Parenthood - New TV Series on NBC

My dislike for Steve Martin (Planes, Trains and Automobiles aside) and Ron Howard (virtually everything he's directed) meant I never got around to seeing the 1989 feature film nor the original attempt at adapting it into a TV Series. From what I can tell, they took the basic, broad premise of the movie -- four children and their parents struggling with parenthood: one the father of a son with Asperger's, one the divorced mother of two troubled teens, one a wife feeling that her husband has squeezed her out of her daughter's life, and one a slacker, directionless father to a biracial son -- and ditched everything else. The inccessant NBC promos during the Olympics and my love for Lauren Graham convinced me to tune in.

 

One thing I was not prepared for was how much Peter Krause, in the Steve Martin role, is the first among equals in this ensemble. The entire family revolves around him, and he mostly bears the burden well. The parents (played by Craig T. Nelson and Bonnie Bedelia) gravitate a little too close to the batty liberal old couple that are a sitcom staple at first glance, but Nelson's patriarch in particular ultimately comes across as the classic old school American father, territory that Ed O'Neill has been in total command of all season on "Modern Family". Lauren Graham adds some much needed comic relief to the show, even as her storyline is full of affecting dramatic moments. Graham swings between the two poles better than anyone else working today. Erika Christensen has graduated to adult roles, as the extremely successful alpha female that is watching her home life slip away from her. Dax Shepard plays the resident Type B of the family, who has been gliding through life relatively care-free until his girlfriend manipulates him into promising him a kid right before he discovers he conceived a young son with an old flame.

And that's just the core family. Mae Whitman and Sarah Ramos are effective as the teenage daughters to Graham's character and Krause's character respectively. Sam Jaeger is non-threatening and domesticated as the stay-at-home husband to Christensen's high-powered lawyer.

I grew up in an extended family that met for holidays and anniversaries and that was pretty much it, so the idea of four siblings that constantly weave in and out of each others' lives is completely foreign to me. This stellar cast sold it for me, with a filming style that translates "The West Wing's" breakneck verbal pacing to the domestic front. In the short-term, I think the show's juggling too much, because we never get to spend enough time with any of the stories. That being said, there were several moments in this pilot where I choked up a bit, which is a tribute to the performances -- especially Peter Krause's as the seemingly ideal dad that's on the verge of cracking up just under the surface.

I liked this episode more than the pilot. Mae Whitman does a tremendous job humanized the most unlikable character on the show. Her breakdown in the car instantly inverted my opinion of Amber, and there are lots of touches scattered throughout that made me believe that she's as intelligent as her mother made her out to be.

I can empathize with Sarah on the job front, too: the feeling that you've aced an interview only to not get it is excruciating. When you know you were only even considered because of a personal connection, it's even more demoralizing. At least Sarah got a phone call and an explanation why; such basic courtesy has become virtually non-existant in the modern economy. I'm glad she didn't slip right into her dream job though; that's not how real life works. Even happy endings take hard, sustained work to achieve.

At my high school job, I worked with a kid that had Asperger's. If there was work to be done and the procedures were clearly defined, he did very well. If a situation called for flexibility and rapid adaptation, he was helpless. Very polite, very friendly, but absolute hell to spend a six hour shift on a slow day with. There are instinctual social boundaries that you don't even notice until you encounter someone who doesn't comprehend them. I would find myself getting angry with him without understand exactly what he did that made me angry. I couldn't understand why he made what were to me blatantly obvious mistakes, because I didn't understand how he perceived the world. Max here is more petulant than the guy I'm talking about, in the way that grade schoolers tend to be, but certain moments rang true - especially the obsessive focus on a few core interests. My coworker loved poker. He could explain all of the intricacies and different hands and psychology etc. for hours on end if given the chance. I loved seeing Tom Amandes pop up as the psychiatrist; he gets typecast as pompous jerks, when he's so much better in warm roles like this one.

