CRIT-O-MATIC ``SONS & DAUGHTERS''.(ABC ABC in full American Broadcasting Co. Major U.S. television network. It began when the expanding national radio network NBC split into the separate Red and Blue networks in 1928. Channel 7; 8 and 8:30 tonight) Logline: Improvised sitcom about an extended, nearly dysfunctional, family: Cameron (series creator Fred Goss) may be happily married to Liz (Gillian Vigman), but he also seems on the verge On the Verge (or The Geography of Yearning) is a play written by Eric Overmyer. It makes extensive use of esoteric language and pop culture references from the late nineteenth century to 1955. of a midlife crisis midlife crisis n. A period of psychological doubt and anxiety that some people experience in middle age. midlife crisis and, more crucially, can't keep his mouth shut about other family woes, unleashing paroxysms that devastate dev·as·tate tr.v. dev·as·tat·ed, dev·as·tat·ing, dev·as·tates 1. To lay waste; destroy. 2. To overwhelm; confound; stun: was devastated by the rude remark. all in its path. His mom (Dee Wallace) and stepdad (Max Gail) are on rocky ground, as is his sister Sharon's (Alison Quinn) marriage; his other sister Jenna (Amanda Walsh) is a single mom with a thoroughgoing thor·ough·go·ing adj. 1. Very thorough; complete: thoroughgoing research. 2. Unmitigated; unqualified: a thoroughgoing villain. boob of an ex. All their kids are screwed up, too. Pros: Goss is delightfully deadpan, and the documentary-style camera work ensures the funny throwaway throwaway See for your information (FYI). lines pack a punch. Gail (Wojo on ``Barney Miller''), Quinn and young Eden Sher (as Sharon's nerdily precocious daughter) are others delivering their lines in a crisply witty fashion. Cons: Coming on the heels of one Fox sitcom, ``Free Ride,'' and just before another, ``The Loop,'' both of which more or less employ some of the same thematic concerns, something's going to have to give all three can't possibly be successful. And, unfortunately, this feels more like a Fox comedy than an ABC comedy (and more like a Fox comedy than ``The Loop''). In a nutshell: ABC needs to establish more of a reputation as an outlet for edgy sitcoms; otherwise, launching such potential gems as this may only create heartbreak. Our rating: Three stars |
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