I've been seriously captivated by two new shows this year: Life On Mars and Being Erica. Incidentally both shows were ripped from foreign stations, which may help explain why they've been so downright brilliant and engaging. Life On Mars follows the story of a modern day New York police detective who after being in an accident was transported back to 1973. It is not clear to the viewer whether the main character, Sam Tyler, is dead, went insane, or is legitimately living the life of a 1973 police detective. While the mystery of Sam's fate is the show's major plot line, I find the subplot of Officer Annie Norris just as fascinating.
Dubbed "No Nuts with the Donuts" (or "no nuts" for short), Annie is so marginalized by her male co-workers that, like the title suggests, it's like she's living on another planet. Armed with a masters degree in psychology, Annie makes coffee and acts as a quasi-social worker while her male co-workers do the "real" police work. However, by 1973 things are clearly changing for Annie and American women in general. Tired of being constantly under minded, Annie bravely demanded this week that her lieutenant promote her to detective. As someone who started her professional career in the new millennium, Annie's struggle to be taken seriously is something that as a woman I can totally appreciate.
On the flipside, Erica Strange, is a typical Generation Xer who re-lives her past on Soapnet's Being Erica. Bouncing from dead-end job to dead-end job despite having two English degrees, Erica's life is full of regrets. Serendipitously, Erica runs into Dr. Tom, a psychologist who speaks in famous quotes and transports Erica back in time to "do over" the moments she wishes would've gone differently. Whether it's being initiated into a secret society or standing up to a demanding professor, Erica learns that sometimes the events we obsess about the most aren't as life altering as we would like to think.
Life on Mars is on every Wednesday at 10:02pm on ABC. You can catch Being Erica on Soapnet at 10pm on Thursdays.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
I am very upset they are canceling Life on Mars.
http://www.tvweek.com/news/2009/03/abc_gives_life_on_mars_a_final.php
It is one of the better new shows this year.
I've been meaning to check out Being Erica, but I dont think we get it here in Canada on regular cable. I'll have to check out the dish to see if I get it there, if not, I'll have to resort to watching it online. Thanks for the recommendation!
Post a Comment