Reviewing The New Normal

"A single mother's life as she becomes a surrogate for a gay couple"

So this is the gist of Ryan Murphy's new show The New Normal - which attempts to shake up the traditional sitcom format by putting modern characters into a classic setting. Not a revolutionary idea; but a gay couple has never carried a show on network television before.

So, duh, I can't help but check it out and give it a chance. TV history in the making babes!!! 

All-in-all the show was good and I enjoyed it. But I'm not totally sold yet. For a couple of reasons.

Ryan seems to believe that as long as insults and stereotypes are set up as an equal opportunity situation then they can get as cringe worthy and bigoted as he’d like. And honestly, I don't really consider myself a super sensitive person. Like, I'm all for saying terrible things and expecting others to laugh. I'm fine with pushing people’s buttons and I get annoyed at the constant attempt to make every comment and remark politically correct. I mean, we don’t need to take things so seriously ALL the time. 

But even I started to side-eye a few comments and choices that were made in the Pilot. I just... I’ll put it this way. If I was a gay person, I'm not sure I'd want to hear an offensive remark at EVERY turn...

I think Ryan rationalizes it to himself by saying no one is off limits. Whether you're black, a little person, a mature mom, or deaf... He's not picking on anyone in particular; he's picking on everyone. And I’m sure there will be many decent human beings totally ok with this. They'll find it endearing, as even I did half of the time - but eventually it got a little tacky and insulting for my taste. So, ehh...

As for the characters themselves.

I really like Bryan. He’s going to be very dear to my heart I expect. I like how he handled David and I can see why they work well together. I liked that he really thought about what it means to be a parent and he seemed to be warm and sturdy as well as a jittery first time dad.

I’m more on the fence with David. Mostly because his obsession with ‘owning’ a baby left a bad taste in my mouth. I mean, I have no doubt he’ll love the hell out of a bouncing bundle of joy, but... Babies aren’t fashion accessories.

I will say this though; the scene where Bryan and David are cuddling in bed and talking about ‘baby making stuff’ was so heartwarming and lovely. It was nice to see David being selfless and understanding - in a way I was worried he might not be. Also, his teasing seemed less domineering and more playful here. More of everything in this scene is what I want out of the show.

Goldie is a fresh face and it’s nice to see her pulling her life together. She has no right to be as progressive and liberal as she is though. Considering she was mostly raised by her grandmother... But whatever... We can’t all be judged based on our crazy ass families – Black sheep and all.

I’m kinda in love with NeNe Leaks and I hope they keep letting her do her thing. I think its Ryan’s bitchy writing style that fits her so well. It’s a yin-yang of terrible/goodness. I loved her on Glee as well.

Question: Did they ever say whether or not Bryan and David were specifically married? If not, I’m interested to see if that’ll ever come up as a plot point. I’m assuming it would. That’s kinda the whole point of the show. To comically address the situations ‘abnormal’ families face.

One last thing.

I know a LOT of Glee fans keep screaming about how Bryan and David are the grown up versions of Kurt and Blaine. And although there are definitely some similarities on the surface, I think it's unfair to jump to that so quickly.

If we have to make comparisons, I'd say that Bryan and Kurt share more commonalities than David and Blaine. Though in terms of relationships, I'd say the two couples operate much differently. Bryan and David seem to be on a much more level playing field than Kurt and Blaine. With them it doesn't seem as though one person runs everything ALL the time; like it is with Klaine.

David is his own man, and Bryan seems to have his own life as well (from what we can tell so far). And I really appreciate that. Because in a healthy relationship it's about two whole people coming together - Not about two halves coming together to become whole.    

I think one of the strong themes on New Normal is going to be about self improvement; about how you can make yourself better, for your family and also for yourself. Happiness usually comes from the relationships we build and I think Ryan’s trying to say that the unconventional can be just as enriching as the ‘normal’.   

So, it has potential to be something really special. But Ryan has to stick to the things that keep the show real. And not just make into a comedic farce.