Swingtown (1.5)

Thursday, July 3^rd @ 10 PM

CBS

Swingtown – Season 1, Episode #5 – “Go Your Own Way”

Against Bruce's wishes, Susan attends a free speech fundraiser in connection with the film, "Deep Throat." Defying Bruce, Susan attends the fundraiser at the Decker's home to benefit the legal defense of the star of the controversial film. (CBS.com)

Manatee: I think Susan and Bruce need to pay more attention to what their kids are doing.

Marmot: When you think about it, they're terrible parents. While I was watching, I wondered, has Susan ever even talked to her son?

Manatee: I'm pretty sure they've never met before. And not only do they take no interest in their kids, out of nowhere Bruce has this hissy fit about his wife not being home to cook, clean, and pick him up at the train station. How 1950!

Marmot: The writing is so uneven on this show. Why is he so uppity about a porno when he and his wife had sex with other people? Together!

Manatee: I think the writers are trying to get all the 70s themes into just a few episodes and into almost each character. It started out as 3 separate couples with completely different ideas, now they are meshed.

Marmot: Also, what was going on with the teacher and the daughter? She brings him a donut, then sits outside his office for hours, then talks to him in the hall for 2 minutes and declines a ride home? None of that made sense.

Manatee: I feel like the daughter/teacher scenario was a little anti-climatic. There was build up to some crazy sex scene, which never happened. And then build up to the Ex-Boyfriend telling on the teacher to get him fired (I'm sure in the 70s that was still a no-no), and then that never materialized. The only good thing, I hope, is that this is the last of that d-bag ex boyfriend.

Marmot: That kid is terrible. Where did they find him? And I don't get what the drama is; they're waiting until he isn't her teacher anymore for the inevitable hook-up. It's the 70s, the sexual revolution. Who cares?

Manatee: Honestly, neither of those kids looks their parents. Maybe they are not really their kids! Just some roommates. I mean that's how Susan treats them.

Marmot: It's kind of a common theme on this show. Roger and Janet haven't spoken to their weirdo son since the first episode.

Manatee: Why put kids in the show anyway?

Marmot: I don't know. I guess to normalize life, but they're stupid and boring. I bet you could just quit writing the kids in and no one would notice.

Manatee: Note to Writers, Take our suggestion and get rid of the kids. Overall, do you enjoy the show?

Marmot: Mostly. I'll definitely see it through to the end of the season. I like it's tone a lot, and the characters aren't terribly boring. I wonder where it's going, but I don't mind that it's taking it's time to get there.

Swingtown (1.4)

Thursday June 26th @ 10 PM

CBS

Swingtown - Season 1, Episode #4 - "Cabin Fever"

It's becoming just a soap opera in bell bottoms.

Swingtown (1.2)

Thursday, June 12th, 2008 @ 10 PM

CBS

Swingtown, Season 1 - Episode #2 - "Love Will Find a Way"

Susan, Tom, and Trina make a surprise visit to the Chicago Playboy Club, where Bruce is celebrating with co-workers after his monumental day on the trading floor. The two couples continue to explore their newfound friendship. In the old neighborhood, where the Millers used to live, Janet realizes how important her friendship with Susan is when a new couple moves in next door. (CBS.com)

Marmot: I liked Swingtown. It's not the best thing on TV, but for a summer show, it's pretty high quality.

Manatee: I really enjoy the show. I find myself very interested in the characters and where they are headed. I even caught myself smiling and laughing during the show!

Marmot: I am too, but I think the show lost some of the edge from the first episode. There was some heavy stuff in the pilot and it felt a little light in this one.

Manatee: That's true. There were not as many (or any) drugs and sex. But I liked that. I didn't really come into this show thinking here is a show all about sex, some sort of network soft core porn. It's almost like a Desperate Housewives set in the 70s - so you get the bonus of free love.

Marmot: I mean edge not just about sex, but in terms of the storylines. In the first episode, there are touches of a gay crush between the two sons and then the strait-laced couple's kid gets the crap beat out of him by a girl. In this episode, they dragged camping gear through the woods. The rest of the episode focused mainly on the deteriorating friendship between Susan (Molly Parker) and Janet (Mirian Shor), but it was more about jealousy over Susan's new friendship with Trina than a clash of values.

