TV or not TV: K-Ville

[infrogmation]

Bah. Is there a word for something you don't want to see, but something compels you not to look away? I can't think of one, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Germans have a word for it.

There's no "History Detectives" on tv this Monday.

At the time I'd be watching that, "K-Ville", the FOX-TV cop show set in post-Katrina NOLA debuts. I'm debating whether to watch it, as I suspect I'll find something to be bothered by. I guess "Frank's Place" was about the only network tv entertainment show set here to come close to plausible verisimilitude.

An episode of "Las Vegas" (IIRC) supposedly set in New Orleans a couple years ago (looked like filmed in California backlots, plus a couple of exteriors that looked like Memphis, TN) was so bad that anyone watching that episode would know less about New Orleans at the end. I guess since "Live & Let Die", everyone here lives either in the French Quarter or out in the swamp. Will this be any better? What accents will the locals speak with-- Justin Wilson Cajun, Gone With the Wind Southern, or Mama's Family? It being FOX, will the script follow the Faux-News party line-- the city flooded because it's 15 feet below sea level, and Brownie did a heck of a job? Hm, if I do watch it I may wish to keep a drink handy...

Comments

[pentomino.livejournal.com]

Well, I don't intend to watch it, but I suspect those on your friends list who do, are champing at the bit to read your review.

[ernunnos.livejournal.com]

I've told my Tivo to record it. It's the same network that gives us The Shield, Damages, and Nip/Tuck. The best TV drama not on HBO. And none of them particularly conservative in outlook. (I started watching Nip/Tuck after it got some family TV watchdog's "worst" rating.) The leading man on K-Ville is a Shield alum, so I know I like him. As for the premise, it's about a guy who's taking responsibility for rebuilding his hometown. What's not to like?

New Orleans

[infrogmation.livejournal.com]

Um? I thought you were adamant that folks working hard to rebuild our homes in here in America were all evil Anti-Americans who should drop dead.

Re: New Orleans

[ernunnos.livejournal.com]

Only when they whine and demand everybody else pay for it. You wanna live underwater and are willing to pay for it? Great. Police your streets (what the show is about), educate your kids, and you might actually earn the right to call yourselves Americans.

Calling oneself American

[infrogmation.livejournal.com]

Lecturing about being American... Someone from Massachusetts or Virginia might have something worthy of us listening to.

But if someone from Arizona tries to lecture Louisiana about being American, there is only one appropriate response:

STFU, Noob.

Re: Calling oneself American

[ernunnos.livejournal.com]

Oh, if you want to play that card, my ancestors bought land from William Penn. Fortunately for you, American is a set of values and a way of life, not a matter of ancestry.

I've said it before, I'll say it again: pay your taxes, elect people who won't misuse 'em, police your streets, educate your kids. If you can do that, I don't care if you stepped off the boat yesterday, you're an American. And if you can't, I don't care if the boat your ancestors came from was the Mayflower.

The citizens of New Orleans failed on all those measures.

Re: Calling oneself American

[urbeatle.livejournal.com]

I've said it before, I'll say it again: pay your taxes, elect people who won't misuse 'em, police your streets, educate your kids. If you can do that, I don't care if you stepped off the boat yesterday, you're an American.

So: since I didn't vote for Bush, that means I'm not an American, because I didn't elect someone who won't misuse taxes (i.e. Not Bush)?

Re: Calling oneself American

[ernunnos.livejournal.com]

Yeah, you didn't vote for Bush. That's exactly what I said. You even quoted it there. Clearly, we should re-admit New Orleans to the Union on the strength of your reading comprehension skills alone.

Re: Calling oneself American

[urbeatle.livejournal.com]

By your logic, we should bomb Canada.

Re: Calling oneself American

[jdquintette.livejournal.com]

I'll say it again: pay your taxes, elect people who won't misuse 'em,

Good god, man, I pay plenty of taxes. And when it comes to pissing away half a trillion dollars on a stupid, mismanaged war, stocking the federal government with incompetent cronies, turning a record surplus into a record deficit, and wiping his ass with the constitution on the way, George W. Bush makes Nagin and Blanco look like Thomas Jefferson.

By your standards half the country (the 49% that voted W.) should be deported.