The tragedy in the case of this family is that the emotional commitment that Adam and his wife need to devote to Max means that their older daughter Haddie is effectively ignored. Her confession about the pot was her crying out and saying, I'm going through some stuff and I can't handle it on my own. But her parents, still rocked by the Aspergers diagnosis, barely took the time to process it before refocusing on problem #1. I can't say I'd have done any different in their schools, but that's going to have bigger consequences down the road.

The focus on Julia's outburst about the New Age mommy not even working seemed to be on the alienated soccer moms, but I wondered how her husband felt; here he's given up his career so she can pursue hers and still have a family, and she basically dismisses that sacrifice with a snort. If I were in his shoes, I'd be pretty pissed.

Crosby still hasn't come to terms with being a father. He's still in flight mode.

Another good episode. So far, this show doesn't do big episodic plots; instead each hours is full of the sort of exceptionally well-observed moments that we all have. The sad shot of Sarah and Amber trying to share a single bed made me feel a whole lot better about my own life; it's the kind of moment when you ask, "Can things get any worse?" So far, the only storyline that isn't working for me is Julia and Mr. Mom. Julia and Sydney don't seem to have any real chemistry, and much like Julia herself, we find ourselves on the outside looking in. All of the moments that would make us connect with Sydney as a character happen with Joel offscreen. The storyline that's working the best for me is the Adam and Kristina storyline, both because Peter Krause is an incredible anchor and because we're right there in it with them, and with Haddie too. Lauren Graham makes virtually every moment she shares with her on-screen kids touching and/or memorable. The three of them have a sort of shorthand directness that allows them to express more to each other in a few words than the other characters express with whole scenes of dialog. Dax Shepard is the real suprise so far, coming off a career of playing pricks in dumb comedies and reality shows. He's doing really great and often quite subtle work here, and makes you buy that he's the father of this little stranger instantly. Crosby and Jabar have great chemistry; you can tell that the little kid that plays Jabar trusts Shepard.

I've also been wowed by the songs. Using a Bob Dylan classic for your theme song is a bold choice, but the show has great, apropo tunes scattered throughout the episode.

The rhythm of this show is sort of strange. Instead of television's traditional four act structure, it flows with a more cinematic three-act structure and devotes the final act break to resolution. When the show breaks for commercials around the 10:45 mark, I find myself reaching for the clicker before I do a double-take on the time. For instance, tonight's episode "felt" like it was over on the beat with Adam standing outside his daughter's bedroom door listening to his wife explain him.

That's not a criticism; I reach for the remote because I've been trained by convention to do so, but the quality is such that the "extra" amount of show is a pleasant surprise. It wouldn't work on a more plot-heavy show, but it works here. Every character earned their moments tonight. Mae Whitman has a tremendous balancing act to perform, and she does it masterfully. Not only does she have to go up against the phenomenal Lauren Graham week after week, but she has to pull off a mixture of confidence and insecurities for Amber that are opposite of Sarah's; Amber forgives Sarah for things that Sarah would find unforgivable, and punishes Sarah for offenses that Sarah would find minor. One minute she's describing how to wage war on parents with sardonic self-reflection while taking a drag on a cigarette; the next she's a natural caregiver with Sydney. Dax Shepard did a terrific job of conveying the warmth that makes Crosby so naturally likable, while demonstrating the selective listening that is at the root of his flaws. Craig T. Nelson finally got a moment to a shine with that scene in the bathroom where he starts reminiscing about his sexual highs and lows while Drew, mid-grip, stands frozen and aghast under the running water. No one else could have played it as well. I enjoyed the other storylines, as well.

One of the few good things about the recession is that the networks have refocused on family dramas about decent people making decisions that, while imperfect, are to the best of their abilities. I'm really enjoying "LIfe Unexpected" over at the CW, and I'm really enjoying this as well. Dax Shepard has played a lot of unlikable characters in a lot of mean-spirited comedies, so it's a real joy to see him make the potentially unlikable Crosby into someone we can really root for. He and Sarah are running neck and neck for the most flawed of the four siblings, but Sarah has had to be an adult for a lot longer than Crosby has. It's fascinating watching him make decisions about things that have long been settled for the other three siblings, for better or worse. I like that he solicits advice from his siblings and actually listens to it, but still has the strength of character to make his own decisions when his instincts tell him to. The last scene outside Jasmine's door was a real stand up moment for him. I really hope that Jabar turns out to be his.

