Here we go, Fellow Addicts! The first official new show premiere of the Fall 2011 Season was last night's RINGER, Sarah Michelle Gellar's first return to television since BUFFY ended eight years ago. Let's get rolling...
What's it about?
Sarah Michelle Gellar stars as a woman who, after witnessing a murder, goes on the run, hiding out by assuming the life of her wealthy identical twin sister - only to learn that her sister's seemingly idyllic life is just as complicated and dangerous as the one she's trying to leave behind.
So, how was it?
This is truly the "Sarah Michelle Gellar Hour." She plays not one but two characters who are identical twins -- one who is a pluckily sarcastic stripper/recovering drug addict, the other who is a icily cool socialite with both an expansive home in the Hamptons and a towering penthouse in Manhattan. It was kind of hysterical watching Ms Gellar acting with herself (aided by obvious body doubles and cheap-looking green screens). If you are a fan of Ms Gellar, you will want to check this out for obvious reasons, but don't go in expecting any of the wit of Joss Whedon's wonderful dialogue and characters from BUFFY. This show takes itself much more seriously.
In fact, for the situations the characters find themselves in, this show takes itself entirely TOO seriously. The stripper with a heart of gold; the "evil," conniving identical twin; the FBI agent dogging the main character's heels; the ice queen's loveless marriage; her fling with her best friend's dashingly-good-looking best friend...we've seen all of this before. (At least this show has the never-disappointing Nestor Carbonell as the FBI agent -- Richard Alpert, for all you fellow LOST addicts.) The only scenes that felt remotely honest were in Ms Gellar's interactions with her sister's husband. For all the clichéd storylines, the show would be aided by a sense of self-effacing humor that just isn't there. The acting is mediocre, the plot tries too hard to be twisty-turny, and the one action scene is underwhelming, at least by BUFFY standards.
And therein lies the biggest problem. The mere fact that this show stars Sarah Michelle Gellar will result in endless comparisons to BUFFY, considered by many one of their favorite shows of all time. So far, RINGER pales in comparison.
Rating:
** Okay. I may give it another episode or two to see if it gets good.
Honestly, if this show wasn't starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, I doubt anyone would be paying it that much mind. It should've been telling that after CBS saw the pilot, it decided to NOT pick it up. Only then did the CW swoop in and save the show from extinction. This just goes to show that CBS wasn't confident that even Ms Gellar's super-star-power would be enough to keep this show going. Obviously the CW has more faith in it, but let's be honest -- their standards aren't exactly the highest. But because I know Ms Gellar can kick butt and because of my previously admitted love for soapy thrillers, I will give this show at least a couple more shots at grabbing my attention.
Your turn, Fellow Addicts! What did you think of RINGER? Was I too harsh? Did you like it more? Less? Vote in the poll below and then sound off in the comments!
(For a quick glance at the other pilots coming out, check out my Fall TV Preview.)
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