Pensamientos Acerca de Televisión
Speechless: "Pilot"
A sitcom about a special-needs kid with cerebral palsy and his eccentric family would seem to have the type of premise that has disaster written all over it. But fortunately, Speechless's first episode managed to avoid the dual perils of bad taste and inspiration porn, thanks in part to a talented cast and an inspired writing staff.
As I noted in an earlier post, Minnie Driver was the most famous cast member in the show and while I have never been a big fan of hers, I must admit that the more I watched the show, the more addicted I got to her voice. (And yet I never considered myself much of an Anglophile.)
The opening of the episode showed Driver frantically driving her son J.J. -- a boy confined to a wheelchair due to cerebral palsy -- to a restaurant in order to use a coupon before it expired. The show soon established that Ms. Driver's character -- Maya DiMeo -- had a reputation in her small town for being a very aggressive driver -- so aggressive, in fact, that the local cops dared not pull her over even when she was obviously speeding. Soon afterwards, we also find out that the DiMeo family had changed residences and school districts several times during the past few years and were in the process of relocating one final time so that J.J. could go to a regular public school.
Unfortunately, Maya soon found out that the new school had no special accommodations for handicapped students and that the only way J.J. could enter his new school was by using a ramp usually reserved for moving garbage cans. Needless to say, she was not happy.
At the same time, her other son Ray discovered a potential love interest in a fellow student who also happened to be an astronomy buff while Maya's daughter Dylan joined the school track team because she liked running.
Because J.J. could not speak, the De Meos hired an aide recommended by the school to help him out but the aide proved totally unsuited for the task. Ironically, J.J. ended up bonding with a school janitor named Kenneth and he ended up becoming J.J.'s new aide -- despite having initially gotten off on the wrong foot with Maya.
Sound confusing? Maybe. But the whole thing played better on the small screen and indeed, the more I watched the show, the more I felt sorry that I neglected the chance to keep up with it for so long. Then again not having time to watch all the good shows out there is hardly the worst problem I could have at my age.
Speechless: "Pilot"
A sitcom about a special-needs kid with cerebral palsy and his eccentric family would seem to have the type of premise that has disaster written all over it. But fortunately, Speechless's first episode managed to avoid the dual perils of bad taste and inspiration porn, thanks in part to a talented cast and an inspired writing staff.
As I noted in an earlier post, Minnie Driver was the most famous cast member in the show and while I have never been a big fan of hers, I must admit that the more I watched the show, the more addicted I got to her voice. (And yet I never considered myself much of an Anglophile.)
The opening of the episode showed Driver frantically driving her son J.J. -- a boy confined to a wheelchair due to cerebral palsy -- to a restaurant in order to use a coupon before it expired. The show soon established that Ms. Driver's character -- Maya DiMeo -- had a reputation in her small town for being a very aggressive driver -- so aggressive, in fact, that the local cops dared not pull her over even when she was obviously speeding. Soon afterwards, we also find out that the DiMeo family had changed residences and school districts several times during the past few years and were in the process of relocating one final time so that J.J. could go to a regular public school.
Unfortunately, Maya soon found out that the new school had no special accommodations for handicapped students and that the only way J.J. could enter his new school was by using a ramp usually reserved for moving garbage cans. Needless to say, she was not happy.
At the same time, her other son Ray discovered a potential love interest in a fellow student who also happened to be an astronomy buff while Maya's daughter Dylan joined the school track team because she liked running.
Because J.J. could not speak, the De Meos hired an aide recommended by the school to help him out but the aide proved totally unsuited for the task. Ironically, J.J. ended up bonding with a school janitor named Kenneth and he ended up becoming J.J.'s new aide -- despite having initially gotten off on the wrong foot with Maya.
Sound confusing? Maybe. But the whole thing played better on the small screen and indeed, the more I watched the show, the more I felt sorry that I neglected the chance to keep up with it for so long. Then again not having time to watch all the good shows out there is hardly the worst problem I could have at my age.
Labels: Minnie Driver, Parálisis Cerebral, Pensamientos Acerca de Televisión XII, Sin Palabras
posted by Tonio Kruger at 10:00 PM
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