Thursday, February 02, 2017
NBC Mid-Season Pilot Review: Powerless - Premieres Tonight (Feb. 2); COZI TV's We Love TV Valentine's Day Stunt
Powerless - Thursdays at 8:30PM ET/PT on NBC
Premieres Thursday, February 2, 2017 at 8:30PM ET/PT
by Pavan
Get ready for the first comedy series set in the DC universe! In a world where humanity must cope with the collateral damage of Super Heroes and Super-Villains, Emily Locke (Vanessa Hudgens) begins her first day as Director of Research & Development for Wayne Security, a subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises that specializes in products that make defenseless bystanders feel a little safer. Full of confidence and big ideas, Emily quickly learns that her expectations far exceed those of her new boss (Alan Tudyk) and officemates, so it will be up to her to lead the team toward their full potential and the realization that you don’t need superpowers to be a hero. It's a superhero's world. We just live in it.
Cast Details:
Danny Pudi as Teddy
Christina Kirk as Jackie
Ron Funches as Ron
Alan Tudyk as Van Wayne
Vanessa Hudgens (Emily) is best known for Disney Channel's breakaway sensation High School Musical that garnered Hudgens much praise and attention. With critics and fans clamoring for more, she was also seen in the film's highly successful follow-ups: High School Musical 2 and the theatrical release of High School Musical 3: Senior Year. Hudgens followed up her High School Musical hits by starring in the critically acclaimed Bandslam as well Beastly and Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. In 2010, Hudgens won the ShoWest Award for Female Star of Tomorrow. Looking to branch out and take on some darker roles, Hudgens appeared in a series of films that have surprised audiences, including Frozen Ground, directed by Scott Walker. Hudgens portrayed the real-life victim who helped solve the case of a serial murderer in Alaska. She starred opposite James Franco, Ashley Benson and Selena Gomez in 2012's Spring Breakers which was written and directed Harmony Korine and screened at the Venice and Toronto film festivals. In the drama Gimme Shelter, directed by Ron Krauss, Hudgens plays a pregnant, homeless teenager. For this film, which was based on a true story, she spent two weeks living in a homeless shelter doing research for her character. Last year Hudgens made her Broadway debut as the title role in the beloved stage musical Gigi. Most recently, Hudgens had audiences and critics praising her performance as Rizo in the Fox production of Grease Live.
Danny Pudi (Teddy) has quickly established himself as a highly sought after actor in film and television. He is best known for his breakout role as Abed in the critically acclaimed comedy series Community that aired on NBC and Yahoo! Abed, a favorite of fans and TV critics alike, earned Pudi a Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series nomination at both the 2012-13 Critics' Choice Awards. Pudi will soon be lending his voice to Smurfs: The Lost Village, out on April 7, alongside Joe Manganiello, Mandy Patinkin, Demi Lovato and Jack McBrayer. He will also soon be seen starring opposite Neal Bledsoe the independent drama After the Sun Fell. Pudi's additional television credits include recurring roles on hit dramas Greek and Gilmore Girls and guest-starring roles on Better Things, Angie Tribeca, Dr. Ken, Royal Pains, Hot in Cleveland, Chuck and ER.
Christina Kirk (Jackie) has appeared on some of the most highly acclaimed shows, including The Newsroom, Girls, The Good Wife, Law & Order and cult hits Delocated and Children's Hospital. More recently she starred in the NBC comedy A to Z as well as WGN's Manhattan.
Ron Funches (Ron) has amassed a growing resume of television credits. He recently starred as Shelly on NBC's Undateable and has been seen on Transparent, New Girl, Conan, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and several shows on Comedy Central, including Drunk History, The Kroll Show, his own half hour special, Comedy Central Presents Ron Funches and John Oliver's New York Stand-Up Show.
Alan Tudyk (Van Wayne) recently appeared in Lucasfilm's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, as well as a voiceover in Disney's animated feature Moana. He can also be heard as Ludo and King Butterfly on the Disney Channel series Star vs. the Forces of Evil, which has its second season premiere set for July. In television, Tudyk was a series regular on the critically acclaimed ABC comedy, Suburgatory and he reprised his role in the Netflix revival of Arrested Development as Pastor Veal. His work on Joss Whedon's Firefly has been highly lauded by fans and has gained him a strong cult following. Tudyk also appeared in Strangers with Candy, Dollhouse, Frasier and Justified. He also was the host of Newsreaders, written and produced by Rob Corddry and David Wain, on Adult Swim.
