The 2014 PopFilter New Fall TV Challenge
Round One
MARRY ME
VS
JANE THE VIRGIN
I never saw it coming.
First, Marry Me happened. It’s a sitcom about a couple who can’t quite get their proposal right. If I were a betting man, it would have had my money on it to make it until at least the third round. It’s because I believe in the talent of stars Carey Wilson, Ken Marino and creator David Caspe. All three have proven themselves to be home run hitters and Marry Me is no exception. It’s genuinely, exceptionally funny. Wilson is amazing. She can do some fearless physical comedy and has an incredibly instinct for how to get the most out of her lines. Ken Marino is a great team player and seems to be enhanced by and thrive off the energy and talent surrounding him. Marry Me has some great people behind it.
The only real problem I have is with one of the supporting players. They made an odd choice casting Sarah Wright (a.k.a Jerry from Park’s and Recreation’s daughter) as Wilson’s best friend. She does okay with the lines she’s given, but I don’t quite understand how she fits into this world. At the top of the episode, Wilson goes on a incredible rant about how Marino hasn’t proposed yet where she calls her best friend a hipster who is probably going to die a spinster. With a description like that I pictured the neighbor from Selfie, not supermodel Sarah Wright. This implies a lack of awareness about what this character’s role should be. But if you’ve ever seen Capse and Wilson’s other vehicle, Happy Endings, you’d understand why I have complete faith in this show to figure it out. Happy Endings was an incredible ensemble piece; that can’t happen unless a show figures out how to use the entire casts’ strengths. You only have to look at Marino’s mother to understand Caspe’s ability to give a bit character one of the funniest moments on the show (when she’s in the car singing along to Pink’s Fuckin Perfect after overhearing Wilson call her a bitch, it just about killed me.) This show is a must see.
Then it happened: Jane the Virgin came bounding out of the red corner with such lightness of foot and energy it totally bowled me over. I don’t know what’s going on over there at the CW, but they have gone from cheesedick young-adult drama to some of the most compelling tevelvision of the fall. It’s a network Cinderella story!
Jane the Virgin was great. Great in a way I did not expect, and great in a way I did not know was possible. It’s almost hard to review. It took all these telenovela themes and insane plot twists and presented them earnestly, without overacting, and without the absurd edits that don’t give big moments time to land. The plot is like an control-tower radar screen busy with air-traffic, but not overly convoluted because the trajectory of each plot-point easy to follow. The strength of this show isn’t even in its plot, but in its characters. The plot just gives the characters agency. Each week, the viewers will tune in for Jane and co. and not because there is a bunch of crazy crap going on. The characters are ordinary people put in extraordinary situations, the former being something that soap operas typically fail to develop.
These two shows are clearly heavy weights. This round, which comes as a surprise to everyone, including me, is going to the underdog: Jane the Virgin. Marry Me moves on to a regular spot on my TV schedule while Jane the Virgin moves on to the second round.
-Stephanie Rose