Ask Matt: Getting to Know the New ‘Law & Order’ Crew
Welcome to the Q&A with TV critic — also known to some TV fans as their “TV therapist” — Matt Roush, who’ll try to address whatever you love, loathe, are confused or frustrated or thrilled by in today’s vast TV landscape. (We know background music is too loud, but there’s always closed-captioning.)
One caution: This is a spoiler-free zone, so we won’t be addressing upcoming storylines here unless it’s already common knowledge. Please send your questions and comments to [email protected] (or use the form at the end of the column) and follow me on Twitter (@TVGMMattRoush). Look for Ask Matt columns on many Tuesdays and Fridays.
Lighten Up, Cosgrove!
Comment: I’ve been an addict of Law & Order, all 458 episodes. I am all for Season 21 being a huge success, but it has some adjustments to make. Det. Kevin Bernard’s character (played by Anthony Anderson) is consistent with past years’ series, and Camryn Manheim (Lt. Kate Dixon) is always solid, but Jeffrey Donovan’s character of Det. Frank Cosgrove is less secure in the mix. Preliminary info stated he would be confrontational, and that is surely the case — but the scriptwriting has unnecessary edges that could stand honing. Donovan has shown an ability for wry humor (Burn Notice) which is smothered under Cosgrove’s aggressive manner, without relief. Jerry Orbach (as Lennie Briscoe) was cynical but lovable, Dennis Farina (as Joe Fontana) had savoir faire and Jeremy Sisto (as Cyrus Lupo) was hard-charging but kinda charming. The writers need to temper Donovan’s stern demeanor with a glint of humanity — or he will not be successful in a role which could easily embrace him, given a defter touch. I very much want this beloved series to continue “to infinity and beyond!” — Michaela
Matt Roush: It’s still early days, so like Michaela, I’m hoping the new ensemble will gel. I looked at the reboot’s first episode as almost like a series pilot, and as often happens when resetting a franchise, it may have tried to do too much and push too hard to establish the new crew, especially Cosgrove — but also Hugh Dancy’s much more idealistic ADA Nolan Price. I’m fairly confident the new/old Law & Order will find its groove.
Say It Ain’t So, Jess!
Question: FBI: Most Wanted will not be the same with Julian McMahon leaving as Jess LaCroix. (His final episode is scheduled for March 8.) He makes this show! The new guy cannot replace him. He does not have the right personality. Isn’t there anything that can be done to convince him to stay? — Sheryl L
Matt Roush: I get it that change is never easy and rarely welcome, but how do you know that the new character played by Dylan McDermott (who’ll be coming in for Julian McMahon later this spring) won’t fit in to this ensemble? He’s a proven star and Most Wanted could do way worse. Let’s wait to judge until the transition happens — although experience tells me it won’t be an easy sell for die-hard FBI franchise fans. To your question: When an actor chooses to move on, we should just learn to accept that. As long as they don’t kill off Jess, which seems unlikely, he can always return as a guest star. Heaven knows there are enough FBI shows on the air, he could take his pick.
When The Conners Got Serious
Question: First off, this week’s episode of The Conners wasn’t as funny as usual, but that was a very powerful and well-acted episode. So good to see Katey Sagal fully recovered and in almost every scene. I always felt that she was underused. Laurie Metcalf continues to be an Emmy nominee contender. Actually, the entire cast is superb and The Conners needs to be recognized. If Wednesday’s episode about gun violence doesn’t do it, I don’t think it will ever be. — Fred
Matt Roush: You’re probably right that the days of a comedy like The Conners getting much attention come awards time is slim indeed. And I agree this week’s episode was a strong one, with the family (young and old) staying glued to the TV as news reports of a local shooting brought the issue of gun violence almost to their doorstep. This series, and Roseanne before it, has long been adept at bringing barbed humor to relevant social topics, and there was a time when the industry took more notice. (Still, I’m holding out hope that the Emmys will embrace Abbott Elementary this year, a true breakout broadcast hit.)
The Invisible Hetty
Question: Is there reason to hope that the team will bring Hetty (Linda Hunt) home before NCIS: Los Angeles ends this current season? Because the thought of this season ending with her still being in Syria, or wherever she is, and with its renewal status being as uncertain as it is, kind of makes me want to throw up. Imagine if this show ends without ever knowing if she ever made it home! — Maria
Matt Roush: Please calm yourself. No TV show is worth an upset stomach. A couple of notes here: This isn’t a spoiler column, so when and whether Linda Hunt will be back as Hetty I hope will remain a surprise until the show decides otherwise. Also, the notion that CBS would pull the plug on one of its longtime moneymakers without advance warning seems very unlikely. (When the time comes, I’d expect CBS to announce a final season with some fanfare.) As for hope, I’m all for that. Even less likely than the show’s abrupt termination after 13 seasons is the idea that they wouldn’t resolve Hetty’s status at some point. She has always come back before, and I expect that will happen again.
