UrbanLegendzGal
In a genre of TV shows populated with such-- dare I say it?-- excretement as Dawson's Creek, Gilmore Girls, and all reality TV, Glory Days brings back a lost line of hope to the WB. It is a beautifully crafted show finally worthy of Kevin Williamson's talent.The show takes older murder mysteries (for example, Murder She Wrote) and turns them into, if not better, more appealing to the teenage eye. Its eye candy measures up to its content, because it doesn't slack on that, either. It has interesting, real characters who feel and flirt and fool around in a way that doesn't bore like the endless trysts of Pacey, Dawson, and Joey (doesn't that sound like a GLAAD smile beaming?). And while building characters, the show never loses its plot, that it is a murder mystery and each episode can stand alone...the show is a beautiful revival of favorites like the Twilight Zone and Eerie. And Eddie Cahill's utter beauty doesn't hurt either...*wink* Check it out- you won't be disappointed!
CaliforniaKara
Take one part "Picket Fences", add a dash of "Twin Peaks", stir in kids who are fluent in "Dawson's" speak, and throw it in a Kevin Williamson blender powered by Weinstein. The result?The series debut of "Glory Days".Welcome, kiddies, to the WB's first attempt at a *gasp* suspense series. Mind you, I entered viewing with a severe case of unenthusiastic trepidation. When I first heard of "Glory Days" last spring, my heart was all aflutter at the thought of fresh material from one of my favorite scribes, Kevin Williamson. The show's original premise revolved around a one-hit wonder whose severe case of writer's block rendered him unable to write a follow-up to his best-selling debut novel "Glory Days." It sounded just like something we'd expect from the WB: a "Dawson's Creek"-type show focusing on romantic relationships and light situations.Enter the squelchers of all things creative, aka Network Executives, and pretty much in came the official Big Rewrite. When all was said and strewn on the cutting room floor, there lay a show that still followed the original premise of runaway novelist who must face his demons upon his homecoming. Only no "Dawson's", no romantic relationships, and no light situations.Welcome, instead, to Bizzaroland.Let's review the players (at least the ones I care about so far):Mike Dolan (Eddie Cahill) – The Prodigal Son, who wrote a book using most of his family and close friends as characters, returns. Said loved ones are, of course, less than thrilled with his depiction of them.Ellie (Poppy Montgomery) – Town coroner and a close dead-ringer for Julie Benz (the original female lead) who partially buries dead bodies in her garden to study decomposition rates. Quirky in that sense, yet needs to be flushed out.Rudy Dunlop (Jay R. Ferguson) – Deputy Doug, er, I mean Sheriff Doug, er, I mean Rudy. Mike's former best friend who was falsely characterized as a Card Carrying Friend of Dorothy in Mike's novel, "Glory Days."Sara Dolan (Amy Stewart) – Older, slightly neurotic sister who inherited the editor-in-chief title at the family-owned newspaper when Mr. Dolan died.Sam Dolan (Emily Vancamp) – Little sister who missed her older brother terribly. Her relationship and interactions with Mike remind me of the Claudia/Bailey dynamic on Party of Five.Zane (Ben Crowley) – Sidekick to Sam.Mitzi Dolan (Frances Fisher) – Kind of crazy mom to Mike, Sara, Sam and Mike. Let me just lay this out on the table from Day One: I LOVE HER. How could you not with lines like, "Sara, he's your brother first, jackass second." *snarf*If you've read my other analyses, you'll know I hold a certain bar to "Party of Five" because of the well-written details and moments from that show. I'm seeing glimmers of PO5 in this show, and that gives me hope. Finally, another series comes along that concentrates on developing characters.THE CORONER'S REPORT (my high points and low points for the episode):
Mike and Rudy playing Hardy Boys amused me to no end, though the interrogation of the boy felt forced. - Gee, hmmm, saw a few Miramax and Dimension commercials. Do ya think Harvey and Bob got a cut on ad rates? - Wow, an actual laugh out loud moment when Rudy said, "It's ‘cause I cried when Goose died in Top Gun, isn't it?" in reference to why Mike thought he was gay. - The ferryman's widow is a pretty sharp shooter for a drama queen with a penchant for wearing bad wigs. - Did they take their stock shots from the same bin as Dawson's Creek and ILM mountains into the background? I was this close to hearing "I don't want to wait…" on the opening credits when the camera panned from marina to shore.So I did it. I made it through the hour, and am actually looking forward to next week's installment. "Grim Ferrytale" (oh, Kevin, clichés should be beneath you by now) pleasantly surprised me. Between all the rewrites, lead character changes, and dire predictions from the trade magazines, I thought this one was DOA. I really, truly thought I was not going to be able to physically sit through the entire episode.Kudos to you Kevin, for crafting a well-written tale that concentrates on characters, I say, "Welcome back, we missed you." You're not so up the Creek as I thought you'd be.Kara ScoopMe.com "Glory Days" reviewer
