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 jamiebambernews
 asta77 | |
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 What are the chances we'll see more extreme close-up tonight? Not that they are all bad. ;)It's Monday night so that means, it's your Monday Mornings discussion post! Tonight's episode is entitled "Who's on Hooten's Bad Side This Week?" "Who's Sorry Now?" After you watch the episode, once again, I'd encourage you, if you have a Facebook page and/or Twitter account, to let TNT know you are watching the show: Monday Mornings on Facebook and @MondayMornTNT. The show continues to struggle in the ratings. Though there was some good-ish news amidst the not-so-good news. Ratings for the premiere saw some positive growth in the Live +3 rating. Overall ratings rose from 1.34 million viewers to 1.9 million viewers and from 472,000 in the 25-54 demo to 657,000. And while the second episode dropped from 1.34 million viewers to 1.2 million, that's not really a significant drop and you'd be hard press to find a show that doesn't drop in the ratings to some extent after it's debut. If anyone has any worries about the show being pulled due to low ratings (something that happens frequently on the major broadcast networks) it's very rare for cable. The only recent example I can think of is Caprica and SyFy eventually did air all the episodes. I'd also point out TNT's other series are not fairing well, with Southland returning last week to a 1.2 rating, and they have nothing in reserve to replace original programming. I could continue on my rant about TNT's lack of publicity for it's shows, but I'd also note all the networks are struggling with new/returning series right now so TV execs everywhere (who rely on ad sales) have some work to do. OK, enough ratings analysis (until the overnights come out tomorrow ;p), here's a fun clip of Jamie from the People magazine site: Meet Monday Mornings Star Jamie Bamber. Behind the Mask: 'Who's Sorry Now?'Tags: tv: monday mornings
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I may come back later with more thoughts after a second viewing, but there's a few things I want to say while they are fresh in my mind.
I'll start with Ty. We had lots of Ty. That's always a good thing. ;) And we got to see him be sarcastic, humorous (YAY!), cocky and smug. OK, let's be honest, he was a bit of an ass. Not only does Jamie play all that well - and doing so while still remaining likable is no easy task - but it's a Ty Wilson we very much needed to see. In fact, immediately after putting Dr Wong in his place (though I'd argue Dr Wong did the right thing in raising the concerns he did), it struck me that this is the Ty Wilson we should have seen in the pilot. I know Quinn's surgery and death came early in the novel, and it's an important moment in Ty's life and career that needs to be in the series, but I now feel it should have been shifted to the second episode. We didn't see the arrogant, over-confidant, I-can-do-no-wrong Ty prior to Quinn's surgery that we saw here. So, the verbal lashing he received in the M&M meeting didn't quite make sense. While I still think Hooten was too hard on him in this episode (I mean, really, what was the alternative? Leaving the guy in the psych ward with a tumor? How long was Ty to wait until family could be found given he had the wrong name?), at least I understood better where the criticism was coming from.
For the first time in the series I can say I like Michelle. That's not to say I didn't like her before, but she barely registered in the first two episodes. And while I found her rather meek and incompetent in the book, she has quite the backbone here! I thought she made a lot of valid points to Hooten (and, OK, she stuck up for Ty so she made points with me ;) regarding what other doctor's would - or would not have - done. The guy had been in and out of psych wards for years.
And while I am not advocating Ty be paired with anyone romantically on the series, if that were to occur down the road, I felt he had more chemistry with Michelle than Tina. I also really liked the moment where Ty handed over the surgical instrument to allow her to work directly on the tumor. It was a nice vote of confidence in her abilities (again, she came off as a failure, imho, in the novel), especially given he knows she, too, is still dealing with a surgery gone, if not wrong, not how they anticipated.
I find myself with more affection for Park each week. His lack of skill with the English bothers me less and less as time goes on. I'm now feeling it's not a matter of his inability to speak the language better, but he just doesn't see the necessity of all the extra words. If that makes sense. And full credit to the actor who conveys, under the rigid and seemingly uncaring exterior, there is a man who cares and is affected by his 'failures'. I think it's more of a matter of his belief that showing emotion isn't part of the job and has nothing to do with being a good surgeon.
