Although it's almost hard to fathom now, the very first episode of "Saturday Night Live" was as much "The George Carlin Show" as anything else.

When the latenight series went on the air, the cast wasn't called the "Not Ready for Prime Time Players" just because it was cute.  It was out of genuine fear for some that then-unknowns like John Belushi, Jane Curtin and Chevy Chase didn't have enough pull for viewers. So a number of guests were recruited, led by Carlin, who was the show's official first host.

Of course, relying on the, shall we say, forthright Carlin as your lead performer on live television in 1975 brought along its own level of fear, so for that very first episode of the celebrated live show, a six-second delay was put on the table so that any offending material could be bleeped. And the concerns didn't stop there.

"The major focus of the night, weirdly enough, was over a directive we got that Carlin had to wear a suit on the show," Lorne Michaels recalled in the James A. Miller/Tom Shales book "Live From New York." "He wanted to wear a T-shirt. ... The fear was that if George was in a T-shirt and it looked like the wrong kind of show, we would lose affiliates, and we weren't anywhere near 100 percent as it was. And the compromise was a suit with a T-shirt  instead of a tie. That was a much greater distraction than can possibly be understood right now."

Emerging from all the chaos was a memorable first show (including Andy Kaufman's "Mighty Mouse" routine) that was also a showcase for Carlin, who did four segments of standup.  The football-baseball bit, the "What do dogs do on their day off? They can't lie around — that's their job, man," the "Why is there no blue food?", the thinkpiece on religion — it was all brilliant. The "SNL" cast showed its remarkable potential, but it's not to diminish them to say that in Carlin, we saw a comedian fully formed, at the peak of his career. That he kept it clean to satisfy the censors didn't disable him one bit. This man roughed up conventional wisdom in a way that was almost sweet, the way he brought you along for the ride. 

It's hard to believe that was more than 32 years ago, and it's hard to believe Carlin is gone.

Oh.. there's a moment.. coming. There's a moment coming, it's.. it's not here yet. It's on the way.. It's still in the future. Here.. here it is! [ a beat ] Oh.. it's gone, man. There's no present, man. Everything is the near future and the recent past. No wonder we can't get anything together, we've got no time, huh?

— Jon Weisman

That there is a commissioner of a Rock Paper Scissors league is frightening.

But the fact the the RPS league championship tournament will be televised on Fox Sports Net is all good to me. Cuz I'll watch it.

I don't think I'll set the Tivo for it, nor will I bypass more "normal" sports viewing ot check it out, but when FSN air the tourney on Oct. 6, I'll tune in for curiosity sake. Kind of the same way in that every July 4 I watch the hot dog eating contest on ESPN from the Coney Island.

The actual RPS competition takes place June 20-22 when 300 athletes -- hey, that's what the press release calls them -- descend on the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Vegas. The winner takes home $50,000 and then is flown to Beijing to represent the U.S. in international competition that is not, I repeat not, part of the Olympic Games.

Poker fans who watch will recognize Phil Gordon, who acts at the league's head referee.

"In poker, you have to make the most of the hands that you are dealt," Gordon explained, "but with RPS, it's your own hands that do the dealing."

I've never said it better myself.

— Stuart Levine

I’m just coming out of the “American Idol” mindset, so while watching “So You Think You Can Dance,” I made a quick list of major differences of the two shows...

“American Idol” vs. “So You Think You Can Dance”

THE AUDITIONING PROCESS
In “Idol,” auditioning folks get a once in a lifetime chance to either prove their mettle or humiliate themselves and their families with their “talent.” But on “Dance,” contestants don’t get just one, but two opportunities to humiliate/prove themselves with a choreographed round at the end.

THE JUDGES
The mean Brits, possibly intoxicated pop stars and former Journey bass players have been replaced with polite nice people. And while they might have volume control issues, these folks do their best to encourage people through creative criticism. And though they laugh, they do so in kindness and offer comments only meant to help contestants rather than mock them.
This is strange.
And what’s even more disturbing is that the judges seem to get along. They have respect for one another’s opinions and are open to one another’s criticism. Where are the biting quips and rehab jokes?
I don’t know about this. The possibility of a knife fight at the judges’ table added an air of excitement to the “Idol.” If the “Dance” judges fight, all that means is that they won’t carpool to work that next day.

