| I agree that it is sad that JoA got tossed aside for a show that is basically a retread of other shows starring an actress no one really cares about anymore.
As I look back, I find myself mourning more what could have been with JoA than what actually was (and didn't Father Ken say that was the most painful kind of loss?) Season two was really a mess compared to season one. Some of it was the writers' fault - they stopped writing for the characters, and started writing for the plot. Sort of like they sat around in the writers room and went "This episode is about such and such" and to make everything fit that storyline, people had to act out of character and Joan had to conveniently forget a lot of what she had already learned. And no amount of network interference could have caused the police storylines to fall from "just okay" to "plain awful" the way they did in many episodes, nor can the network suits be blamed for the way the date of Kevin's accident kept moving around. That was a huge underpinning event for the show - it completely changed the Girardi family and seemed to be the catalyst for Joan becoming "open" to experiencing God the way she did - that date should have been written in stone. There is really no excuse for that except laziness and/or carelessness.
However, I fully believe that the network is responsible for turning what started out as a little stumble into a spectacular fall. They tinkered and tinkered with it, then just kicked it to the curb after they ruined it. The suits were saying that it was too dark - so then why didn't they tell the producers to return to Joan helping people and making connections instead of ramping up the teen drama? I really don't see how they expect Ghost Whisperer to do much better. It seems very sugary sweet and very Touched by an Angel, which by and large, seems like it would appeal to an older audience. CBS may think that Jennifer Love Hewitt is the rage with all the kids, but I really wonder who it was they were talking to, because she isn't the top of anyone's list that I know of.
And I completely agree with the way JLH is no match for Patricia Arquette on Medium. That show works well because of the touch of "realness" she brings to the show and the weight she gives the role. Everything about her - from her crooked teeth to her thrown-together hair and wardrobe that seems natural for a mother of three young children. So far it does look like JLH is going to walk around perfectly made up with her hair perfectly styled and her best "assets" perfectly framed in a tight sweater. Nothing about JLH feels "real" to me. She's just like meringue - light, airy, sugary, but ultimately unfulfilling and so sweet that you can only take her in small doses or else you'll get sick. |