[mmcirvin.livejournal.com]

There are still TV critics going on about how "Frank's Place" was one of the very, very few shows ever made about black people that didn't make them want to scream in frustration, either by falling into obnoxious stereotypes or by becoming exemplary pablum by way of reaction. I think Tim Reid is greatly underappreciated.

[mshollie.livejournal.com]

I've often been told, "you don't sound like you're from New Orleans"...what did they expect? But, yeah, I'm NOLA born and raised.

We saw "K-Ville" tonight. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't good, either. Rather mediocre, but we shall see.

And, yes, Tim Reid is greatly underappreciated.

[mshollie.livejournal.com]

And, yes, I was there right beside you watching that cheesy episode of "Las Vegas". It was the best thing on at the time. Can you say "trainwreck", boys and girls?

First impression

[infrogmation.livejournal.com]

I saw a fair amount of it, in between cooking and serving dinner. Not as bad as I feared it might be, but as you might gather, my expectations were set low indeed. Some very non-New Orleans sounding accents (especially the bald police chief), but fortunately it avoided having everyone talk like Penelope Pittstop or such.

Ms. Hollie and I got laughs out of the action sequences, with a chase starting in the French Quarter, turning the corner to be under the bridge on the West Bank, then in the CBD (for, say New York, like driving in the Lower East Side, turning the corner and being at Newark Airport, then right down the street you're in Harlem...).

The French Quarter is certainly the last neighborhood of the greater Metro area you'd want to posit a drive-by shooting. Unless perhaps you have the shooters be ignorant out-of-towners, who when trying to make a get-a-way immediately get caught behind a mule-drawn tourist buggy going 3 miles an hour and the cops catch them on foot....

Setting in some ways suggested NOLA 3 to 6 months post-K, not two years. (Though they missed such potentially colorfull local post-K items as the arted curb refrigerator and home-made street signs...)

I saw some excellent local musicians briefly as extras, but unfortunately the sound track used them little if at all. I hope they got a good paycheck from it. Speaking of good paychecks, a car with "two FEMA checks"? Is she supposed to be a hooker who's been getting various locals to give her their checks, and then got a nice car for $4k? (Myth of easy megabux pouring in-- Folks around here who lost everything -- hard working tax payers who lost house owned outright, car, businessess-- who hoped to get more than 2k to 5K have had to brave unending bueracaracy that a friend has compared to having to do your taxes every day for a year and a half... yada yada ask locals for more detailed stories...)

Gratuitous local refrences: Gumbo gumbo gumbo, fixing fried shrimp po-boy for one self at home.

More or less right: Cops who left during the disaster were made known they weren't welcome back by their collegues who stayed; a reference to a thinly disguised Blackwater and its connection to a "certain political party". (hmm)

Re: First impression

[urbeatle.livejournal.com]

Setting in some ways suggested NOLA 3 to 6 months post-K, not two years.

Thanks, this helped me figure out "K-Ville" probably means "Katrina-Ville", which would explain why I've never heard New Orleans called that. But here's a question: how common is this expression in New Orleans? Or is it just something TV people made up?

Re: First impression

[infrogmation.livejournal.com]

Possibly someone somewhere might have used the phrase outside of the tv show, but I'd never heard it.

[plinko.livejournal.com]

As a former New Orleans resident (who left almost a decade ago), I had to say that it wasn't bad. Not fantastic, or anything, but not completely laughable. Some of the writing was a bit choppy and rushed. But, no worse or better than any other cop show on TV, I guess. I think I'll give it 2 more episodes to see if it evens out into something thoroughly watchable, or if they spent everything they had on the pilot. We'll see.

K-Ville in review

[infrogmation.livejournal.com]

Local writer Chris Rose gives a more positive review (http://www.nola.com/living/t-p/index.ssf?/base/living-9/1190096056259130.xml&coll=1)

Other critcs more negative (http://blog.nola.com/davewalker/2007/09/americas_critics_weigh_in_kvil.html)

Re: K-Ville in review

[infrogmation.livejournal.com]

Mixed review from Dave Walker (http://blog.nola.com/davewalker/2007/09/kville_a_clicheriddled_but_not.html)