Confession - I love Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
This stands as a pretty lame confession, as this would be obvious to most people who know of my deep, abiding love for all sorts of quirky, writer-driven television. But yes, I loved it on the air and love it still, and it was due in large part to Sarah Michelle Gellar doing an incredible job of mood-balancing. She could crack wise and crack tears, kick ass and kick it with the gang. If SMG had a talent, it was handling a massive assortment of material and driving a boat that could go anywhere.
Now, she's back on TV in Ringer, an intense, very evening soap opera-type show. It has its melodramatic charms, sure, but it's hard to tell which way this boat is gonna go. Gellar got me involved in the twisty story, but it was an exposition-heavy hour (not uncommon in pilot episodes), and I'm really curious which way the tone is gonna go. Are we going to slow down and get psychological, intricate, and detailed, a la Breaking Bad? (Spoiler Alert: this show will not be as good as Breaking Bad.) Or are we going to kick into high gear and camp this mother up?
Either way, I'm confident Gellar will be able to handle it, but I hope she gets to play more notes overall, particularly getting some wit. Even a little bit of that will go a long way on a show like this. I know it's supposed to be intrigue-heavy and icy, but ask any fan of Hitchcock and they'll tell you the man knew how to sneak in his laughs.
Overall, though, I'm excited to see what this show looks like once free of the burden of exposition. Could be some fun. Just let's give Buffy some room to fly.
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