On My Television Screen

The new television season began this week with a few premieres. On Tuesday I caught the series premiere of the new Melrose Place. It was an alright debut, but much of the new cast seemed unable to grasp the tone of the nightime soap. Katie Cassidy, as publicist Ella Simms, was the obvious stand out, understanding the over-the-top nature of her character and the series. If the show doesn't work out, let's hope she still has a long television career. On Wednesday was the season premiere of the high school set comedy/musical Glee. The premiere of Glee has me worried for the series, as the pacing was even faster than the pilot episode, which I found too rapid. At the rate it's going, the series could burn out rather quickly. I also take issue with the series' depiction of Will's wife Terri, who became an even bigger monstrosity in the premiere rather than becoming a more fully developed character. The show already has a great one-dimensional villian in Jane Lynch's cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester, so the use of Terri seems arbitrary and almost cruel, but if you've seen creator Ryan Murphy's other series Nip/Tuck, you can tell he has a problem with female characters, often turning them into grotesques. Let's hope the series balances itself out as it continues.