THE CONTESTANTS
Not a lot of fights or insults here. Actually, they all seem pretty even keeled and aware of their limitations. On “Idol,” many of the folks seem to be in complete denial and face the judges with a combative attitude. But on “Dance,” they are actually the first to admit that this may not be that great. It’s just so odd. They take the judges’ comments in stride and move on with their lives. Except for Sex. Go Sex. Keep swimming that river of denial. Here’s to hoping you decide to switch professions and try out for “Top Chef” next. I would totally buy the Sex DVD set of all of his reality show appearances.

IN SHORT…
“Idol” is to “Dance” what “The Office” is to “30 Rock.” Both are enjoyable shows, but “Idol” goes for the extremes, thus giving us cringe-inducing moments filled with pure shock value. “Dance” is just filled with pleasant people doing their best to entertain you.

It will take some getting used to.

— Erin Maxwell

Because we at Season Pass are a bunch of nerds, this list from TV Crunch of their 25 worst sitcoms ever
prompted a heated email exchange among the group. Sure, there are several deserving duds on the list. “Shasta McNasty,” anyone? But we can’t help but think the folks over at Pop Crunch’s TV blog got it wrong, at least a little.

Yes, we’re busy, but we’re never too busy to chat about TV, particularly the sitcoms we grew up on. Join us, won’t you?

Stu: Congrats Jon, “Caveman” is No. 5.

Jon: That is a harsh list, man. I mean, how can you hate “It’s a Living”?

Kathy: “The Ropers”?! “Double Trouble”?! “We’ve Got it Made”?! “Mr. Belvedere”?! “It’s a Living”?! Dude, those are all way better than “According to Jim” for Pete’s sake.

(One anonymous panelist also gave a fond shoutout to “The Nanny.”)

Mike: Totally unfair list. Several gems on here. “It’s a Living” was pretty good, for starters. “Mr. Belvedere” not too bad either. “Double Trouble” was a pretty good snapshot of real-time living in the ’80s. Plus, most of this is weighted toward late ’80s/’90s sitcoms. There were PLENTY, and I mean PLENTY of horrendous sitcoms in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s. What, no “My Mother the Car”?

Cynthia: Hey, “My Mother the Car” had Jerry Van Dyke — wasn’t all bad…

Jon: I will say they got it right with “Small Wonder.” Seeing the Wendie Jo Sperber photo made me sad. I always liked her.

Cynthia: Three words: “The Single Guy”

Kathy: Oh, yeah. That one was bad.

Stu: Even one word: “Carpoolers”

Mike: OK, stop right there. Did you watch an episode of “Carpoolers”? Underappreciated. It got better and funnier as the season went on. I’m kinda bummed it didn’t continue. “Union Square,” anyone? And from right now, Flava Flav’s “Under One Roof” has to be on the list too.

Rick: I agree, Mike! Anybody remember “Charlie Lawrence” with Nathan Lane?!?!?

Jon: "Carpoolers" was totally underappreciated. Or partially, anyway.

Note from Kathy: As the one who took the time to post this exchange, I must disagree with anyone who defends “Carpoolers.” I actually liked “Cavemen” better. I’m with Stu:

Stu: I watched the pilot and thought it was one of the worst sitcoms I’d seen in years. It was no “Manimal,” I'll tell you that…

Brian L.: I was really enjoying this unitl the "Manimal" reference. Then I just got sad for everyone.

Readers, what is your pick for the worst sitcom of all time?

— Kathy Lyford

Another season of "Top Chef" comes to a close and I couldn't be happier with the result. Stephanie wins!

Finally, a winner of a Bravo reality show that I can applaud. Not only is Stephanie deserving of the title but the fact that she's the first female winner in the show's four seasons is just icing on the cake, or in this case, braised pistachios on the lamb.

For a while there I thought Lisa might pull out a miracle win. That would have made at least one viewer very, very unhappy. And kudos to Richard for not taking the safe route. He over-shot and, in his words, "choked" but he went down with his integrity intact.