To understand Sarah's dressing down of Adam, you have to understand that she's been a working poor single mother for a decade, if not longer. She's been the only thing standing between her kids and the big bad world for a long, long time. Intellectually she probably understood that her brother had no choice but to take Max for yogurt, but she wasn't in an intellectual place for that confrontation. Another in a long line of men had hurt her son, and this time that man was her own brother. She felt just as betrayed as Drew did.

The nice thing for Adam about the Asperger's diagnosis is that it allows him to justify to himself the steps he needs to take for Max in a way that he couldn't when Max was just the weird kid with behavioral problems. You get the sense that he's been internalizing a lot of frustration and failure for a long time now, and he's finally starting to let it out. By letting Sarah's condemnation blow over him and then confessing everything about where he's coming from, he ceded a bit of his position as the strong sibling that fixes everybody's problems. But it left him and Sarah in a much better place than if he'd kept it to himself. I don't watch "Friday Night Lights", but I definitely agree with you that Adam Braverman is the best TV dad on the air right now. Peter Krause gives an outstanding performance in a very understated role.

The ratings aren't fantastic, but they're still comfortably within renewal territory by NBC's standards. Unless it takes a nosedive over the rest of the season, I'll be really surprised if this show isn't back in the fall.

The ratings expectations are different for a 10 PM show versus an 8 PM show. An 8 PM show is always going to need higher ratings to stay alive. This is why a lot of niche shows have thrived in the timeslot.

Since the first episode, I haven't been able to stop thinking how frustrating it must be to be Adam. His entire life is compromises, and it's so nice to see a decent portrayal of a father on television. There was a long stretch where TV fathers were either simply out of the picture, deadbeats, or comical buffoons. It's almost like television had to invert the "Father Knows Best" era before things could normalize.
 

Life Unexpected is a bit more soapy, being on the CW, and the parents are way more flawed (there's a reason they didn't have custody of their daughter for her first sixteen years) but it's another show that cares about its characters and shows them as caring, loving and often intelligent people.

Tonight's hour just flew by. I was pretty immersed in all of the storylines. Sarah is headed for a trainwreck with Amber's teacher, who is the perfect guy that just happens to be off-limits. It's not just that he's Amber's teacher, it's that he's the teacher that Amber's crushing on. When a kid's had as many disappointments as Amber's had, you shouldn't take something that innocent away from her. Adam feels his manhood is threatened when he finds out that Kristina fakes it sometimes, not realizing that that has everything to do with the constant stress of what they're up against and nothing to do with his performance. Julia's fears about Raquel are confirmed, but putting an end to it would mean destroying her daughter's first and deepest friendship. She's the high achiever who's managed to have it all so far, so she's not used to having to make choices like this. Eventually she decides to be a parent first and a jealous spouse second.

My favorite storyline was Crosby's, though. For once, he got the timing on everything exactly right; he waited until he knew for sure before telling his parents, but more importantly he waited until he had a relationship with his son before telling his parents. He had the credibility of someone who has taken the first steps down the road of being a parent. The scene where he first introduces them was sublime: Crosby and Jabar pull up, and you can see the comfort level that's developed between them. Cut to the parents, who are visibly excited to meet their new grandkid. They come around the corner, and are stunned to see he's black. Both of them lock up, and all of the excitement drains away. Crosby and Jabar stroll up, lost in their own little world together, and miss all of this. Then Jabar says hi, and the rigidity melts away. By the time he shakes their hands, Jabar has completely won them over. All the scenes that follow are them seeing a side of their son they probably didn't have much faith even existed.