Fall 2006 TV Preview - The Class - Pilot

Here's another good compilation before I get started, and it comes just as I was about to make my own system of stars (though it's really copying the Amy TV Gal star system). Though from most other critics, I hear Ugly Betty is good.

Anyways, back to my reviews of pilots I can get my hands on. (PLEASE NOTE: This is based on the original pilot from pilot season and has been reworked for the fall season)

The Class
Premieres Monday Sept. 18th at 8pm on CBS


CBS decides to keep its schedule pretty much intact, only adding 4 new shows, and they add The Class? Another whitecentric comedy about 20/30-somethings that have little in common and forced to hang out together. Worked for Friends, didn’t work for every other show that landed the 8:30pm Thursday night slot on NBC.

Still, I was sort of excited by the simple concept, of a semi-class reunion only of folks who never hung out with each other after grade 3 it seems, and with David Crane (Friends) involved, there was hope (though does David Crane just not like black people? Or Asians for that matter?). Then the early critics reviews came out and this one seems to be this years lynchpin (even though it seems there are far worse shows (like ‘Til Death and Happy Hour)).

Now that I know this is one of the worst shows from this new Fall Season, what did I think? Eh. It was amusing but nowhere as good as How I Met Your Mother (it’s timeslot neighbour). It all feels contrived (then again, isn’t every show) but has enough likeable actors (Andrea Anders, you’re lucky you survived Joey but poor you, now you have to survive this?) that it makes for a good guilty pleasure in the same way Four Kings was (meaning you watch because you're too lazy to change channels and is mildly diverting enough that you don't realise the crap you've just watched until it's already over... then again. Two and a Half Men is like that and it's the number one comedy on TV). It's not quite as campy as Freddie, Out of Practice or Reba was as guilty pleasures go but it's not completely offensive (like The War At Home is).

I’ll probably keep watching The Class, if only because it’s paired with How I Met Your Mother and that there’s only Prison Break on at the same timeslot, leaving enough room on the VCR’s to tape it for those days when I want brainless entertainment and Big Brother is no longer on.