So what's a "Top Chef" lover to do now that the season is over? Why, "Project Runway" of course. During the "Chef" finale, the network announced the premiere date of the fifth season of the intoxicating fashion design series. Heidi, Michael, Nina and Tim return to the catwalk July 16 at a new time, 9 p.m., along with the latest crop of aspiring fashionistas. That means only four months will have passed since the season four finale, making the beyond-annoying Christian Soriano's reign as champ mercifully short.

Enjoy "Runway's" last strut on Bravo before it moves to Lifetime this fall. I know I will.

— Kathy Lyford

For a perspective on why some people are having a hard time with the content of CBS' "Swingtown," check out this interview with Shannon C. Barry of Trabuco Canyon, Calif., from Variety.com's On the Air blog.

Now that Katherine Heigl has scalpeled executive producer Shonda Rhimes of "Grey's Anatomy," will they mend fences or part ways?

Most of the initial reaction to Heigl's comments Wednesday to Tom O'Neil of The Envelope ("I did not feel that I was given the material this season to warrant an Emmy nomination and in an effort to maintain the integrity of the academy organization, I withdrew my name from contention.") was amazement that an actress could be so publicly critical of her showrunner — in particular, a showrunner partly responsible for her winning a supporting actress Emmy nine months ago. While it's possible that Heigl was truly disqualifying herself on grounds of insufficient screen time, that's not the interpretation of most people.

As the story spread across the Internet, she drew some "You go, girl" support from those who agree that "Grey's" used Heigl poorly last season, while others just shook their heads. Heigl has built a reputation for outspokenness in recent years, but for some Wednesday's remarks seemed to cross the line.

In the end, bruised egos are a way of life in Hollywood. So while others are focusing on the propriety of what Heigl said, the bigger issue going forward is how this will affect the good doctor Isobel Stevens' relationship with her medical team. After all, Heigl is still contracted to work with these people.

Tuesday was a hot night for "Hell's Kitchen" as Gordon Ramsay's cooking competish winnowed to the final four.

Even against Game 3 of the Lakers-Celtics battle in the NBA Finals, Fox's "Kitchen" pulled an impressive 4.2 rating/12 share in the adults 18-49 demo and 8.3 million viewers from 9-10 p.m.

Fox touted the show's feat in reaching its highest marks in adults 18-34 (4.3/12) outside of a finale telecast or airing behind an installment of "American Idol." The tune-in for "Kitchen" was very strong, coming out of its 8 p.m. "Moment of Truth" lead-in (6 mil, 2.4/8).

The reviews are still rolling in on "Swingtown," and we're not talking about the kind from Brian Lowry and his ilk.

Variety's general news inbox has been getting a steady stream of form-letter complaint emails (a representative sample is posted below, with the complainers address removed) about the period CBS drama that revisits the era of spouse-swapping, Quaadludes and wide lapels, etc.

Some folks seem to be pretty upset about this, even though virtually every MSM review of the show has noted that in fact a whole lot of suggestion but very little sex.

These emails, addressed to Variety's D.C. bureau, appear to be copies of complaints sent to local CBS affils -- hence the request for us to "place a copy of my complaint in your files according to FCC regulations." (Last time we checked, the office of Peter Bart is the regulatory agency that governs Variety.)

The Federal Communications Commission could conceivably take indecency action against CBS affiliates in Mountain and Central time zones that air "Swingtown" at 9 p.m., an hour before the "safe harbor" block of 10 p.m.-6 a.m. where programming cannot be policed by the FCC. It's interesting that the letters don't refer to "Swingtown" as being "indecent" but "offensive" and a violation of "local community standards."

The "community standards" issue is one aspect that the FCC considers in indecency cases (judging its by recent decisions) but the real litmus test is whether or not the material offers a graphic depiction of "sexual or excretory organs or activities."

Again, for all the coupling hinted at in "Swingtown," there's not a whole lot sexual and certainly no excretory stuff on screen. But in the eyes of the Parents Television Council, which seems to be behind these emails, "Swingtown" has the power to "drive a stake through the institutions of marriage and family," according to a PTC press release issued Monday urging CBS affils to refuse to carry the show.

