Midseason report card: Was ‘How to Get Away with Murder’ a big winner?
When you are talking about TV shows making the most of their commercial viability, there’s no question that ABC knocked one out of the park with “How to Get Away with Murder.” With that being said, does this mean even remotely that they also created a good show? There is not always a correlation between the two.
For the latest edition of our Midseason Report Card series, we are going to go through some of what Viola Davis and company did correctly over the first nine episodes of the Pete Nowalk – Shonda Rhimes hit, and what can be done to make us continually hooked on this super-dramatic series.
What worked – Davis. She is incredible. Basically, she is a lock for every Best Actress nomination under the sun over the next year. She brings power and gravitas to the show, and we don’t know if it would work around her. This is also a show that is bold, shocking, and not afraid to take on big subjects. Probably what it does best, though, is use a twist as misdirection for another twist. They did that especially in the finale, when we thought at first that Michaela killed Sam.
What didn’t – Sometimes, it’s okay to spend a few minutes setting things up. The first three or four episodes had so much going on, you really had to watch them more than once to get your bearings. It was just far too convoluted in the end for its own good, and that is not exactly what we want to see from this show in the second half. Sometimes, less is a little more, and getting a deeper emotional investment allows us to care more beyond just the shocking moments or whatnot.
Overall – This is a show that proves it is worth the hype, and it can really combine procedural and serialized elements effectively. It was also better than any other show with Rhimes in the credits this fall, though Nowalk is the primary showrunner here. Midseason Grade: B+.
What did you think about the first part of this season? Share with a comment, and head over here to book some further TV updates via our CarterMatt Newsletter. (Photo: ABC.)