Glee, without the music.
Glee as a show works well. The karaoke-esque renditions of pop music are what appeals to the young people of today. What the show lacks in the plot and character department, it more than makes up for in over the top musical numbers and reinterpretations of music. On the other hand, if you were to take away the music aspect from Glee, you’d basically have Ryan Murphy’s latest endeavor, The New Normal.
The show centers on a gay couple (Justin Bartha & Andrew Rannells) looking for a surrogate; a sassy, urban assistant (NeNe Leakes); a single mother(Georgia King) who had a child (Bebe Wood) at a young age, and her mother (Ellen Barkin), who is a bigot in denial. The New Normal is essentially NBC’s answer to ABC’s hit show Modern Family. Unfortunately, their answer is one we already know so well, making the New Normal new in name only. The jokes are mostly based on race or sexual preference, playing into every gay (and some African-American) stereotypes we’ve heard overdone many times before. Every joke feels like it’s mercilessly beating a dead horse repeatedly, except in this case the horse is alive and feels everything.
To say it was unfunny would be an understatement. Every joke felt forced and I found myself rolling my eyes so much, that I think I discovered a new corner of my apartment. The funniest moment involves NeNe Leakes, Ellen Barkin, and some eggs. Don’t get me wrong, I like most of the actors in the series, but when NeNe Leakes (who plays the same “character” in every role) is the most genuine character, you may want to re-evaluate. As it stands, this show is less than novel and its over played barrage of “jokes” take such a tragic turn that some of you could easily mistake this show for the second season of Murphy’s other show, American Horror Story.
Rating: 3/10 ★★★
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