-- Cynthia Littleton

Teresa Poindexter

Santa Clarita, CA 91350-2136

June 9, 2008

Variety

1627 K St NW, 10th Fl

Washington, DC 20006

Dear Variety:

I am offended by the content of the CBS program "Swingtown." The offensive content clearly violates our local community standards and does not reflect your license obligation "to serve the public interest."

I urge you to refuse to air future episodes of "Swingtown."

I also ask you to place a copy of my complaint in your files according to FCC regulations.

Sincerely,

Teresa Poindexter

Lifetime's "Army Wives" got its sophomore season battle off to a strong start on Sunday, drawing 4.5 million viewers at 10 p.m.

Ensembler averaged a healthy 2 million viewers in its target demos of women 18-49 and women 25-54. In viewers, "Army Wives" was up 29% from its debut last summer; in women 18-49 it spiked 67%. Lifetime said it was the most-watched original drama series telecast in the cabler's history.

In contrast, USA Network's new femme-targeted drama "In Plain Sight" opened to 5.2 million viewers in its debut last week in the same time slot. Not sure yet what the numbers are for "Sight's" second outing, with tougher competish from "Army Wives."

ENTER NOW! CONTEST ENDS JUNE 12

Time to cash in on that dysfunctional childhood with Season Pass’ latest giveaway contest.

As a tie-in to its series “Relative Madness,” SoapNET is giving one lucky
Season Pass reader an iPod. Eight runners up will receive either a shirt or a mug.

“Relative Madness” is a limited series of six original specials airing Thursdays at 11 p.m. that takes an irreverent look at families and relationships, blending celebrities with fictional TV characters. Each show will count down the 25 best over-the-top moments in a given category with commentary from various personalities including Joy Behar (“The View”), Cameron Mathison (“All My Children”), Andrea Bowen (“Desperate Housewives”) and Willie Garson (“Sex and the City”).

“Relative Madness” bowed May 8, just before Mother's Day, with “Mama Drama” (featuring Dina Lohan and Britney Spears) and concludes the week of Father’s Day with “Father Knows Less.”

The other episodes in the series are "It's a Sibling Thing," "A Brawl in the Family," "Twisted Family Trees" and this week's “Crazy… In Love,” featuring troubled relationships ranging from Lisa Marie Presley and Michael Jackson to “Sex and the City’s” Carrie Bradshaw and Mr. Big.

To win the iPod, leave a comment and tell us your most dysfunctional moment. Maybe it was something “helpful” your mom said to you that you've never forgotten, an epic fight with a sibling or a dramatic break-up story. The best stories (30 words or less please) will be entered into a drawing for the iPod. If you’ve led a perfect life, make something up!

Contest will close on June 12, when the last episode of the series airs. Winners will be notified June 16.

Also let us know which runner up prize you prefer. And good luck!

More on the prizes on the next page:

— Kathy Lyford

"Swingtown" opened at 10 p.m. to 8.6 million viewers and 2.7 rating/8 share in the adults 18-49 demo, per prelim Nielsens (in the final nationals "Swingtown" went up a tick in the demo to 2.8/8). The '70s-centric drama built ever so slightly on its 9 p.m. lead-in, a "CSI" rerun (9.4 mil, 2.3/7) in the demo and held most of its viewers.

"Fear Itself" opened to 5.2 million viewers and 2.0/6 in 18-49, coming out of the last hour of a 90-minute "Last Comic Standing" (5.3 million, 2.4/7).

Given the sexy subject matter and heavy promotion CBS has given "Swingtown," the initial sampling might've been a little stronger, but the Lakers and Celtics probably took a bite out of the potential male aud for the show. It'll be interesting to see if "Swingtown" gets much of a bump when the Live Plus 7 DVR viewing numbers are factored in.

