'RAVEN' RE-ENERGIZES THE FAMILY SITCOM.Byline: - David Kronke Cameras literally get lost in the comically expressive eyes of Raven, the young actress who stars in Disney Channel's winning new sitcom ``That's So Raven That's So Raven is an American Emmy Award-nominated[1] sitcom television series broadcast on the Disney Channel. The plot revolves around teenager Raven Baxter and her schemes to get herself, her friends, Eddie and Chelsea, and family members such as her brother .'' They zoom in as the mouthy mouth·y adj. mouth·i·er, mouth·i·est 1. Annoyingly talkative. 2. Given to ranting or bombast. mouth high-school student envisions a glimpse of future mayhem that will befall be·fall v. be·fell , be·fall·en , be·fall·ing, be·falls v.intr. To come to pass; happen. v.tr. To happen to. See Synonyms at happen. her family and/or friends, then pull out to watch the amusing complications that ensue as she desperately tries to figure out the context of her vision and attempts to forestall typical sitcom disaster. What makes ``That's So Raven'' so entertaining is the fact that even though the show's star (formerly known as Raven-Symone, late of ``The Cosby Show'') is clearly a fun and engaging performer, the show's producers also have created a showcase for all its players. Everyone, even guest stars, are given meaty enough roles to play to their comedic hilt. Hence, Raven is not the only one indulging in broad physical comedy - her parents (capably played by Rondell Sheridan and T'Keyah ``Crystal'' Keymah) get laughs, too, as do her pals (Orlando Brown and Anneliese van der Pol Anneliese Louise van der Pol (born September 23 1984) is a Dutch -born American actress and singer. After an early career in musical theatre, she was cast as Chelsea Daniels in the Disney Channel Original Series That's So Raven ) and bothersome little brother (Kyle Orlando Massey). Disney Channel tonight introduces ``That's So Raven'' in a mini-marathon bloc of four episodes. In the first, she tries to prevent her parents from discovering that she has mouthed off in class by disguising herself as a larger-than-life version of her mother for a parent-teacher conference. Next, she vainly endeavors to deter her hypnotized father from embarrassing himself during a cooking segment on a local TV show. She follows that up by making her little brother's birthday party a memorable disaster, then by hatching a plot that might prevent her pal from flunking his Spanish test. All of these plot lines are as old as the sitcom genre itself, yet Raven and her producers and writers make them seem nominally fresh by plowing into them a kicky kick·y adj. kick·i·er, kick·i·est Slang So unusual or unconventional in character or nature as to provide a thrill. energy. Like former Nickelodeon and current WB star Amanda Bynes, Raven convincingly posits herself as a Lucille Ball for the tween tween n. A child between middle childhood and adolesence, usually between 8 and 12 years old. [Blend of teen1 and between.] audience (van der Pol ably emerges as her Vivian Vance). One major quibble QUIBBLE. A slight difficulty raised without necessity or propriety; a cavil. 2. No justly eminent member of the bar will resort to a quibble in his argument. , however - either shoot before a live audience or lose the lamely hysterical canned laughter outright. THAT'S SO RAVEN - Three stars What: Family sitcom about a young girl whose glimpses of the future result in unpredictable mayhem for her family and friends. Where: Disney Channel. When: Premieres at 7 tonight, then runs 6 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In a nutshell: Raven is a bona fide [Latin, In good faith.] Honest; genuine; actual; authentic; acting without the intention of defrauding. A bona fide purchaser is one who purchases property for a valuable consideration that is inducement for entering into a contract and without suspicion of being star, and her supporting cast is a lot of fun, too. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: no caption (characters from ``That's So Raven'') |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion