(Season 1, Episodes 1-2)
Let’s face it, just because summer has arrived and the majority of shows on TV have ended doesn’t mean that we are going to be turning off our boob tubes. There may not be as many fresh options as we are used to, which makes it the perfect time to catch up on some classic shows that you may have missed. That’s why, as part of our continuing summer series, I have started watching Northern Exposure. I was a wee young’un when the show first aired, but I’ve been curious about it for a while now. And so, here we are.
“Pilot”
The first episode had me nervous, I have to admit. In his first impression, Dr. Joel Fleischman (Rob Morrow) was incredibly abrasive. I understand that that is his character, the classic fish out of water (who doesn’t like a good fish out of water story?), but I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to put up with him at all. Luckily, there was enough to get me into the second episode, where Joel was way toned down. The first episode featured a whole lot of yelling and whining about being in Cicely, episode two was more focused on settling in.
Going into it, I knew the show was going to be heavy on the quirk, and it really is as quirky as advertised. The characters are engaging, and certainly unique — the seemingly ubiquitous Ed (and his totally early ’90s look, including the ripped jeans), the former astronaut Maurice, and the always smiling yet mostly silent Marilyn just to name a few. Speaking of the ’90s look, it is really fun watching shows that are this old. The pilot featured some outstanding mullets, and Joel certainly seems to love those horrid, pleated khakis. I shudder every time I see them. Thank goodness we live in the age of flat fronts.
“Brains, Know-How, and Native Intelligence”
With John Corbett being one of the break out stars of the series, I was a little surprised to see that his character, Chris Stevens, wasn’t properly introduced until the second episode of the series. Chris played a prominent role in this episode, which featured a couple stories. The first was the feud between Chris and Maurice over some comments about Walt Whitman’s personal life. It was amusing, and served as a good introduction to Chris and gave some more insight into the very quirky Maurice.
The rest of the episode focused on Joel trying to treat an unwilling patient in Ed’s uncle. I have a feeling that this is the type of story that I will be seeing a lot of as I make my way through the series. Joel tries to bring all his big city background and education to a situation and learns a lesson about small town life and Native American tradition. If that’s the case, I think I’m going to enjoy the show.
It’s going to be interesting watching the Joel and Maggie relationship as well. In the first two episodes there is clearly some flirtation there, but I’m not sensing a lot of chemistry. I’ll be on the lookout to see if that develops. Meanwhile, I’m going to enjoy learning more about the rest of the characters inhabiting Cicely, Alaska. Good times.
Clacked by Bob Degon
on Jun 08, 2010 @ 12:00 EST5EDT
“Speaking of the ’90s look, it is really fun watching shows that are this old.” From the ’90s! That line sounds like you’re watching “I Love Lucy” or something. It’s hard for me to think of “Northern Exposure” as ancient TV history. For some of us who aren’t even collecting Social Security, the ’90s were not that long ago, Bob :-)
Enjoy the series. It certainly has at least 3 good early years, out of 6.
You are in for a delightful ride. It’s a nice trivia point that Elaine Miles (Marilyn) got the part by accident. She’d given her mother a ride to the audition, and had no acting experience at all. They saw her in the waiting room.