Friday, September 27, 2013

The Michael J. Fox Show - First Impressions

Old TV set with wheelchair symbol on the screen
I'm still working on starting a podcast about disability in TV and movies, but until I get my act together, I'll be writing reviews. I'll typically start with day-after "First Impressions", followed a day or two later with more in-depth reviews of each episode.

The first two episodes of "The Michael J. Fox Show" were in some ways better than I thought, and at the same time a bit disappointing. And the two qualities are reversed from what I anticipated. I thought the most likely outcome would be that the show itself would be funny and energetic … promising for it's overall future and survivability … but problematic in regard to how it handled disability, despite the fact that Alex P. Keaton (sorry) Michael J. Fox knows whereof he speaks in regard to his main character's Parkinson's Disease. As it turned out, I found the show overall kind of lackluster and … frankly … poorly executed. Yet, the disability themes were much more sophisticated and pertinent than I had hoped. If this show lasts long enough, it might actually move viewers to a more nuanced understanding of disability.

More details to come in a few days ...

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