The following conversation took place last night between 8:30pm and 8:50pm. I am committing it to PopWatch because, now that Viva Laughlin has been cancelled (yep, already!) I fear that in a week or two, I’ll think the whole experience was part of a very strange dream.
Marc: I want you to see something! We have to watch this show!
Jeff: What? Las Vegas got moved to Sundays?
M: Just watch. [Checks DVR guide to make sure channel is tuned to Viva Laughlin.]
J: Why is this episode called "What a Whale Wants"?
M: I don’t know. Because it’s going to suck?
J: They’re trying to lure a chubby chaser to their casino? Why are we watching this?
M: Just give it a minute.
J: This is Las Vegas, right?
M: No, Las Vegas is on NBC; this is CBS.
J: But that guy looks just like that Josh Duhamel dude (pictured, left) from Las Vegas!
M: Nope, it’s Eric Winter (pictured, right). And this isn’t Las Vegas.
[Show cuts to commercial break, and there still hasn't been any singing. I'm not pleased.]
J: I still don’t believe you; this has to be Las Vegas. Takes place in a casino, the characters all look the same. It has the same cheesy background music.
M: Do you not want to watch this?
J: Not really.
M: Fine, we’ll watch something else. I’m pissed we didn’t get to see any singing.
J: There’s singing?
M: Oh there’s singing all right. And there’s Melanie Griffith. But too late now, I’m changing the channel.
J: We gonna watch Las Vegas on the DVR?
M: I stopped recording that after Lara Flynn Boyle got blown off the Montecito by a gust of wind.
J: Fair enough. So what are we watching?
M: Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.
J: You really do hate me!
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Aha – the “trying to Americanize a BBC show” curse strikes again! I’m beginning to think that The Office is the exception that proves the rule. Why not just bring over the original Coupling or Blackpool? Thank god for BBC America.
The problem with Viva Laughlin wasn’t that it was too weird – its that it wasn’t weird enough. Why voice-over the songs? Why not just do them full-out. And overall – the show just looked drab. As for that other suck-fest “Las Vegas”, why get rid of Jimmy Caan and Nikki Cox and have the replacement characters do the same stuff? This show is way too Love Boat/Baywatch for me.
The problem with Viva Laughlin wasn’t that it was too weird – its that it wasn’t weird enough. Why voice-over the songs? Why not just do them full-out. And overall – the show just looked drab. As for that other suck-fest “Las Vegas”, why get rid of Jimmy Caan and Nikki Cox and have the replacement characters do the same stuff? This show is way too Love Boat/Baywatch for me.
Las Vegas is so bad it’s good. They let go of Nikki Cox (I think her boobs and lips took up too much of the camera) but James Caan chose to leave so that he could do more movies.
Never got to see Laughlin and I guess I never will…
Snooks, you didn’t miss anything. I love me some Melanie Griffith but I couldn’t even watch for her. I think they “Niki Cox-ed” her lips…bleh. The singing was atrocious. I said the same thing – why voiceover the songs?
Jessica – you are right about BBC America….Viva Blackpool was wonderful….Viva Laughlin was just eh…..
Jessica- you make a good point: why not just bring over the original BBC shows instead of trying to remake them (badly)? Other countries do it with our shows. Maybe we think we are too good for that, but it would be cheaper and so many of the shows on BBC America are great.
Loved the music, hated the singing over the songs. Either remove the actors’ singing, or just have them singing the lyrics, not along with the originally recorded singer. That’s just weird. And what the hell happened to Melanie Griffith’s lip? Did they inject the Titanic in there???
Thank you American Nielsen viewers!! The Amazing Race finally gets back on to the sched!!
I never saw the show, but the previews looks horrible. It should have been like what CSI does: take songs (instrumental or not) that might relate to the scene(s).
This was one of the worst shows that I have ever seen. Not necessarily the story, which I couldn’t even concentrate on because of the horrible karaoke. It was a mercy killing.
But next week Hugh Jackman was going to come back — with a beard!
I am bummed. I did enjoy the show although I do agree that the singing wasn’t a good idea (except for Hugh, he was great ). The problem is networks today are so quick to cancel shows they never give people a chance to find them. There are tons of shows “Cheers” for example, that weren’t instant hits. I love Hugh and I wish that I could at least see the rest of the shows that they had filmed. I guess I will never know the answer to the mystery.
“with a beard!” … insert tasteless joke here…
Viva Laugh would have been enough of a title. I almost suspended belief enough to start to watch but yikes, they sang. Yuck. They sang.
Wow, kudos to CBS for being the most shortsighted bunch of jack#sses for canceling this show after a whopping two episodes. It’s not like they ever bothered to promote it or anything. Just another reason why I hate tv (and those in charge of it).
I dvr’ed Viva Laughlin last night and couldn’t believe how awful it was. I’ve seen reruns of Cop Rock and at least that show commited to orininal music, sung by the actors that advanced the story.
Hopefully, Eric Winter goes back to playing the minister boyfriend on Brothers and Sisters.
At least now Eric Winter can get back to where he belongs–alongside Kevin on Brothers and Sisters.
viva got canceled viva got canceled viva viva got cancled
I love musicals. I love musicals on tv. But musicals where the main characters all look like a bunch of d–ches, I don’t like so much. And having the main character look like Josh Duhamel doesn’t help any. Duhamel is one of the biggest jerkwads ever.
Being a great lover of movie musicals (and “Cop Rock”), I agree with so much of what has been said here. If you’re going to sing, then SING. The half-hearted karoke was beyond lame and so disappointing. What a wasted opportunity.
But beyond that most of the characters were laughably bad (yes, I’m talking to you detective sidekick) either in acting or conception and the plotting ludicrous. Oh my how I wanted to love this show. But it just really blew big time and screwed any chance of networks taking a chance on something “out there” that would go beyond reality shows and CSILaw&Order clones. Now please, please, don’t mess with “Pushing Daisies”…
Oh great. It’s Yeaaahhh! the moron from the Wolverine blog. Yippee. Thanks for gracing us with your oh so annoying presence again. Don’t mind me, I’m just going to go vomit now.
Jericho originally got canceled to be replaced with junk like this? Viva Laughlin was just awful, awful, AWFUL to witness. How this even received a pilot episode is beyond me.
I unfortunately saw a bit of this atrocity and I’m still recovering from the horror. The lead actor looked like Josh Duhamel with a hangover and no charisma whatsoever. Hugh Jackman came and went in a Jumpin’ Jack Flash. But the worst thing about this show? Melanie Griffith singing a Blondie song with that ever-annoying voice of hers. Ow…my…ears!!! My…precious…ears!!!
Well, that was quick! OK, it wasn’t the greatest thing on TV, but it WAS different, and I think CBS should have given it at least another couple of weeks before deciding to pull the plug. Nice try, Hugh; better luck next time!
i’ve never had anyone call me a moron before. but i bet Huge Jackman has and the cast of viva laughlin
Kevin’s hot Pastor boyfriend is coming back from Malaysia wwwwhhhhhhhhoooooohhhhhhhhoooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Viva Laughlin…….Viva Viagra………….
Thank you! finally someone says something about that idiot plotline where the very skinny girl gets blown off the roof. so stupid it was insulting. las vegas, you bite.
I didn’t like the karaoke either but was willing to keep liking because of Hugh Jackman, oh well another one bites the dust.