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#26

RISE

Posted: 3/14/18 at 1:36pm

I was pretty disappointed. Friday Night Lights and Parenthood are two of my all-time favorite shows, so when I heard that Jason Katims was doing a musical theatre-themed show of all things, needless to say I was 100% ecstatic.

I think I could look past some of the specific issues that have been mentioned in this thread... but I just can't get through a show where the main character is so damn unlikeable! I wanted to punch him in the teeth the entire hour. (Not the least of which when he addressed a closeted student's legit concerns with a tonedeaf me-me-me speech about how this is his jaded-teacher opportunity to be inspirational! That was pretty cringe.)

I do think Auli'i Cravalho is a star in the making. I couldn't take my eyes off of her - she really has that intangible x-factor to me. I wouldn't be surprised if she ends up with some great Broadway roles in the future, and I will happily buy tickets!

#27

RISE

Posted: 3/14/18 at 1:45pm

Call_me_jorge: "No. I just feel like Stephanie j Block wouldn’t hate spring awakening."

Isn't that called acting?

#28

RISE

Posted: 3/14/18 at 2:42pm

John Adams said: "The coach's salary fluctuates depending on whether/not the football team wins? I wonder how/why his teachers' union condones that...? (Oh, and the show runners neglected to give the actor a mustache to curl. MWAH, haw, haw, HAW)

There's a kid living in the lighting booth? In a public school? And no one

I don't think/remember that it was about getting more $....but if the coach didn't deliver, he could lose his job. He also implied that being a coach was his only job vs the director still being an English teacher if he was removed from being a director.. Both of those things are pretty ridiculous in MOST public schools.

I COULD see a kid getting away with living in a school....for a little while, anyway. Our building is open unitl 10 pm...and kids are allowed in the building...to get stuff they've forgotten, etc. Once they learn the custodians schedule, it could happen. (How often do you think the custodial staff would go IN the light booth? But yes, he should report it: but not everyone does what they are suppose to.

If we're not having fun, then why are we doing it? These are DISCUSSION boards, not mutual admiration boards. Discussion only occurs when we are willing to hear what others are thinking, regardless of whether it is alignment to our own thoughts.

#29

RISE

Posted: 3/14/18 at 3:10pm

I watched the first 5 mins because I always set my dvr over 5 mins for shows so I caught it after this is us but nothing about the first 5 minutes made me want to watch more. I found the teacher to be annoying as hell in the little bit I saw him.

#30

RISE

Posted: 3/14/18 at 3:52pm

This Vox review spells it out:

NBC's 'Rise' stars the world's most annoying drama teacher

http://www.vox.com/culture/2018/3/13/17114446/rise-nbc-review-josh-radnor

Updated On: 3/14/18 at 03:52 PM

#31

RISE

Posted: 3/14/18 at 4:20pm

I thought this was pretty hilarious spelling out some of the plot shortcomings.http://ew.com/recap/rise-series-premiere/

#32

RISE

Posted: 3/14/18 at 4:43pm

Yup....that was pretty good!!

And according to that article....it is a 10 epsisode seaso....and we have to wait until #9 for it to click?

BTW....my favorite eyeroll was when someone referred to the musical as a "play", Radnor corrected him by saying something like, "actually, a musical is referred to as a 'show'". REALLY? Thud.

#33

RISE

Posted: 3/15/18 at 6:25pm

I feel like the person who wrote this never attended a real high school, let alone ever did a musical.

#34

RISE

Posted: 3/15/18 at 9:23pm

Thanks for linking to the EW recap. That was hilarious.

#35

RISE

Posted: 3/15/18 at 9:50pm

It's also just the exact plot of the beginning of Glee. Football player told he has to do theatre (show choir is close enough), all the way to the Grease number. This is a no from me.

#36

RISE

Posted: 3/16/18 at 12:29am

I caught this on Hulu last night. I'll give it one more episode before I pass on it but the only promising things from the pilot were the students.

