Monday, April 15, 2019

ABC Mid-Season Pilot Review: Bless This Mess - Premieres Tuesday (April 16); Hallmark Picks Up 7th Season of When Calls the Heart

Bless This Mess

Bless This Mess - Tuesdays at 9:30PM ET/PT on ABC
Premieres Tuesday, April 16, 2019 at 9:30PM ET/PT


by Vincent

Bless This Mess follows newlyweds Rio and Mike as they make the decision to move from big city New York to rural Nebraska. After dropping everything (including their jobs and overbearing mother-in-law) to make the move from skyscrapers to farmhouses, they soon realize that the simpler life isn't as easy as they planned. Rio and Mike must now learn how to weather the storm as they are faced with unexpected challenges in their new life as farmers.

Cast Details:

Dax Shepard as Mike
Lake Bell as Rio
Ed Begley, Jr. as Rudy
Pam Grier as Constance Terry

Dax Shephard (Mike) is an actor known for his work in the feature films such as Without a Paddle, Let's Go to Prison, Employee of the Month and CHiPS. He is also known for playing Crosby Braverman in the hit NBC drama series Parenthood.

Lake Bell (Rio) is an actress known for her roles in TV series such as Boston Legal, How to Make it in America and Children's Hospital, and in films such as Million Dollar Arm and No Strings Attached.

Ed Begley, Jr. (Rudy) is an actor recognized for his role as Dr. Victor Ehrlich on the television series St. Elsewhere, as well as in films such as Pineapple Express, Batman Forever and For Your Consideration.

Pam Grier (Constance) is an actress known for her roles in films such as The Big Bird Cage, Coffy and Jackie Brown, and for TV series such as This Is Us, The L Word and Law & Order: SVU.

Pilot Plot:

"Pilot" (Airs Tuesday, April 16 at 9:30PM ET)

In the pilot episode of Bless This Mess, newlyweds Rio and Mike decide to finally make the transition to small town living to escape the rat race of NYC. However, they quickly find that things are a bit more complicated than planned when they meet an interesting cast of characters, and find adjusting to Nebraska life may be different and more difficult than they thought.

Analysis:

Frankly, Bless This Mess is a series I have fairly low expectations about going in. Considering it was thrown onto the ABC schedule in late spring with only a 6 episode order, and given the show's hokey-seeming presence (seems an awful lot like Green Acres), I was expecting a show that would get a hard pass from me, personally. And yet, I found myself surprisingly charmed by Bless This Mess' aura. The show isn't hilarious yet, but it has a solid cast of characters and a lovable central couple, along with snappy writing and a true sense of heart that could make this a comedy to keep an eye on.

In a year that has been frankly low on worthwhile network sitcoms, Bless This Mess is the first show in a while I can say I think has a real, out-of-the-gate shot to be something worthwhile. This show, along with Abby's on NBC, has a scrappy charm that's been missing in new network comedies over the past year or so. For a while, network comedies were beginning to feel too focused on premise - I love The Good Place, but not every show needs to have as heavy-handed of a concept. Bless This Mess, though, is a show that could succeed based on its characters, not its (admittedly not very interesting) premise. This isn't too surprising. The show is partially produced by Liz Meriwether - aka, the mind behind New Girl. New Girl was another series with a not-so-great premise that wound up succeeding because of its focus on its excellent cast of characters. If Bless This Mess has a similar laser focus on its characters and focuses less on its somewhat silly premise, I wouldn't be surprised to see it taking a similar turn of events. The cast is giving it their all, and while the writing isn't quite there yet in these six episodes, I certainly see potential of what could be to come.

Conclusion:

Bless This Mess has a tired premise that threatens to sink it, but the show’s lovable cast of characters and snappy (if not yet great) writing makes it a show to keep an eye on. If ABC can give it a chance beyond its initial 6 episode order, this show has the potential to become a sweet and charming sitcom that could fit very nicely into ABC's sitcom landscape, and could make a worthwhile addition to the network comedy vault. Let's hope it's given the chance it needs to succeed, because it's been quite a while since a new network comedy took off and had a high level of quality.

Final Numbers (out of 5 stars):

Watchability: 4/5
Funniness: 4/5
Overall: 4/5

Discuss the show after you watch it on Tuesday, April 16, 2019 at 9:30PM ET/PT on our message board.

Related Links:

  • ABC.com Official Site
  • TV.com
  • epguides.com
  • Internet Movie Database
  • Wikipedia
  • Bless This Mess Photo Gallery

    Preview:





  • When Calls the Heart

    Hallmark Channel has ordered a seventh season of the network's original, primetime drama series When Calls the Heart, it was announced by series star Erin Krakow during the premiere of the network's Spring Fever movie, Bottled with Love. The series of course features Lori Loughlin, but with her recent legal trouble, she will not be on the series anymore. Hallmark made no mention of the actress in their release to the press for this seventh season.

    Currently in its sixth season, the frontier drama When Calls the Heart's ratings momentum continues, with this season's debut episode ranking as the highest-rated premiere in the series' history. The program ranked as the #2 original scripted series of the week, only behind AMC's The Walking Dead, and marks the #3 original scripted series on cable in 2019-to-date. On a Live +3 basis, the program delivered a 2.9 Household rating, 3.1 million Total Viewers, and 449,000 Women 25-54. The episode reached over 3.6 million unduplicated total viewers.