Auto’s Misanthropic Assembly Line
Comment: Your recent comment about losing patience with the “squirm-inducing” behavior on American Auto prompted me to write. I watched a number of episodes of that show and have already given up. In thinking about shows I’ve given up on, I’ve come to realize that I really do believe in a fairly simple formula I learned from, of all things, a “Dark Shadows” blog by Danny Horn (“Dark Shadows Every Day”). Danny says that a successful character needs to “make a plot point, make a joke, and make a friend.” This really held true for successful and unsuccessful characters on that old Gothic soap. (Thinking of Roger Collins’ deliciously arch comments, for example.) For me, American Auto has failed on the “make a friend” element, where sympathy for a character often comes from a human connection with another character. On Auto, all the characters operate independently. They’re making plot points and jokes all over the place, but each of these misanthropes is operating independently of each other. There is no genuine human connection among them. One might argue that Sadie (Harriet Dyer) and Jack (Tye White) but they both seem to want to forget it, and I don’t sense much of any connection between them anyway (I’m not interested in a “will they/won’t they” plot with them, if that’s even intended).
By comparison, one of the reasons for the success of Abbott Elementary is how well it does the “make a friend” element. Despite the vast differences among characters — and tensions — the show is excellent about developing genuine human connections among the group. They’re all making friends with each other. I had concerns about Ava the principal, and despite your recent comment about how deliciously self-centered and incompetent she is (my words, not yours), I was having a big problem with that character because she was just floating around being a jerk (yes, a funny jerk, but that only goes so far). Luckily, the show finally came around with its most recent episode in humanizing Ava and making a (no doubt fleeting) friend/connection with Janine in the step class (and what happened outside the class). I know there’s more to a successful TV show than checking boxes on this formula, but there are some basics that need to be fulfilled, and I think Auto fails by none of the characters having much of any human connection with each other. — Thomas D
Matt Roush: This is an interesting comparison that illustrates in part why Abbott Elementary has so quickly connected to viewers — its warmth and humanity as well as its satire of a broken system — while American Auto, which I initially enjoyed, began to curdle for me when episode after episode, the degree of unchecked bad behavior and over-the-top incompetence started to feel suffocating. It still makes me laugh — the episode about reshooting the politically correct commercial was especially rich — but then came the charity event where nearly everyone was on their worst behavior and it was so obvious how the obnoxious Payne scion Wesley (Jon Barinholtz) was going to be humiliated. One of the hardest acts in comedy is building a show around unlikable characters, and while I don’t subscribe entirely to this “make a friend” formula, when a series goes out of its way to make you feel uncomfortable in ways you fail to find even remotely credible, it’s a problem. Auto’s saving grace is Tye White’s appealing performance as promoted everyman Jack, our eyes and ears on the corporate mendacity all around him.
It’s also interesting to compare Abbott’s Ava (Janelle James) with Auto’s vile ladyboss CEO Katherine (expert SNL vet Ana Gasteyer), especially in the recent episode where Katherine pretended to have an open-door policy which resulted in her making a “friend” with a particularly drab employee. It was a funny bit, but the episode left such a sour aftertaste (because most of the other subplots were so excruciating) that I’m now wondering if Auto can get back on track — if it gets a chance.
And Finally …
Question: We did not get the second night of CNN’s LBJ: Triumph and Tragedy documentary because they aired news on Ukraine instead. We cannot find an airing of it listed in the weeks ahead??!! Is it being rescheduled? — TB Farmer
Matt Roush: No update yet that I’m aware of about CNN rescheduling the docuseries, and given the fluid nature of the news coming out of Ukraine I’d expect it may be a while before the “normal” lineup resumes. But I was able to find all of the LBJ episodes on CNN’s On Demand platform, so go there for now if you want to finish the series. Or the CNN app.
That’s all for now. We can’t do this without your participation, so please keep sending questions and comments about TV to [email protected] or shoot me a line on Twitter (@TVGMMattRoush), and you can also submit questions via the handy form below. (Please include a first name with your question.)
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