Meet the wild and
wacky staff of the popular fashion magazine Blush.
CRITIQUE
Most
television sitcoms have a habit of turning me away. I find that
many are poorly written and are far too predictable for my
tastes. There have been a few I’ve really enjoyed, but not enough
to make me want to invest my time in the characters and
situations. I’m pleased to say that Just Shoot Me never fell into
that trap. True, there are moments in the show that are
predictable, but they always happen in the most unpredictable
ways.
The six episodes that make up the first season
introduce the characters and the magazine in fun and exciting ways. We
meet Maya (Laura San Giacomo), a headstrong and intelligent writer who has fallen
on bad times and is given a chance to work on her father Jack’s
(George Segal) magazine. David Spade is fun (and typecast) as the wormy,
sleazy… well… David Spade character Finch. He seems to fit in
comfortably in the role, playing a character similar to his flight
attendant role on Saturday Night Live.
Enrico Colantoni is fun as Elliot, the ladies
man photographer, who seems to think his real occupation is seducing
the beautiful models he shoots. But the most fun in the show comes
from Wendie Malick’s Nina, a former supermodel turned fashion
editor. She’s a promiscuous, heavy drinking, chain-smoking woman who
loves to tell stories about the many different men she has "known"
over the years. The cast is great and they always hold their own
against one another.
Season two continues the story and begins to
flesh the characters out. Maya and Jack’s father/daughter relationship
is put through many tests and together they come out stronger. Elliot
finds more confidence in himself, even though he was a total nerd in
high school, and may have even truly fallen in love. A set up for
later seasons maybe?
Nina comes to terms with her supermodel past and
realizes she doesn’t need her "public" as much as she believed, and
even learns the truth about her one and only true love. Even Finch is
given opportunities to shine, be it trapped in a bad relationship,
threatened with death, and even believed to be gay.
With its many
comical twists and turns, the second season builds on the base that
the first season set, and creates well rounded character and very
interesting situations. Just Shoot Me is very well written and
has a fine cast. This is a collection that will please fans and new
viewers alike.
THE VIDEO
The transfer is
crisp and the colors are rich. There are no subtitles, which is a
shame sometimes, but overall, you can’t complain.
THE AUDIO
The sound mix is
well done. The show is presented in Dolby surround, which singles
out the laugh track nicely, but the rest of the presentation is an
all front-chancinel affair.
THE EXTRAS
Disc One:
Commentary (on
episode 1 “Back Issues” and 3 “Lemon Happy Hello): The commentary
features the creator and the producers. It delivers some good
information, but not enough to really be a great commentary.
Always in Fashion: Interviews with the
cast and crew about the formation of the show as well as the
production. The interviews are in depth and give plenty of information
about how the show was created, how the cast was chosen, and how it
was to work with the cast and crew over the six years the show
ran. It’s a very well done featurette.
The Blush cover gallery: See all the
covers featured in the show. This is not that impressive unless you
really loved the covers in the show.
Previews: Other shows coming to DVD.
Disc Two:
Commentary (on episode 12 “King Lear Jet”
and episode 13 “My Date with Woody”): This commentary features more
information than the first disc’s track, and is a little more
entertaining.
FINAL THOUGHTS
It’s a nice presentation
for a really good show. It’s a shame there aren’t more features, such
as the original pilot (which didn’t include David Spade’s Finch.) But
it’s still a good set and should please series fans.