virtualstranger
The premise of "Glory Days," an actual suspense- thriller television show, was one that I'm sure filled many people with hope and interest. What they've seen, over the past three weeks, has probably crushed those hopes fairly effectively....In the first episode, we are given several creepy elements; a seemingly random murder, a mysterious letter, an entire town where we're told odd behavior is commonplace, with a population who strongly dislike the returning prodigal son (some of whom are his own family), and a disturbingly- designed board game, just to name a few. Any one of these elements, handled correctly, could carry a show for several episodes. "Glory Days" disposes of them all by the end of the very first episode, explaining away every element in precise detail, wrapping up every possible loose end.This pattern, alas, was repeated with the second and third episodes as well. Each individual story sewn up nice and tight, with nothing left to gnaw at our minds or make us wonder at work the next day. Each episode ends exactly as it began, with only superficial changes to the characters lives, and no change at all to the world they live in.Answering every question mere minutes after it's asked hardly builds suspense, and a mystery that's solved in less than an hour isn't much of a mystery. The most effective element of mystery and suspense, the part that gets people hooked, is not knowing, not having the answers. To paraphrase Neil Gaiman, people forget the stories, but they always remember the mysteries.There are no mysteries on Glory Island. Simply put, instead of stepping into the shoes of "Twin Peaks" or "The X-Files," or possibly bringing something new to the small- screen, "Glory Days" is merely a hip, teen- oriented version of "Matlock" or "Murder She Wrote"A shame, because the cast, and the audience, all deserve something better....
BHorrorWriter
...So far, two episodes have aired. And so far, I can't say I hate it...yet! Kevin Williamson is probably the writer which I have the least amount of respect for. Okay, Scream was okay...it was fresh and new--not HORROR, but new suspense! Then Dawson's Creek, Scream 2, the utter garbage that was Teaching Mrs. Tingle, and he took 100% credit for just rewriting Lois Duncan's book, I Know What You Did Last Summer. Well, I just really don't like him...He is a smug, whiny, gay man, with little talent! I think him being openly gay is the only thing I respect about him!Now, with that said..Glory Days. I was really expecting to see a dark Dawson's Creek...and in some ways this show is that, but in others it isn't, and steers away from the typical BS Mr. Williamson is famous for.
The acting is acceptable, though I didn't think lead man Eddie Cahill was all that good while he was on Friends. He just doesn't capture me as a good actor. He has not expression, however, being gay and and an up-and-comer in hollywood isn't easy. But, he still needs to work on his acting! Jay Feguson plays the sheriff excellent! The rest of the cast, I will not tear apart, but each are okay, but nothing superb. One of the greatest things about the show is the Beautiful Vancouver scenery. It seems Canada is always used for "anywhere" USA. Which is fine, because the images are beautiful. Overall, I don't think this show will last...Only because of the 1st 2 episodes...there was no real meat to them. The 2nd episode was a deliberate rip-off of Exorcist, with a twist, but we (the audience) are expected to beleive way too much...which is typical Williamson. Where did this kid get all this equipment to set up these pranks? I don't know...I can't get into all this...it would just be too complicated!I will continue to watch, until too much of Kevin Williamson is evident in the show. And here is a hint, Kevin: Real people don't talk the way every one of your characters do...especially young people! There is not reality to your characters.(score pending)After 2 episodes: 6 out of 10