"Wayne or Lose" (airs Thursday, February 2 at 8:30PM ET/PT)
In a world where humanity must cope with the collateral damage of Super Heroes and Super-Villains, Emily Locke (Vanessa Hudgens) begins her first day as Director of Research & Development for Wayne Security, a subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises that specializes in products that make defenseless bystanders feel a little safer. Full of confidence and big ideas, Emily quickly learns that her expectations far exceed those of her new boss Van Wayne (Alan Tudyk) and officemates, so it will be up to her to lead the team toward their full potential and the realization that you don't need superpowers to be a hero.
Analysis:
Vanessa Hudgens joining a television series for the first time is a good idea. She has star power and appeal. She really isn't known much for her comedy chops, but she plays it well in the premiere episode. The setting for this comedy is very unique. It's a comedy set in the DC Universe, with superheroes and villains around. We have Van Wayne, who is Bruce Wayne's cousin, running Wayne Security in Charm City. Not quite Gotham City, but it'll do. The pilot focuses on the new hire, Emily Locke, as she begins her first day as director of R&D. This comedy doesn't focus on the superheroes and villains, but it focuses on the people who are affected by them. I don't think we will see Bruce Wayne, or Batman, Superman, or whoever in the DC Universe, but that is OK, as it focuses on the people who have to deal with them. This is a workplace comedy, and NBC has done well with those in recent years of course, like with The Office, Parks & Recreation and more recently, Superstore.
It's a unique and fun show, but I am not sure how it can keep it up. It needs more laughs to be a comedy. Right now it is interesting and quirky, but it needs to expand on that. Is NBC trying to appeal to the superhero audience or a broad comedy audience? I'm not sure yet, as it is too early to tell. Character development will be the key to its success as well. The series only has 5 regulars and the pilot did a good job maybe showcasing only 2 or 3 of them. We have of course Emily Locke, the new Director of Research & Development at Wayne Security as the core of the series. Then we have Van Wayne, the head of Wayne Security and the black sheep of the Wayne family. We also have Teddy, the Chief Design Officer at Wayne Security. Then we have Jackie, Van Wayne's beleaguered and long-suffering executive assistant. And finally, we have Ron, the Chief Engineer at Wayne Security. After watching the premiere, you probably can identify only 2 or 3 of these characters in what they do.
Conclusion:
Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):
Watchability: 4/5
Funniness: 3/5
Overall: 3.5/5
Discuss the show after you watch it on Thursday, February 2, 2017 at 8:30PM ET/PT on our message board.
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Preview:
It's all about love this Valentine's Day on COZI TV. Your first true love, the love that made you laugh and cry - and yes, that love which went terribly wrong. On February 14, COZI TV is celebrating these and all affairs of the heart with a special, Valentine's Day-themed "We Love TV" marathon, starting at 12 PM ET (check local listings). The "We Love TV" marathon is an 11-hour love story for the ages, featuring small screen favorites such as Murder She Wrote, Rockford Files, Emergency!, Quincy ME, Little House, The Munsters, The A-Team, Miami Vice and Frasier. The marathon shows romance at its best and worst with storylines consisting of fairytale endings, regretful romances and many others.
Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows
Friday, July 26
The Conners - "Keep on Truckin'" (The CW, 8:00PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
After a sudden turn of events, the Conners are forced to face the daily struggles of life in Lanford in a way they never have before.
The Conners - "Tangled Up in Blue" (The CW, 8:30PM ET/PT) (Repeat)
Darlene gets one surprise after another when David introduces his girlfriend at a parent-teacher conference and mentions that Mark & Harris will be spending the weekend with them.
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of July 22)
Friday, July 26
- Nick Jonas (Jonas) - Watch Nick on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC.
- Michael Douglas (The Kominsky Method) - Michael appears on a repeat of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Sasheer Zamata (Home Economics/Woke/Robbie), Joe Lo Truglio (Brooklyn Nine-Nine/Burning Love/Reno 911!) and Aparna Nancherla (Corporate) - Sasheer, Joe and Aparna are guests on a repeat of After Midnight at 12:37am on CBS.
- Jennie Garth (Mystery Girls/What I Like About You) - Jennie chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT. NBC's Today catches up with Jennie in the 10am hour.
- Marcus Scribner (grown-ish/black-ish) - Marcus talks about his coming-of-age film How I Learned to Fly on a repeat of Sherri, so check your local listings.
- Delroy Lindo (UnPrisoned) - Delroy talks about UnPrisoned on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
- Dylan Sprouse (The Suite Life on Deck/The Suite Life of Zack & Cody/Grace Under Fire) - Dylan talks about Lionsgate's The Duel on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
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