As for the opening salvo of the NBA championship, which saw the Celtics handily beat the Lakers 98-88, reliable national estimates for ABC's live game coverage won't be available until later today. Prelim numbers indicate a solid, if not spectacular, turnout for the game. Friday afternoon update: Yep, it was solid if not eye-popping. Lakers-Celtics bout drew 13.4 million viewers and 5.4/17 in adults 18-49.

Another season, another bitter disappointment with the finale set up by “Top Chef.” That Lisa is still in contention chaps my hide. I’ve watched a lot of reality and she is easily the most vile, bitter, unpleasant contestant I can recall. And her skills seem marginal compared with the others. Can you say peanut butter mashed potatoes?

The fact that she stayed, over the lovely and talented Antonia, is hard to accept. I am appeased by the fact that her opponents, Stephanie and Richard, are the cream of this season’s crop.

As much as I love Bravo’s reality stalwarts, “Top Chef” and “Project Runway,” I am never satisfied with the contestants that eventually win or even the ones who move on to the finals. But at least some of the other “villains” (Hung, Marcel, Santino, Christian) had the talent to back up their bravado and/or personality flaws.

Granted, the finale is still to come, and Lisa just barely has a shot at the title, but anything can happen. Lisa just better not win.

(Guess which one is Lisa in the photo above.)

— Kathy Lyford

With all the film roles the cast of "Friday Night Lights" has been booking lately, you might think the show had been canceled and the actors are scrambling for new jobs. 

But as the series prepares to move for its third season to DirecTV (which has been airing some nice and frequent promos for the show during sports broadcasts of late), the "FNL" cast has merely been using its hiatus to raise its profile on the bigscreen.

• Just announced today: Connie Britton (Tami Taylor) in the Lindsay Lohan vehicle "Labor Pains," with production set to begin Monday.
• Also from today's news: Aimee Teegarden (Julie Taylor) in "The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll," with Spike Lee executive producing.
• Zach Gilford (Matt Saracen) is poised to nab two pics: a co-starring role alongside Emmy Rossum in "Dare" (in which it's said he'll play a bad egg) and "The River Why."
• Taylor Kitsch (Tim Riggins) will appear as Gambit in "Wolverine," set for a May 2009 release.
• Minka Kelly (Lila Garrity) is supporting Zooey Deschanel and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the romance, "500 Days of Summer."
• Under the radar, Gaius Charles (Smash Williams) connected with Ally Walker and Leslie Uggams in the interracial drama "Toe to Toe."
• Adrianne Palicki (Tyla Collette) is on the callsheet with Dennis Quaid, Kate Walsh and many others on the apocalytpic thriller "Legion."
• You've already seen — or at least heard about — Scott Porter (Jason Street) this spring in "Speed Racer" and "Prom Night," but he also has the Todd Graff-directed "Rock On" coming up.

The head coach of "FNL," Kyle Chandler, is taking a breather for now after appearing in 2007's "The Kingdom," but no doubt he'll join his colleagues in finding screen time outside of Dillon, Texas. In the meantime, you can count down the days to the series' DirecTV premiere, Oct. 1.   

— Jon Weisman

While it's true that the networks are throwing every questionable reality concept against the wall this summer to see what sticks, TV lovers should not despair. Cable is roaring back with plenty of superb programming and the networks are offering the occasional quality scripted fare to keep us entertained during the hot months.

So there's plenty of small screen delights to tide us over until the granddaddy of all event programming, the Summer Olympics, arrives Aug. 8-24 with hundreds of hours of real-life drama on NBC and its sister networks.

Before you plop down on the couch and glaze over watching the likes of "I Survived a Japanese Game Show" or "Celebrity Circus," set your Tivo for some of these gems:

This viewer's picks:

New series

"Fear Itself" (NBC, Thursdays at 10 p.m., starting June 5) — A repurposed version of Showtime's "Masters of Horror," this anthology series brings the best horror scribes and directors in the biz together for hourlong episodes appropriate for broadcast audiences. (The net promises more chills on the DVD set.) I'm particularly looking forward to the episode titled "Eater," about a rookie cop ("Mad Men's" Elisabeth Moss, right) who spends her first night in the precinct guarding a serial killer.
Brian: I liked the potential of "Masters of Horror" and the pedigree was great, but it was pretty uneven, and I'd worry that "broadcast-friendly" means that storylines get even further diluted to be mass-appeal. Plus, horror film fests like After Dark, and its extensive DVD brand, have stolen some thunder from the TV anthology format. There's plenty of horror out there for fans who want it. How much regular auds will be drawn to it on TV is a big question mark.