The drama teacher was absoutely insufferable - the fact that the show demands that we root for him as he runs roughshod over everyone else to fulfill his artisitc impulse is ridiculous.

"You drank a charm to kill John Proctor's wife! You drank a charm to kill Goody Proctor!" - Betty Parris to Abigail Williams in Arthur Miller's The Crucible

#37

RISE

Posted: 3/16/18 at 11:13am

I have been thinking about the pilot for this show for 2 days now and I have some serious questions / theories:

Since we know the musical Spring Awakening exists in the Rise Universe, the original cast of the show must exist too, right?

I believe so, meaning that Lea Michelle and Jonathan Groff exist in the Rise Universe, along with the rest of their careers.

If that's true, then does the show Glee exist for them too? I would like to believe it does.

Further, if Glee exists in the Rise Universe, then Ted Mosby's Hamilton-obsessed kids have definitely watched all of it. Probably the other theatre kids at the high school have too. Without question - that's who that show was made for.

If all of this is true, I would love if there's a scene later where Josh Radnor's character is talking about the trials and tribulations with his struggles at school during family dinner, and one of his daughters looks up and says, "oh, you mean like on Glee?"

#38

RISE

Posted: 3/16/18 at 1:15pm

I really, really wanted to like it, and I didn't hate it, but I didn't like it. The most entertaining part to me was seeing Sean Grandillo (who was in the last SA revival) appear as one of the students, just because of the bit of meta-humor there. And I think that says a lot about the pilot as a whole if that was what I most took away from it.

At the very least, I can see the closeted student's storyline be interesting—assuming they don't mess it up somehow.

Updated On: 3/16/18 at 01:15 PM

#39

RISE

Posted: 3/16/18 at 2:12pm

Playbill_Trash said: "I have been thinking about the pilot for this show for 2 days now and I have some serious questions / theories:

Since we know the musical Spring Awakening exists in the Rise Universe, the original cast of the show must exist too, right?

I believe so, meaning that Lea Michelle and Jonathan Groff exist in the Rise Universe, along with the rest of their careers.

If that's true, then does the show Glee exist for them too? I would like to believe it does.

Further, if Glee exists in the Rise Universe, then Ted Mosby's Hamilton-obsessed kids have definitely watched all of it. Probably the other theatre kids at the high school have too. Without question - that's who that show was made for.

If all of this is true, I would love if there's a scene later where Josh Radnor's character is talking about the trials and tribulations with his struggles at school during family dinner, and one of his daughters looks up and says, "oh, you mean like on Glee?""

If this were the case then Glee would fall into this trip several times over. Easiest example I can think of off the top of my head, Lea Michele's character sings Defying Gravity. If that song exists than Idina Menzel exists, and oh look, it's her mom.

#40

RISE

Posted: 3/17/18 at 11:16pm

Watched the pilot on the DVR. Probably won't watch any more episodes for most of the reasons stated:

Josh Radnor's character is not worth rooting for. My teen daughter was just aghast at how he makes decisions which impact the family without discussing it with his wife. At all.

The plethora of "today" storylines was just overwhelming - and accordingly, not developed, not unexpected and not interesting. The pregnant student was about the only thing left out.

That EW recap was spot on.

#41

RISE

Posted: 3/18/18 at 2:59am

I definitely liked the first episode. Not love in any way, and I don't know where they are going to go from here. I had been told that it isn't like Glee at all except for the fact that its a musical series, set in a highschool.. This felt like Glee 2.0 but less cookie-cutter. I enjoyed myself, and I will certainly try to watch the next few episodes, but something needs to happen that makes it different than Glee.

#42

RISE

Posted: 3/18/18 at 4:34am

Radnor is not that great of an actor to begin with. He is better in this than he was off Broadway last year at the New house playing the same sort of character.

I think the writing could be better. The first episode let too much out of the bag leaving very little intigue for future episodes. I agree the girl was quite wonderful and I was surprised she had no Broadway credits.

