In the US: Thursdays, 9:30/8.30c, NBC In the UK: Not yet acquired
There’s a long tradition of multi-camera US comedies been prefaced by one of the cast members pointing out that it was “filmed in front of a live studio audience”. It’s supposed to make you think that the laughter isn’t canned, which is what the likes of M*A*S*H* had to endure.
M*A*S*H’s Larry Gelbart explains this history of canned laughter and why it is so awful
However, I must confess that with multi-camera comedies now being so rare, I was taken aback when NBC’s new sitcom, Abby’s, rolled out its own disclaimer about having a studio audience. That wasn’t the only reason, though. See if you can work out the other reason I was surprised:
NBC (US)’s Abby’s was filmed in front of a live outdoor audience
Yes, it’s filmed before a live outdoor audience. Have a think about that. An outdoor audience. That’s going to sound different, isn’t yet? No echoes, more diffuse. That sort of thing.
Given the fact that there are no echoes, the cast never leave gaps in the dialogue for when the audience are supposedly laughing and no one’s really delivering lines like they’re expecting anyone 30 metres away to be able to hear them, I’m going to go with the theory that Abby’s was both filmed in front of a live outdoor audience and has canned laughter.
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Internet TV
Netflix green lights: Northern Italian supernatural show Curon, series adaptation of Three Steps Over Heaven, and adaptation of Federico Moccia Fedeltà(Faithfulness)
France 2 green lights: series of period “mysterious woman” thriller Romance, with Olga Kurylenko, Pierre Deladonchamps, Barbara Schulz et al [in French]
Mathieu Kassovitz, Florence Foresti, Boris Diaw et al to guest on Canal+ (France)’s Platane [in French]
Every Friday, TMINE lets you know when the latest TV shows from around the world will air in the UK
A couple of acquisitions this week, but only one without a premiere date. I should also point out that I’ve already mentioned that The Murders (Canada: CityTV; UK: Universal) now has a premiere date in my review of it this week.
Acquisitions
Alibi has picked up TVNZ’s forthcoming The Bad Seed, which stars The Almighty Johnsons‘ Dean O’Gorman and The Blue Rose‘s Matt Minto. It won’t air in New Zealand until April 14 and will air in the UK in May.
Light as a Feather (US: Hulu; UK: All 4) Premiere date: Monday, April 1
Four best friends invite the shy new girl out on Halloween, but they soon regret their decision when she suggests they play a twisted version of Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board.
That’s basically the story, with the slight fillip of one of them possibly already being possessed before they play the game. Not scary, not exciting. Didn’t get further than episode one.
Stella Blómkvist is a young, cute, libertine, tough, confident, intelligent, Icelandic lawyer with a flexible moral compass, who investigates mysterious murder cases. A friend at the police calls her when there’s a criminal in need of a lawyer.
Punam Patel and Ryan O’Connell in Netflix’s Special
US Netflix Original based on Ryan O’Connell’s memoir I’m Special: And Other Lies We Tell Ourselves. It follows Ryan, a gay man with mild cerebral palsy, who decides to rewrite his identity and finally go after the life he wants. After years of dead-end internships, working in his pyjamas as a blogger and communicating mostly via text, Ryan eventually figured out how to take his life from bleak to chic and began limping towards adulthood.
Stars Ryan O’Connell, Jessica Hecht, Punam Patel, Marla Mindelle, Augustus Prew, and Patrick Fabian.
Uma Thurman and Tony Goldwyn in Netflix’s Chambers
US Netflix Original. A young heart attack survivor becomes consumed by the mystery surrounding the heart that saved her life. But the closer she gets to learning the truth about her donor’s sudden death, the more she takes on the characteristics of the deceased, some of which are troublingly sinister.
US Netflix Original. The Politician follows Payton Hobart, a wealthy student from Santa Barbara, California, who has known since the age of seven that he’s going to be President of the United States. But first he’ll have to navigate the most treacherous political landscape of all: Saint Sebastian High School.
To get elected Student Body President, secure a spot at Harvard, and stay on his singular path to success, Payton will have to outsmart his ruthless classmates without sacrificing his own morality and carefully crafted image.
Stars: Ben Platt, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jessica Lange, Zoey Deutch, Lucy Boynton, Bob Balaban, David Corenswet, Julia Schlaepfer, Laura Dreyfuss, Theo Germaine, Rahne Jones and Benjamin Barrett.
Urban Movie Channel green lights: former slave’s descendants drama A House Divided, with Demetria McKinney, Paula Jai Parker, Lawrence Hilton Jacobs et al…
