It's a lot like a documentary with some voice-overs by Frank Lagellea playing a 'wise acting coach' character who doesn't shut up about the noble art of acting throughout the whole episode. This gets annoying very quickly.
From the promotion (perhaps the constant comparisons to Curb Your Enthusiasm from the cast and creators), I was under the impression this would be more of a comedy (albeit not a conventional one). However, it's really not a comedy at all (maybe 2 or 3 amusing moments through the 28 minute first episode) so while it is interesting I suppose, it also gets boring quickly. This is ground that has been covered many times before and done better, quite frankly.
The show is billed as a look into the life of 'struggling' actors yet they don't deal with issues like getting an agent, making rent, working crap jobs in the service industry. These are things that make up the lives of struggling actors. Instead the 3 main characters are fairly known actors who all have steady paychecks (in the show and in real-life) and spend their time going to acting class and screwing around. The problem is it instantly fails to make them relatable to 95% of the viewers. The show seems to focus on actors struggling to get a grasp on the 'art' of acting, trying to be major celebrities. It has very little emphasis on their lives and how they're affected by their profession, which would have been a far better route to take.
A good amount of the events in the show are non-fictional (spots the actors land on TV shows etc.) while some of them are made up (Krista Allen going to an audition with her son tagging along, and the kid somehow getting the part and she doesn't). Anyway, it tries so hard to be real (with no big payoff at the end like Curb Your Enthusiasm), I don't know why they didn't just make a real documentary rather than relying on these made up situations (which are actually less interesting than the parts that aren't made up).
I understand that this show is trying to be 'real' and show what it's like to be an actor living in LA and isn't about the punchlines, but if that's the case, they need to come up with situations that are less dependent on the actor's actual experiences and are actually entertaining. The show is stuck in the middle between comedy (like Curb Your Enthusiasm or The Office) and full-on documentary. The problem is it's only average in both regards (there are scenes that are a downright bore).
When you decide to make a faux documentary, you have the power to write some interesting stories and scenarios that are still plausible. In this case, you have actors who are playing themselves with many real-life situations and they're not exercising that power to write good stories and characters. If you have the real actors playing themselves, no script, and have no intention of writing anything that strays too far away from the truth, then why make it an acted show at all? There's just no logic there.
Ultimately, unless you're a big fan of one of the 3 principles or are very interested in the acting life, it's really not worth watching. The acting is decent and will probably get them a little more exposure within the industry, but the execution just isn't up to par (blame it on Clooney).
Rating: 6.2/10
On the upside, Krista Allen is very hot and almost makes it worth watching.
From the promotion (perhaps the constant comparisons to Curb Your Enthusiasm from the cast and creators), I was under the impression this would be more of a comedy (albeit not a conventional one). However, it's really not a comedy at all (maybe 2 or 3 amusing moments through the 28 minute first episode) so while it is interesting I suppose, it also gets boring quickly. This is ground that has been covered many times before and done better, quite frankly.
The show is billed as a look into the life of 'struggling' actors yet they don't deal with issues like getting an agent, making rent, working crap jobs in the service industry. These are things that make up the lives of struggling actors. Instead the 3 main characters are fairly known actors who all have steady paychecks (in the show and in real-life) and spend their time going to acting class and screwing around. The problem is it instantly fails to make them relatable to 95% of the viewers. The show seems to focus on actors struggling to get a grasp on the 'art' of acting, trying to be major celebrities. It has very little emphasis on their lives and how they're affected by their profession, which would have been a far better route to take.
A good amount of the events in the show are non-fictional (spots the actors land on TV shows etc.) while some of them are made up (Krista Allen going to an audition with her son tagging along, and the kid somehow getting the part and she doesn't). Anyway, it tries so hard to be real (with no big payoff at the end like Curb Your Enthusiasm), I don't know why they didn't just make a real documentary rather than relying on these made up situations (which are actually less interesting than the parts that aren't made up).
I understand that this show is trying to be 'real' and show what it's like to be an actor living in LA and isn't about the punchlines, but if that's the case, they need to come up with situations that are less dependent on the actor's actual experiences and are actually entertaining. The show is stuck in the middle between comedy (like Curb Your Enthusiasm or The Office) and full-on documentary. The problem is it's only average in both regards (there are scenes that are a downright bore).
When you decide to make a faux documentary, you have the power to write some interesting stories and scenarios that are still plausible. In this case, you have actors who are playing themselves with many real-life situations and they're not exercising that power to write good stories and characters. If you have the real actors playing themselves, no script, and have no intention of writing anything that strays too far away from the truth, then why make it an acted show at all? There's just no logic there.
Ultimately, unless you're a big fan of one of the 3 principles or are very interested in the acting life, it's really not worth watching. The acting is decent and will probably get them a little more exposure within the industry, but the execution just isn't up to par (blame it on Clooney).
Rating: 6.2/10
On the upside, Krista Allen is very hot and almost makes it worth watching.