I saw bits and pieces of Just Shoot Me back when it was on the air so I was eager to get the dvds and check it out for real. I'm a big fan of David Spade's and I'll admit that he was the only reason I bought it, but after watching the first couple seasons I was really surprised at how flat and contrived it is. All of the characters are two-dimensional types the filthy rich boss who is lovable even with all of his quirks (like marrying a woman younger than his daughter), you have the boss's daughter anxiously trying to prove she deserves her job beyond the fact that her father owns the magazine, the office slut (male and female), and the witty photographer. The last one is at least a unique character, but still fulfills a pretty thinly veiled niche on the show.
Granted, 30 minute sitcoms don't have a history of being the most interesting and complex shows, but Just Shoot Me appears to be shot on a cheaply constructed set and generally takes on cheesy, boring stories, most of which don't go beyond the superficial stories that magazines like Blush generally feature.
I remember when I was in high school I once dated this girl who was constantly reading this god-awful magazine called "YM," which is essentially a glamour magazine for teenagers, and it seems like every single issue that she ever read featured a story on some variation of "What He's REALLY Thinking About," or some other such nonsense. That was more than ten years ago, and watching this show gives me the feeling that they're still writing that same story.
In the show's defense, there are definitely some redeeming moments. It's hard to get David Spade on screen for an entire series and not have some laugh out loud moments, but I have to say that Nina Van Horn's sluttiness and belligerent flirting got real old real quick. To me, her name was about enough. Lauren San Giacomo is given nothing to do except recite her lines and bear goofy jokes about her breasts. She's probably the biggest talent wasted on the show.
Despite my lack of interest, I can still tell that there is an audience for this show who will, of course, enjoy it much more than I did. It's essentially a portrayal of someone's idea of what goes on behind the scenes at a fashion magazine. Throw in David Spade with a bunch of models, who generally parade silently across the set, pausing only to evade Spade's ludicrous advances, and you have yourself a sitcom.
But if, like me, you don't care what goes on behind the scenes at a fashion magazine, don't bother.
Granted, 30 minute sitcoms don't have a history of being the most interesting and complex shows, but Just Shoot Me appears to be shot on a cheaply constructed set and generally takes on cheesy, boring stories, most of which don't go beyond the superficial stories that magazines like Blush generally feature.
I remember when I was in high school I once dated this girl who was constantly reading this god-awful magazine called "YM," which is essentially a glamour magazine for teenagers, and it seems like every single issue that she ever read featured a story on some variation of "What He's REALLY Thinking About," or some other such nonsense. That was more than ten years ago, and watching this show gives me the feeling that they're still writing that same story.
In the show's defense, there are definitely some redeeming moments. It's hard to get David Spade on screen for an entire series and not have some laugh out loud moments, but I have to say that Nina Van Horn's sluttiness and belligerent flirting got real old real quick. To me, her name was about enough. Lauren San Giacomo is given nothing to do except recite her lines and bear goofy jokes about her breasts. She's probably the biggest talent wasted on the show.
Despite my lack of interest, I can still tell that there is an audience for this show who will, of course, enjoy it much more than I did. It's essentially a portrayal of someone's idea of what goes on behind the scenes at a fashion magazine. Throw in David Spade with a bunch of models, who generally parade silently across the set, pausing only to evade Spade's ludicrous advances, and you have yourself a sitcom.
But if, like me, you don't care what goes on behind the scenes at a fashion magazine, don't bother.