Toob Talk

It’s rare to see a comedy that has both high production values and an oxymoronic high-class flavor of lowbrow humor.

Reaper is one of those rare shows.

Granted, when I first started seeing stuff on it, I thought it would be a cold day in Hell before it turned out to be worthwhile. Seems that either Hell has frozen over or I was wrong about that.

Who’d have thought that a story about a slacker who’s parents sold his soul to the devil could be hear-warming? Oh, and don’t be mad at his parents–when they made that deal, they never planned on having kids, so offering up the soul of their first-born to save mom’s life seemed like a perfectly fine idea.

But, what’s done is done and now Sam, just celebrating his 21st birthday, has been visited by the big guy from downstairs and pressed into service. Sam’s now Satan’s right hand man, a hunter of of evil souls who have escaped from hell. If he doesn’t perform, not only will he still go to Hell when he dies (the devil, after all, does own his soul), but his mother will, too.

Sounds like the recipe for a dark and gritty show doesn’t it? It should, it’s only a slight variation on the plot of the short-lived Brimstone from a decade ago. The major difference here is that Reaper is produced by Kevin Smith and is thick with his quirky attitude and irreverent tone. So, instead of “dark and gritty” you get silly and snarky.

A combination that, oddly enough, makes the show quite endearing and a lot of fun.

As long as they keep up the writing, it should do OK. The CW’s decision to have it follow Beauty and the Geek in the schedule, though, is a little mind-boggling. It would fit much better paired with Supernatural, a show that has a similar theme but a completely different tone (kind of like how The Sci Fi Channel had Battlestar Galactica, a dark and gritty show, paired with the usually much lighter Stargate shows). I guess they just didn’t want to break up their Supernatural/Smallville block just yet.

Oh, and for anyone who was a Twin Peaks fan, good old Leland Palmer himself, Ray Wise, is playing the relatively likable (though distinctly unnerving) devil. Always a treat to see.

Definitely put this show on your list of things to check out, even if you have to watch it online or time-shift it. I know that’s what I’ll be doing. (Sorry, House still wins on a regular basis.)

Tuesday night, for me, has been traditionally filled with show conflict. This season looks to be no different.

We’ve got the new seasons of Bones and NCIS both starting in the same hour–in direct conflict with the next episode of Beauty and the Geek. That’s followed by the premiere of the new CW series Reaper and the return of House. Sci-Fi’s Eureka also falls in the 9 p.m. slot, but that gets rebroadcast later, eliminating a recording problem. But, thanks to the scheduling geniuses at ABC, Boston Legal returns at 9:30 p.m., an odd time that messes up plans to get away with just using one recording device to catch everything.

Things get easier at 10 p.m., since I really want nothing to do with the Dallas/Dynasty-flavored retread Cane.

Not a lot of new shows on Tuesday. I’m expecting Reaper to be entertaining. For a little while, at least. How can you really go wrong with Ray Wise as the Devil?

In theory, the show could be funny.

In practice, it’s not even close.

The story of two total geeks (or, perhaps more accurately, nerds) living together in a vaguely run-down apartment building who get a new neighbor–a totally hot girl.

The Big Bang Theory misses on every possible note it can. Well, that’s not entirely true. Their theme song, performed by Bare Naked Ladies, is pretty good. Not great, but infinitely better than what’s supposed to pass for humor in the show.

It is obvious the writers haven’t watched anything involving smart but socially “different” characters since Revenge of the Nerds. They’re certainly not watching Beauty and the Geek (which has better dialog–and it’s not scripted!). Chances are, they’re working off of the same crib sheet at the scribes for Chuck.

Nothing new here. Nothing funny here. May as well move along.