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I’ve got mixed feelings about the upcoming return of “Wonder Woman” to the small screen – but the casting of Adrianne Palicki is not one of them.
Palicki has all of the credentials that I’d would have looked for if I were casting the part. She’s relatively tall (5′ 11″) and obviously beautiful. She also has a strong resume, appearing in “Friday Night Lights”, “Supernatural”, “Women in Trouble”, and Legion”. Although there were a lot of other possibilities for the role (say, Bridget Regan, for instance), the choice of Palicki should be just fine.
I am much more concerned about the plot. David E. Kelley has been tabbed to write the show, as the much bally-hooed attempt to get Joss Whedon to helm the show never worked out. This *should* be a good thing, since Kelley has “Ally McBeal”, ”Boston Public” and “Boston Legal” to his credit. He understands how to make a successful show – and a successful one with a female lead.
According to the non-spoilery spoilers, Palicki will play three roles – the titular “Wonder Woman”, ”Diana Themyscyra” (who is a CEO-type and is the public figure that everyone already knows is Wonder Woman), and “Diana Prince”, who is her “Clark Kent”-ish secret alter ego and, presumably, the focus of the show.
Armed with this information, I was ready to set the TiVo. But, I then discovered some confusing reports on the content. The Mercury News reports that the show will be serious.
The script is a serious, non-campy take on the DC Comics character that pays homage to TV’s original WW Lynda Carter, but it should satiate those fans of Kelley’s memorable soapbox moments in his legal dramas: At one point, Diana gives a speech on Capitol Hill.
I could support a ‘serious, non-campy’ take on “Wonder Woman”. However, a separate report from Bleeding Cool paints a very different picture of the show:
There’s a CSI-ish group of science-nerd 20-somethings living in her basement that dance to Kanye West and will doubtlessly help Diana solve any number of crimes in further episodes.
And
Identifies with ET the Extra Terrestrial when his movie comes on TV. Sings along to the radio in multiple scenes – but nothing with a hairbrush in front of the mirror just yet. Doesn’t like being “marketed, commercialized, merchandised”, though she is – there’s a joke about Wonder Woman tie-in dolls having their costumes redesigned that seems to reference the recent makeover for the comics. Puts on her PJs for an ice-cream filled sleepover with best friend Myndi.
I’m not going to say that “Wonder Woman” is going to be bad. In fact, I think it might be funny, groovy and hip. I simply do not think it’s going to be a “serious non-campy take” though – not by a longshot. Several of these plot points (especially eating ice cream with a girlfriend) scream “Wonder Co-ed”, not “Wonder Woman”.
Still, a younger take on “Wonder Woman” could still be executed well. The show is expected to find a slot on the Fall 2011 NBC schedule and I’ll be watching. I just wonder if the final product will be more ‘serious’ or more ‘camp’.
