The Wire."
Everybody misfires, I suppose. Scorsese made "New York, New York," after all.
As far as more reality shows -- I gotta admit, I have a soft spot for them.
"So You Wanna Be A Super Hero?" is the best worst 'reality' show on right now.
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