Sydney continues to be awesome. Love her. And loved her "Am I getting 311'd?" line. :D She does seem like she may be the only person who can put Hooten in his place.
I honestly believe Buck doesn't see himself as an asshole. I'd really love to see he and Gato hanging out at the bar more. DEK seems to like bar settings. Just, please, no singing. ;)
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Yes, precisely because his emotional tether has been so short for the first two episodes, I feel like we finally, actually met the real Ty tonight. And he is pretty much exactly as I wanted him to be... rather heroic, and also rather an asshat. ;) Which you are correct in noting that Jamie is particularly good at pulling off while still remaining likeable and engaging. Still, noble asshattery is still asshattery; the way he oh-so cavalierly chatted Brian (or whatever he said his name was at the time) through signing that consent form was pure tsk-tsk material. And Hooten rightly called him out for it just as much as Michelle rightly stuck up for him, despite her own personal misgivings, for making a call that no one else would have the balls to make. The pendulum actually does swing both ways here, and I really appreciated that the episode managed to capture all of that. (Good point, though, with the "how long was he supposed to wait?" angle; how many families of men with the wrong name might they have contacted instead, besides?)
Keong had a LOT to work with in this episode, and though in the context of everything else going on it felt a bit rushed, he managed to pull off a pretty believable transition from Park, standoffishness with the pamphlet lady to his remorseful conclusion. The script this week, IMO, also made big strides toward balancing his language struggle with the other aspects of his character.
You know, for all the cuteness of Sydney & Lieberman and her barking at Gato (hee!) in the hallway, etc. I think my favorite bit was the end of the Sydney/Hooten moment and that little smile he sneaks in. I remember saying I thought it would be interesting if the show played with the notion in the book that Hooten sees a bit of a kindred spirit in Sydney and she is sort of his favorite; that could be something that creates friction with her colleagues but could be played out in interesting ways.
Advocating one way or the other or not, we do know he *is* involved with Tina. ;) IMO, though, we still have yet to really see the two of them engage without Ty's guilt hanging over them like a shroud; the only real moment we got that is the first OR scene in the pilot before it all went to hell. I feel like we still haven't been given a clear enough picture of how that relationship works yet. Maybe next week?
That's a hellhole? Maybe the MM location scout cleaned it up a little, but it looks like a fairly innocuous, cozy little dive bar. My kind of place. ;)
Edited at 2013-02-19 07:14 am (UTC)
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A few more comments that don't pertain to my reply (see above):
- Overall, this was *handily* the bet episode so far. Best pacing, best balance of character development vs. conflict and resolution. I'm not saying there isn't still room for yet more improvement; it could still stand to dig deeper into where each of these people are coming from and what drives their decisions, but I see some progress in that direction that was absent or just didnt quite stick the landing in previous eps like it did tonight.
- Guest stars! Raphael Sbarge, Anthony Heald and Valerie Mahaffey all deserve a hearty applause. Especially Valerie, just because she was my absolute favorite on Northern Exposure and I feel like I dont see her nearly enough these days. Eve! ;) <3
- Interesting choice to keep Ty and Tina completely separate for most of the episode this week (it would have felt like they were shoehorning something about their relationship in given the other storylines,to be honest, so its for the best IMO.) Other than sitting next to each other in M&M they have no scenes together; it was a pretty Tina-lite week overall this week, though I rather enjoyed her razzing Buck for his nervous-bounce. ;)
- Here is something I would actually like to see them work on in subsequent eps: At this point, and I know its still early days yet, but I feel like the M&Ms are actually giving Hooten a little bit too much room to sermonize and scrutinize and grandstand where, by this point, I want to see a more equal balance between the doctors standing up for themselves and him challenging them. I know, he is the boss, there is only so much they can talk back without repurcussions but push that envelope as hard as you can. Yes, this week we got Michelle's blunt defense of Ty's reckless decision, and last week we had a satisfying moment of Tina pushing back pretty hard, but I would actually like to see a little more confrontation and a little less dressing-down while the others react.
Edited at 2013-02-19 07:08 am (UTC)
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Finally, I could see the DEK touches more and more. So much legal wrangling mixed with the medical stuff this time, I felt right at home. And Anthony Heald! I did a little happy dance in my head. Still remember him from Silence of the Lambs.
