Ms. Taco's Pilot Review-Up All Night

Up All Night premiered last night at 10pm (though it's regular time slot will be 8pm Wednesdays) on NBC. It stars Will Arnett and Christina Applegate as Chris and Reagan, new parents trying to juggle having a new baby, maintaining careers, and keep their relationship fresh. Rounding out the cast is Maya Rudolph as Ava, Reagan's friend and talk show host boss and Nick Cannon as Calvin, who also works on the talk show.

I'll start with the positive...I love Arnett and Applegate. I think they are really well-paired as a couple. They both seem like genuinely nice people so when you watch them playing nice people as a couple, it feels real. The best scenes come when they are on screen together, particularly when they are with new baby, Amy. These scenes are endearing, while also invoking a chuckle out of you as you watch them try to navigate all of the newness in having this little person suddenly in their lives. You can see on their faces all of the emotion that comes with having a new baby and when they are sitting there staring at her, you believe they are completely in love with her and will do anything to make sure she grows up safe and happy. One thing, the scenes with Chris and Reagan going out and getting drunk felt a little jarring. It seemed like a little too much to hit home the point that they are struggling with maintaining their old lives while also raising a baby. I like these characters and I feel like this could have been shown in a less irresponsible way.

Now for some of my main issues with the episode. Since the premise of the show has Applegate's Reagan returning to work (she's a producer for her friend Ava's talk show, aptly named Ava), while Arnett takes a break from his law firm to be a stay at home dad, about half of the episode is dedicated to Reagan's work life, which mainly consists of her putting out fires and ensuring that Ava does not have a meltdown. I think these scenes will be the show's weakness. While I did find myself laughing a lot during Rudolph's scenes, I think her character most of all runs the risk of becoming a joke and not in a good way. Right now she's sort of in a one note role and I find myself wondering why Reagan and her are such good friends. Ava seems very self-absorbed, not really taking into account that her good friend now has a baby to care for. She stops by claiming to bring a gift for the baby, but as it turns out, there's not a single baby related thing in the gift basket she's brought. I realize that this may be Ava's way of reacting to the fact that her good friend has had a major life change, which would be an interesting thing to explore in future episodes if this is the case. I also realize that she may be there as a contrast to Reagan (and also as the main comic relief) but I wonder how long the novelty of this will last for me. Michael Scott always walked a fine line between being funny and being over the top, but with Michael, you always felt like he genuinely cared about the people in the office. With Rudolph's Ava, you see a hint of this in the final scene with her, Chris, and Reagan but right now it's just a hint. I'd love to see her character way more fleshed out. I'm definitely planning to continue watching this show, so I guess we'll wait and see on that.

Ms. Taco's First Impressions-Wednesday Nights

*Ms. Taco apologizes for the lateness of this post*

Up All Night
Series premiere September 14th-10pm-NBC
Regular time slot begins September 21st-8pm-NBC


I hadn't even heard of this show until recently, but I was really drawn in when viewing the preview. Will Arnet (Arrested Development) and Christina Applegate (Samantha Who?) are both really likable, so that might be part of the draw for me, but I also found myself really attracted to following this couple along for the ride of raising a new baby. I'm also loving the way this series is shot. Some of the scenes of them with the baby made me feel like I was right there with them, which contributes to the concept of following them as they raise her. I'm always kind of skeptical about comedies. It takes a lot to get to me to actually stick with one, but I really like the idea of this show so I'm hoping these characters are fleshed out enough to keep me watching week to week.


Suburgatory
Series premiere September 28th-8:30pm-ABC
Revenge
Series premiere September 21st-10pm-ABC


I really wanted to like these shows, Suburgatory because I always like a good suburbia satire and Revenge because I'm a huge Emily Van Camp (Everwood, Brothers and Sisters) fan but I actually found myself kind of bored watching these previews. I'm not quite sure they will live up to my expectations from initially hearing about them. Suburgatory seems kind of silly and I don't see one character in Revenge who would be of interest to me, even Van Camp's aptly named Emily. Maybe I'll be wrong, wouldn't be the first time. I'm putting these two on my maybe list. Final decision to come in a future blog post.


Also premiering this fall are Free Agents, premiering September 21st at 8:30pm on NBC, I Hate My Teenage Daughter, premiering at November 30th 9:30 pm on FOX, H8R, premiering September 14th at 8pm on the CW, and The X Factor, premiering September 21st at 8pm on FOX. None of these shows struck a real interest in my from their previews, but they might be of interest to some of you!


Ms. Taco's Returning Wednesday Night Favorite:
Modern Family