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« Roush Dispatch
Cavemen: Comedy from the Dark Age
Sam Huntington in Cavemen by Mitch Haddad/ABC
The evolution of comedy on ABC is not a pretty one, from the heights not so long ago of Roseanne to the absolute prehistoric depths of Cavemen, which premiered Tuesday night without benefit of sending a finished preview episode to critics. For good reason, clearly. We thought the original pilot we saw in May was lousy, but that was nothing compared to the woolly mammoth stinker that aired Tuesday. I didn’t crack a smile, bark a single laugh, even grunt a symbolic “ugh.” I think time may actually have stood still for a few seconds, somewhere between the scene where a caveman ordered a tall soy macchiato and cranberry biscotti after sneering at “pretentious poseurs” at the mall and the bit where, on the squash court, the hairy guys discussed how their sexual prowess made them “forbidden fruit” to female “sapes.”
Forget ugh. How about ick?
Pairing this instant loser with the whining-male flat tire known as Carpoolers made for what may have been the single unfunniest hour of so-called TV comedy in my professional memory. If I were a conspiracy theorist, I would think this was all an insidious plot to make us miss Jim Belushi and welcome his insipid According to Jim back to the air with uncharacteristic enthusiasm, as soon as it’s called back to duty, no doubt very soon, to replace one of these unholy turkeys. Compared to these shows, Jim's a gem.
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Oct 3, 2007 12:02 AM
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ABC is such a one-trick pony, if the series doesn't involve sex and love triangles then it probably isn't on ABC. Every network has some variety (even CBS), except ABC.
Pushing Daisies and Samantha Who? will be welcomed changes to ABC's repetitive line-up
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Oct 3, 2007 12:41 AM
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Yup, just briefly channel surfed these 2 clunkers...and quickly clicked back to NCIS...whew..dodged a bullet there.
What a mess.
(I also watched Pushing Daisies...I wasn't impressed...why are all the critics raving about this? Just another dumb detective show with a "will tire of quickly" gimmick)
I guess the only hope left for a good show on ABC is Samantha Who?
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Oct 3, 2007 2:48 AM
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I expected Cavemen to suck, but I tuned in because I wanted to see one episode before it got canceled. But what really impressed me was how much WORSE Carpoolers was. Damn, that was abysmal.
Who greenlit these monstrosities?
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Oct 3, 2007 3:04 AM
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Gee, I'm REALLY sorry I skipped "Cavemen" and "Carpoolers". I was busy watching "Bones" on Fox.
It's funny that 525600 called ABC a 'one trick pony' - couldn't agree more. I think CBS is the same way - boring crime shows like the dull "CSI" franchise or worse, "Criminal Minds".
It's why I have been so loyal to NBC shows (for the most part) for so many years - NBC has the best comedies (the exception is the BRILLIANT "How I Met Your Mother" on CBS which feels like it should be an NBC show anyway since CBS doesn't know how to promote this great series) and more daring Dramas like "Bionic Woman" and "Heroes".
The one great thing about ABC is "Lost", the only thing REALLY worth a damn on the network, and that doesn't come back until February. Ugggg. Instead it's nightly "Dancing with the Stars" and more awful reality shows heaped upon us by ALL the networks. Yuck.
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Oct 3, 2007 7:57 AM
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Well, maybe it'll bring more people to the wonder that is Bones.
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Oct 3, 2007 8:12 AM
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Well I'll be the dissenter and say I didn't hate either show. I certainly would rather watch either of these shows than According To Jim. Still, neither of them is really a keeper.
The thing about Cavemen is that the lines I found most amusing had nothing to do with them being Cavemen; there were a couple of chuckle-worthy lines, but they were mostly asides, not related to the main story. And I actually found it fairly beautifully shot - the production value even of crap on ABC is very impressive. I just don't see anywehre to go at ALL with the Cavemen angle.
Carpoolers made me laugh for real a few times; I think it has potential, although I can't stand Jerry O'Connell in anything since Sliders. Again, these shows - for comedies - both look absolutely wonderful. There's not enough content to keep me coming back on appointment, but if I want something playing while I'm working at the computer, they'll do just fine.
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Oct 3, 2007 9:00 AM
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Matt I was thinking the same thing while watching Caveman - Where's According to Jim?
Not only did I not find anything to laugh at, but I found it difficult to even follow along, maybe because I was so freakin bored.
On the other hand, although I can't say Carpoolers is the funniest show ever (I reserve that for The Office, 30 Rock and the sadly defunct The Class) I at least did laugh a couple of times.
If Caveman even makes it back to tv for a second episode, virtually the entire sitcom team of executives at ABC should be fired.
Sadly, I have no 8:00 show so I'll probably just be watching reruns of Martin until something replaces the cavemen.
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Oct 3, 2007 9:52 AM
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I watched the first 10 minutes of Cavemen. I wasn't really expecting anything good, based on what I had heard, but I was still monumentally disappointed. I thought it might be a throwback to shows like The Munsters or The Addams Family--misfits living in modern society and their wacky antics--but it seems like they didn't know what kind of show they were making. The idea that there are thousands of Cavemen, they have been around forever, and they apparently have their own cable TV station doesn't really make them misfits, so what's the point? And it wasn't funny. So, we're left with a situation comedy that has no situation and no comedy.
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Oct 3, 2007 12:16 PM
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I don't work for ABC, but I have to say the one-trick poney thing really doesn't make sense to me. With Brothers & Sisters, Lost, Ugly Betty, Men in Trees, Desperate Housewives, Grey's and now Pushing Daisies it's still the freshest, most diversified bunch of shows on television. And if you think Grey's is just about sex and love-triangles you probably have only watched passively. It's much smarter and wittier than some people give it credit for.
That said, ABC's comedy line-up is atrocious. Like, seriously.
I'm also over the "It's reality television so it must be crap" line. DWTS is one of the more enjoyable, carefree hours of television on tv. And there's nothing wrong with that.
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Oct 3, 2007 12:19 PM
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How in the world did this get a 6.1/10 in the ratings??? I mean the only show that beat it was NCIS ... I can't believe it got better ratings than Bones, The Biggest Loser & The Singing Bee!
It'll be interesting to see what kind of ratings it gets next week.
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Oct 3, 2007 1:08 PM
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I have to disagree. I smiled a lot watching this show. I liked how I didn't have to listen to a laugh track. This show is different, I thought it stayed true to the commercials, I wasn't disappointed at all.
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Oct 3, 2007 1:49 PM
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Watching Cavemen and Carpoolers was the television equivalent of Terri Scheivo's suffering.
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Oct 3, 2007 4:16 PM
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Any chance they'll bring back The Knights of Prosperity? I looooooved that show!!
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Oct 4, 2007 7:22 PM
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Cavemen was dreadful. Boring and Unwatchable. Carpoolers, on the hand, was great - so funny and goofy and smart. Great characters.
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Oct 5, 2007 3:14 AM
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