Molina the Merciless and Ving seem to be the Ones Who Cannot Be Touched so far on the show, so I will be interested to see either one of them deal with conflict that takes them out of their comfort zone. Although, I found it very reassuring to see Gato 'translate' for Park. I really liked what they did with Park in closing the loop for now regarding his storyline.
I feel a little whiplashery from angsty Ty to Asshat Hero, but as long as he's no longer hallucinating, I'll take it. I winced when he let slip the whole "publishing this in a journal" thing in front of the ex-wife and Michelle. The whole thing made me nervous, but when the kids finally reunited with their homeless dad, I relaxed into the resolution.
The MM part - putting Park up there with Buck as the "ventilation issues" buddies was a bit too over the top for me re Hooten's grandstanding. Felt a bit too courtroomy-like for my tastes. Buck still needs to feel the burn that his ego costs him on a daily basis, tho. The heel-rocking is a bit alarming now; I'm wondering if he's sneaking some pharmaceutical uppers to keep him sharp. He always looks like he's about to break, reach over and strangle someone.
Anyway, I hope this show stays alive. I don't think it's for everyone. (My hubby won't watch if kid patients are involved, for example) DEK, you may have to bring out the dancing babies (JK!)
Edited at 2013-02-21 07:52 am (UTC)
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Still remember him from Silence of the Lambs.
Ahhhyup. Vile Dr. Chilton, who would one day become the main course. XD
Molina the Merciless and Ving seem to be the Ones Who Cannot Be Touched so far on the show, so I will be interested to see either one of them deal with conflict that takes them out of their comfort zone.
I will have to take a look again at the episode guide re: Hooten, but Gato definitely has a personal crisis on the way. They seem to be taking a storyline from the book and reshaping it for the show, but it could still give him some real meat to chew on.
I winced when he let slip the whole "publishing this in a journal" thing in front of the ex-wife and Michelle.
Same here! Crrringe! And I am glad you pointed this out, because I thought it did bring something interesting to the mix. Between that moment and the "we're cutters" response, it occurred to me that even though Ty's mission with regard to his career (much more clear if you have read the book, the show has only hinted at this so far) is to be the best he can be for the sake of his patients, to connect with them in a way he was denied once... he isn't necessarily a whiz at it. Namely, he's great when he saves a life in urgent peril and the family is just so grateful, but if you throw in a compllication like the one that happened with this guy, he fumbles to a certain extent. In part, perhaps because in his peronal life he's something of a loner and perhaps not as practiced at relating to others in very complex, tricky emotional situations; in any case, Michelle though somewhat blunt in her approach really got in there and did the heavy lifting preparing the family.
I'm wondering if he's sneaking some pharmaceutical uppers to keep him sharp. He always looks like he's about to break, reach over and strangle someone.
Now wouldnt THAT be an interesting twist. I'm not sure he isn't just high strung as all get out, but maybe!
BTW, no dancing babies. EVER. *hiss!* ;)
Edited at 2013-02-22 05:18 am (UTC)
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I feel a little whiplashery from angsty Ty to Asshat Hero, but as long as he's no longer hallucinating, I'll take it.
I know when we (or the critics) refer to pacing problems on a show it's in reference to the story, but I feel as if we are having pacing problems in regards to the characterizations in MM. I'd say Hooten, Sydney and Gato have been depicted consistently over the course of three episodes, but there have been problems for the rest. We *just* got to know Michelle, who suddenly seems more confidant than she did in brief appearance in the pilot. Park is already more sympathetic (that was needed, but so quickly?). And who knows what Ty we'll see tonight?
I winced when he let slip the whole "publishing this in a journal" thing in front of the ex-wife and Michelle.
I really liked that moment because it seemed like something that could really happen in real life (and probably has...many times), but also Ty's reaction to catching himself. However, going back to your angsty to asshat comment, would the Ty who hastened a boys death two weeks before, and was dealing with intense guilt, suddenly be contemplating writing an article to make himself look good?
The MM part - putting Park up there with Buck as the "ventilation issues" buddies was a bit too over the top for me re Hooten's grandstanding.
I agree. It would make sense if they worked on a case together and both made errors, but trying to connect the two was stretch and too made for TV.
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Previously on...