#43

RISE

Posted: 3/21/18 at 1:57pm

Just finished watching last night’s Episode 2: Most of All to Dream. I’m curious on others’ thoughts now after two episodes and whether your thoughts have changed.

My thoughts:

I definitely liked this episode better than the first episode.

Radnor’s character is still annoying at times but seeing some other shades to him now. I was actually impressed that Radnor could pull off a dramatic role this well. But I love, love, love Rosie Perez in this.

I love all the theater kids. And it helps very much that I adore the Spring Awakening songs. Whenever they’re singing those songs is when I’m the most invested.

The school scenes, especially the ones between the kids, ring the most true. Most of the scenes between the parents and their children ring the most false. The exception for me are the scenes between Cravalho’s Lilette and her mom; and those between Sutherland’s Simon and his family ring almost completely painfully true (I’m not Catholic so wasn’t sure the priest would’ve been that supportive of the son’s involvement in the show).

I think I’m hooked. My DVR is now set to record the entire series. This is far from a perfect show, but it’s nice to see a show, however imperfect, devoted to theater. Those that may made comparisons to FNL and Glee are spot on. This show is not as well written as FNL (although the least said about that show’s ridiculous murder plot line, the better). And it doesn’t feel as innovative as Glee did when it premiered.

But I watched every episode of Glee even after the quality became hit-and-miss after the first couple of seasons. And I loved Smash even though it was a hot mess at times. So I’ll watch this season of Rise. I’ll take this over another new crime procedural show.

Updated On: 3/21/18 at 01:57 PM

#44

RISE

Posted: 3/21/18 at 2:16pm

Tried watching the 2nd episode, it's much too cringy to watch. Can't do it, no matter how much I love Spring Awakening.

#45

RISE

Posted: 3/21/18 at 11:00pm

Yawn. Far too many stories....the only intersting one is the trans boy.....and he's not getting enough airtime. Everything else is standard high school drama fare.

I think this bothers me for the same reason other teacher shows bother me....there is nothing remotely real about it. Watching rehearsal is silly, because there is no direction or actual growth happening. And even if there was, most of us only see the ridiculous. I guess most in the medical field feel the same way about Grey's Anatomy and Cops/lawyers cringe about SVU.

It really is just another nighttime soap, on the set of a hs drama program. Sort of.

#46

RISE

Posted: 3/27/18 at 9:43pm

My thoughts go back and forth. Maybe because there seem to be more home scenes in Episode 3 between parents and children (IMHO these scenes tend to be the show’s weakest link), but whatever hopes I had after the second episode are pretty much diminished 40 minutes in to this episode.

One last thought: after the controversy of the show turning the gay protagonist into a straight man, after seeing what a scmuck he is, I’m glad he’s not gay in the show. Lol

#47

RISE

Posted: 3/27/18 at 9:58pm

Two episodes and already liking it

#48

RISE

Posted: 3/27/18 at 10:18pm

This show is a somehow-addicting trainwreck. Somehow it is produced by Jeffrey Seller, yet the writers clearly have never worked on a theatre production in their lives. I'm literally just watching at this point to laugh at the plot holes.

Speaking of which, do rights not exist in this world? A good part of this episode was spent talking about how to spend the $750 budget, which alone would hardly cover the rights to one performance, let alone everything else the director wants. Every time this is mentioned I just giggle at its absurdity. Someone call MTI.

Updated On: 3/27/18 at 10:18 PM

#49

RISE

Posted: 4/4/18 at 5:11am

And with last night's episode, I'm out. I just can't get past the absolute unrealistic view of every single story line. Again, it's not the performances themselves it's the contrived storyline and dialogue. I loved the rehearsal wear he wore the choreographer, director, musical director and tech hats all at the same time, ignoring the imminent power failure.

Another wasted opportunity.

#50

RISE

Posted: 4/24/18 at 10:03pm

It’s growing on me....

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