Promises, Promises is a revival of an older Broadway show, starring Sean Hayes (in his Broadway debut), Kristen Chenoweth and Molly Shannon, amongst others. The show follows Hayes's Chuck Baxter, an accountant trying to move up in the large firm he works in. When he discovers that the easiest way to get favors from executives is to lend out his apartment to them so they can extra-marital affairs, he finds himself not only in a tough place morally but accidentally making it easier for his boss, Sheldrake to have an affair with Baxter's unrequited love, Fran. Hayes and Chenoweth gives unsurprisingly great performances. Hayes makes Baxter just the right amount of neurotic without losing any charm. Chenoweth tones down her more squeaky voice to make Fran a lovely young woman. Chenoweth's Fran isn't stupid or a bimbo; she knows exactly what mess she is getting herself into by getting involved a second time with Sheldrake. The chemistry between Hayes and Chenoweth feels genuine, unforced, and earnest, and it's surprisingly realistic for a comedy with such dark elements underneath the surface. Shannon, who plays the ridiculous Marge MacDougall, is clearly having a ball with such a silly character. It's nice to see a cast who is clearly not working, but playing. The set pieces were also suburb. Everything was period appropriate and beautifully created. When we finally see the apartment that has been so important to the story, we realize how ordinary and sweetly normal it is, just like Baxter. The music was perfect and everyone's singing was great. Overhall, a strong show for anyone who enjoys a well-told story but great actors.
In True Blood land, Bill has officially (thankfully) dumped Sookie. A normal girl would get angry, break some glass bottles, and then move on. Sookie, of course, decides to take denial to new levels by staying in another state to look for him. Sam tries to right his family, Jason attempts to bypass become a police officer the traditional way, Tara is held hostage by Franklin, Lafayette fails to sell his drugs, and Eric's club is sacked. A lot happens in these episodes, so let's focus on the good and the bad. It's really bothersome that Sookie takes two seconds to be attracted to Alcide, especially after he's involved in violence. Is Sookie attracted to violence and emotional baggage? She's almost as bad as Bella Swan.
In the books, the audience does not see Bill's stay in Mississippi, and now that the audience can see it on screen, it's easy to see why Harris, the author, left it out. Bill's plotline continues to be boring and slows down the rest of the episode. The other irritating plotline is Arlene's anti-vampire screed. Once again, this show has decided that women are all crazy and bitchy, especially when they are pregnant.
Some of the other problems with this episode included originality. Jason's little football-playing-rival Kit called himself the "QB" which is exactly what Kevin called himself on Daria. And apparently the writers have watching high school rom coms from the nineties, because Sookie got a makeover in order to impress a guy. But some things are worth watching for. The acting by the secondary characters continues to amaze. Franklin and Tara's scene where Franklin dictated her call was spot on, both scary and terrifying, like a particular moment in the "Midnight" episode of Doctor Who. Tara's scenes where she was tied up was great too, showing us that Franklin is a rapist, using not just sex but people's mind against them. Points also to Sookie and Eric, who once again have chemistry in a line of dialogue that outdoes everything Sookie and Bill have had this entire show.
The interesting juxtapositions with faith have also continued, though this is by far the bizarrest way yet. This time, vampires donating blood in a ritual meant to imitate the Christian ceremony of drinking Jesus's blood. How exactly the audience should interpret this on-the-nose reference has not been yet revealed, but probably will be as the season continues, just like the show's thoughts on evangelicalism was fleshed out over the course of season two.
There are also great friendships on this show. At the end of the last season, the show highlighted Andy and Jason, which continues to be wonderful but now slightly painful. It's too sad the relationship between Andy and Jason is souring, because so many shows lack friendships that feel as real and faithful as the ones in our lives. This episode showed Eric and Lafayette in a different kind of friendship. Scenes where Lafayette is discriminated against because of his sexuality, his race and his connection to vampires is hard to watch, but seeing Eric protect his own was a relief, though not as empowering as "AIDS burger" from season one.
And no show can be bad if it uses a song from Massive Attack, so the show, despite having clunky elements to it, also has moments of genius.
easiest way to get favors from executives is to lend out his apartment to them so they can extra-marital affairs, he finds himself not only in a tough place morally but accidentally making it easier for his boss, Sheldrake to have an affair with Baxter's unrequited love, Fran.