Manatee: Very valid points. I'm not sure I picked up on the adolescent gay crush thing the first time, but I don't doubt that as a possibility. It did seem to lose a little edge this episode. The teacher/daughter potential relationship was also squashed by the emergence of a girlfriend (or was it?). We'll have to see where it goes. Will it continue with some edge or will it lapse into straight soap opera (ie: friend jealousy vs. moral values)?

Swingtown (1.1)

Thursday, June 5th, 2008 @ 10 PM

CBS

Swingtown, Season 1 - Episode #1 - "Pilot"

'Swingtown's making Waves on CBS.'

As American celebrates the bicentennial, Susan and Bruce Miller move their family to an affluent Chicago suburb. They are not only welcomed to the chick neighborhood, but also the social and sexual revolution prevailing throughout the decade. They find out that their neighbors share more than a view of Lake Michigan. Initially bewildered by their new surroundings, Susan and Bruce come to realize that their promiscuous neighbors present a tantalizing offer that may provide the excitement their marriage craves. (CBS.com)

Marmot: I really liked it. I thought it was a really strong pilot.

Manatee: I liked it to. I thought it looked and felt so different from anything else on TV and especially CBS. Except of course until Life on Mars airs in the fall.

Marmot: I love the way this show looks. The costumes are fantastic, as is the production design. It felt more like a feature than something like That 70s Show, which was really just a "look how goofy we were."

Manatee: Right, I was expecting a little of That 70s show, but due to the great production value on the pilot, I feel like you got a more authentic taste of the 70s. It was like watching a drama, not watching a cheesy Brady Bunch reunion; I wasn't very focused on the decor or music being so 'period' as I was on the characters development. Though I did notice that Liz Phair was one of the people credited with music.

Marmot: I saw that, too. I wonder how that came to be. I think the show is supposed to be set near Chicago, and she's from there, but that's the only connection I put together.

Manatee: She did a good job, I didn't find the music distracting at all.

Marmot: Nor did I. Actually, I really loved the needledrop stuff. They made some really great choices, sticking to Chicago instead of cheesy disco.

Manatee: One thing that did throw me off at first was the amount of characters. I know I've said it before, it's a pilot, and you throw in a lot of background and you introduce all these characters; but it was a double edged sword for me here. On one hand I was really confused about the kids. I wasn't expecting there to be any! And I was not sure at first if those scenes with Samantha and then the classroom were flashbacks. Once I realized they weren't, I wasn't sure who all the kids belonged too. But that being said, I did like all the story lines and the blatant differences in the couples. They are each so unique and I enjoyed that diversity and think there are a lot of places to go with these folks.

Marmot: The kids were a bit confusing, especially the son of the straight couple. Does he have a crush on his friend? But I liked that he was savagely beaten by a 12-year-old girl. That's not something you see on network TV very often.

Manatee: That scene made me think of the movie Super Bad, but I'm not sure why.

Marmot: Me either. The whole show made me think of American Beauty and Boogie Nights. It felt like a mix of both. It also reminded me of Tell Me You Love Me, but with interesting characters instead of gratuitous nudity and long boring passages of insipid dialogue.

Manatee: I'm interested to see how this shows plays on CBS. CBS is the most conservative of the networks and last night they showed various drugs, sex, free love all over the place. I know that CBS got a lot of s$%t for airing Dexter (from their sister network Showtime, the show is pretty gruesome). But they aired the entire first season (edited) this year during the post strike down time. If they get the same crap will they yank Swingtown over the summer (again, another traditional down time)?

Marmot: It was a little risqué for CBS, but I think they'll stick with it, especially if the controversy amps up. However, after watching it, I don't think there was anything that we haven't seen before on other shows. It's just been played for laughs previously, whereas here it's taken seriously. I've seen more graphic sex on 90210, Buffy and LOST.

Manatee: And I feel that this show is not just going to be about sex and swingers. I get the sense that it is going somewhere, that there will be real character development, family issues, relationship issues, and so forth. It's not just sex for cheap thrills.

Marmot: I agree. The swinging is just a device used to expose the different characters' attitudes towards their respective relationships. It's not just about having sex. I know I keep coming back to this, but again, is my biggest problem with Tell Me You Love me. It's like soft-core porn with less interesting stories.