I like the trend of bigger stars coming to
television and in a regular series, especially someone like Heather Graham. Of course she's pleasant on the eyes, but
she also seems to be one of the most approacable and genuinely "cute" actresses in Hollywood. She has that
air about her, where you can tell that's she probably very similar in real life to the characters she plays on film. I
personally am going to love seeing her week in and week out, because I think this show is going to last for a very long
time. They have an excellent start, and I can't wait to see where it grows from here. On with the show!We start off meeting Emily Sanders (Graham) as a little girl and get a brief overview of her "Reasons Why
Not" system. Basically, if she can think of five reasons why not to do something, she doesn't. We see her in her
younger days deciding not to smoke because of how her grandmother looks/is after years of smoking. After a bad breakup
with her boyfriend (and author of the book she's publishing), Emily decides to take a much more hard-edged approach to
her dating, and anytime she stumbles across five reasons not to date a guy, it's over.
Her first run on the
new system is with a guy who seems to be the epitome of what a girl looks for, Stan. He's considerate, kind, good
looking, he cooks, and oh yea, he's gay! Or at least that's what Emily has convinced herself after a few dates with
Stan and he still hasn't kissed her. Well, there's also the subscription to Martha Stewart Living and that he likes to
roll around with other guys. After she "outs" him on his company voicemail in front of all of his coworkers,
she finds out one vital piece of information; he's a mormon. A virgin mormon. A virgin mormon who was just waiting for
the right girl, one like Emily. Ouch...
Emily's Reasons Why Not plays a little like How I Met Your Mother, Sex in the City, and Ally
McBeal, shaken and chilled. It's got just the right amount of each, too ,and it's a blast to watch. Heather
Graham's supporting cast is perfect, and while this episode was a little heavy on the estrogen with only her friend,
obligatory gay friend, and evil former assistant on the show, it should be a little more balanced when James Patrick
Stuart joins the cast from here on out. He's a great straight man in both senses of the word. I'm hooked, and while
they're on separate networks, this makes a great companion to How I Met Your
Mother for hopeless romantics on Monday nights. Maybe one day Ted and Emily will find each other... Let me know
what you think.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1-10-2006 @ 1:48PM
e said...
Wow - you liked it a lot more than I did. Although it wasn't terrible, it definitely isn't appointment television. I'm gonna pass on any furhter episodes.
Reply
1-10-2006 @ 2:08PM
Rachel said...
I agree with the poster above. While I didn't feel like I had wasted 30 minutes of my life, I certainly won't go out of my way to watch.
Reply
1-10-2006 @ 2:32PM
Chris said...
My wife and I had a pretty tepid response to the pilot. It was cute but some of the characters are terrible. I hope they get rid of the Asian character...she made the show terribly difficult to watch. We won't delete it yet from our DVR but it's certainly on the short list of things to go. The only show we've ever removed after one episode was Numb3rs. My wife's comment, however, was that it was a shame that this show won't make it - the intro sucks. I'd chalk this one up to a 'Well, Seinfeld sucked its first season too'.
Chris
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1-10-2006 @ 4:27PM
Walt said...
yep. Casting counts. This is one of those shows that could be made considerably better by dropping everyone but the primary actor off of a bridge and starting over.
It's a chemistry thing. I guess they hire these folks before anyone has a chance to see them play off of each other.
Reply
1-10-2006 @ 4:45PM
vince said...
the only reason to watch this show is heather graham. Her beautiful green/blue eyes makes up for this shows' lack of wit and humor. i got more laughs from jake in progress than in this pilot episode. the good new is it's only the first episode. hope the next one makes it worth watching.
Reply
1-10-2006 @ 5:54PM
Claire! said...
I like Heather Graham, so I'll give it a few episodes, but I didn't love the pilot. I like the premise though...the five reasons...it's a good thing, but the show better get good soon.
Reply
1-11-2006 @ 10:37AM
riki said...
Was I the only one who really liked it? I even went as far as to make the comment that I have found my NEW Sex and the City replacement. Graham is adorable and fun to watch. Her chemestry with her friends is great and I really like the snot faced devil assistant that you just wanna slap. I hope this makes it. I was missing a feel good girly comedy in my life.
Reply
1-12-2006 @ 4:45AM
Jason Anderson said...
I fell in love with her on Scrubs last season. I was hoping she would stay on the show. In fact, she made me start watching Scrubs. (Which I ended up loving to death.)
I wish she'd go back to Scrubs.
Reply