Steve Carell’s beard is perfect. One, it makes the man look distinguished and artistic in a perfectly “aged-Clooney” kind of way. And second, it sets the color palette for The Morning Show.
This show, at least in its first season (being that I am still watching Season Two), is incredibly grey. The mixed signals it portrays are a perfect paradigm shift in the conversation about the gender politics in Hollywood recently. The first predator the show portrays is played by notorious nice-guy Carell, who honestly plays a bit into the role of “everyone’s attractive dad” like he was born to play it. However, as the show progresses, we kind of start to root for this “#metoo”-ed boss of a show, as it seems he really genuinely believes he is right, and we don’t see evidence to the contrary until much later in the show.
And characters we are almost fully told to hate in the show have such redeeming moments. The executive Cory Ellison (played by Billy Crudup) seems to be the typical “corporate villain” role, however he seems to be the only one who is consistently shooting for the main characters.
The show remains rooted in these deep and complex issues, but while others in Hollywood might have taken the opportunity and platform to get very “preachy” and try to teach us viewers a lesson, those integral in creating this force of a season remain staunchly in the middle. I learned more about these issues watching this season of television than in all of the screaming matches and debates online during the actual events.
The Morning Show refuses to realize that it is a show about a morning fluff-news program, and the actors are giving performances to match. The writers are cutting to the bone with the dialogue, and the actors, especially Aniston and Witherspoon, are playing in the paint with every scene. Rarely have I seen Jennifer Aniston in a role where I thought “Damn, this woman is an actress“, but I thought this same thing with every episode of the show. And this isn’t even a critique of the show; these conceits and premises demand to be taken seriously, and the drama of the show rides upon never dropping the suspension of disbelief. I believe that it is, indeed, a highly pressurized career field to be in, but this show takes that belief to church.
All in all, this show is phenomenal when it is letting its characters speak. No one character feels two-dimensional, nor do they feel like the one “main character”; each face on the show has as much depth and complexity behind it as the faces in our real lives do. And every decision they make is one that I believe because of this depth, something not every show can make me believe.
While it isn’t perfect- the writers seem to pull punches in some very important sequences of the show, making me wish for more depth in the conflicts- this show is another shining example I have found recently of well-written, well-acted content that doesn’t dilute the market with unnecessary joking and quipping.
The Morning Show, Season One: 7.5/10; 30 Rock but dramatic, and with more Steve Carell zaddy.