    Sitcoms Airing Tonight

    Saturday, December 9

    none scheduled

    Complete TV Listings


    Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 4)

    Friday, December 8

    • Eddie Murphy (The PJs) - Watch Eddie on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live! at 11:35pm on ABC.
    • Da'Vine Joy Randolph (Only Murders in the Building/High Fidelity/People of Earth/Selfie) - Da'Vine appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
    • John Caponera (The Good Life) - John is a guest on a repeat of Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen on CBS between 12:37-1:37am.
    • Robert Smigel (Let's Be Real) - Triumph the Insult Comic Dog aka Robert Smigel chats with the ladies of The View on ABC at 11am ET/10am CT-PT.
    • Noah Galvin (The Real O'Neals) and Molly Gordon (Ramy) - Noah and Molly talk about Theater Camp on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
    • Eric Stonestreet (The Santa Clauses/Modern Family) - Eric talks about The Santa Clauses on NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
    • Kenan Thompson (Kenan/Kenan & Kel) - Kenan sits down with Sherri to talk about his new book, When I Was Your Age, on Sherri, so check your local listings.
    • Sebastian Maniscalco (Bookie) - Sebastian appears on The Talk on CBS at 2pm ET/1pm CT-PT.


    New on DVD/Blu-ray (September-December)

    Family Matters - The Complete Series Step by Step - The Complete Series ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray) The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)

    09/05 - Young Sheldon - The Complete Sixth Season
    09/12 - Abbott Elementary - The Complete Second Season
    09/12 - Rick and Morty - The Complete Seasons 1-6 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    09/26 - Family Matters - The Complete Series
    09/26 - Step by Step - The Complete Series
    10/10 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Thirteen / The Complete Season Fourteen
    10/17 - ALF - The Complete Series (Deluxe Edition) (Shout! Factory Special Offers)
    10/17 - Night Court (2023) - The Complete First Season
    11/07 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Sixth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
    11/14 - Leave it to Beaver - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
    12/05 - Father Knows Best - The Complete Series
    12/05 - The Odd Couple - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
    12/12 - The Dick Van Dyke Show - The Complete Series
    12/12 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 2 (Blu-ray)
    12/12 - That Girl - The Complete Series
    12/19 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series

    That Girl - The Complete Series The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Official Restored Complete Series

    More Recent and Upcoming TV DVD Releases / DVD Reviews Archive / SitcomsOnline Digest


    Recent SitcomsOnline.com News Blog Posts

    12/09 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Remembering Norman Lear; Fox to Air M*A*S*H Retrospective
    12/08 - CBS Norman Lear Tribute Special Tonight (December 8); Peacock Renews Twisted Metal
    12/07 - Harlem Renewed for Season 3; Netflix Orders Drama Ransom Canyon
    12/06 - Remembering TV Legend Norman Lear; Critics Choice Awards Nominees
    12/05 - Who's the Boss? Now on Hulu; The CW Announces New Series Wild Cards
    12/04 - The Upshaws Renewed for Season Prior to Season 5 Launch; Fox Holiday Movie with Justin Long
    12/03 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of December 4, 2023)
    12/02 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Bob ♥ Abishola Coming to an End; Only Murders in the Building Gets Limited Run on ABC
    12/01 - Abbott Elementary Post-Oscars Airing, Only Murders on ABC; Remembering Frances Sternhagen, Marty Krofft and Others We Recently Lost
    11/30 - Bob ♥ Abishola Ending After This Season; NBC Renews Rookie Dramas
    11/29 - Antenna TV January 2024 Schedule; Max December Comedy Specials
    11/28 - Prime Video's Hazbin Hotel; Lacey Chabert Gets Hallmark Unscripted Series
    11/27 - Sundance Now Gets Original Comedy; Hallmark Original Returns for Season 2 in January
    11/26 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 27, 2023)
    11/25 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Kelsey Grammer Ready to Do 100 Episodes of Frasier; TBS Cancels Miracle Workers
    11/24 - Fox Winter 2024 Schedule; An Evening From the Heart John Ritter Foundation NYC 2023 Event
    11/23 - 2023 Thanksgiving TV Marathons
    11/22 - Kerry Washington's UnPrisoned Gets Season 2; Classic Comedy Shorts Celebrate 40th Anniversary
    11/21 - NBC Winter 2024 Schedule; Netflix Renews Rob Lowe Comedy
    11/20 - BUZZR Celebrates Bob Barker's 100th Birthday; Ted Prequel Series on Peacock Gets Premiere Date
    11/19 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 20, 2023)
    11/18 - SitcomsOnline Digest: Young Sheldon Coming to an End After Seven Seasons; The CW International Sitcom Approach Not Going So Well
    11/17 - ABC Winter 2024 Schedule; CBS Celebrates 98th Birthday of Dick Van Dyke
    11/16 - Whoa Mama! Urkel Is Back for the Holidays!; Hulu Gets Such Brave Girls Comedy
    11/15 - COZI TV's A Very COZI Christmas Schedule; Young Sheldon to End This Season on CBS
    11/14 - CBS Winter 2024 Schedule; The CW Pulls 2 Comedies
    11/13 - Antenna TV 2023 Holiday Marathons Schedule; Rewind TV 2023 Holiday Marathons Schedule
    11/12 - Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows; This Week in Sitcoms (Week of November 13, 2023)
    11/11 - SitcomsOnline Digest: SAG-AFTRA Strike Finally Ends; New Digital TV Broadcast Networks Coming
    11/10 - AXS TV's The Partridge Family Thanksgiving Marathon; AspireTV Holiday Programming
    11/09 - Bookie Premieres November 30 on Max; Ted Lasso Star Holiday Special on Apple TV+