"Swingtown" (CBS, Thursdays at 10 p.m., starting June 5) — The pilot for this '70s-era romp about suburban promiscuity and open marriages was promising. I look forward to seeing where they go with it. See Season Pass panelist Cynthia Littleton's take on episode two.
Brian: "Swingtown" felt to me like a promising attempt to bring edgier cable-style material to broadcast TV. But the execution was fairly timid, and selling a show about sexy swingers without much sex doesn't give me much hope. I do love Molly Parker ("Deadwood" has a lot of residual goodwill in my book) and I'll stick around to see how the show develops through episode three.

Returning series:

"Meerkat Manor: The Next Generation" (Animal Planet, Fridays at 9 p.m., starting June 6) — Who knew these odd little critters led such fascinating lives?
Brian: I'm in! "Manor" fans will be keen to see if Flower power still rules, or whether the too-hip promos for the new generation will dilute the charms of the first seasons. Will Stockard Channing prove a better voice for the 'Kats' exploits than Sean Astin?

"My Boys" (TBS, Thursdays at 9:30, starting June 12) — I can't wait to hang out with this tomboy Chicago sports reporter and her posse of beer-swilling, poker-playing dudes for a second season.
Brian: I'm from Chicago, and these stereotypes feel a little clunky, but the girl was cute and thanks to some buzz, I may give this one a shot.

"The Closer" (TNT, Mondays at 9 p.m., staring July 14) — Kyra Sedgwick's tour de force performance as sweet as pie on the outside, tough as nails on the inside Deputy Chief Brenda Johnson elevates this to something above your standard murder of the week procedural. I'm in for season four.
Brian: This and Holly Hunter's show carry some heft in my book thanks to the star pedigree. But it wasn't enough to get me to sample either so far, and isn't likely to in the future. Still feels a little Lifetime-ish to me.

"Mad Men" (AMC, Sundays at 10 p.m., starting July 27) — This sterling period drama is back for its hotly anticipated second season. The cabler is helpfully running a marathon of season one on July 20 as a primer for new viewers or a refresher for returning viewers. The "Carousel" pitch for the Kodak slide projector from the season-one finale titled "The Wheel" may very well have been the finest scene of the last TV season, broadcast or cable. Despite the implausible twist involving Peggy in that same episode, I am enthusiastically, eagerly on board for the further adventures of these dapper 1960s ad men and the complicated women in their lives.
Brian: I've set my DVR for the July 20 marathon. This may be my catch-up show of the year.

Reality that doesn't make us cringe

"So You Think You Can Dance" (Fox, Wednesdays and Thursdays at 8, bowed in May) — The dance competition enters the serious phase of the contest as only the best move on.
Brian: I can't read that without giggling.

"Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List" (Bravo, Thurdays at 9, staring June 12) — Sure she can grate on your nerves, but she's damn funny. (Pictured left)

"Project Runway" (Bravo, July date TBD) — It doesn't get better than this competition reality series where the sometimes overly dramatic contestants reap what they sew. Heidi Klum, Michael Kors, Nina Garcia and Tim Gunn are worth making a weekly date with. This is the last season on Bravo before the show packs its garment bags and moves to Lifetime.
Brian: I've got plenty of friends who remain diehard fans, so I'm sure to see some episodes. But like "America's Next Top Model," it seems like there's always a new season of "Runway" just around the corner, so no single run ever real stands out.

See what else summer has to offer on the next page.

— By Kathy Lyford with Brian Cochrane 

Special thanks to Rick Kissell

"Swingtown" gets points for originality and an ambitious premise.

But it took episode two to convince me of this. The pilot that so many critics have praised left me kinda cold. I didn't buy the storyline that unfolded for the primary character, suburban Chicago homemaker Susan Miller, played by Molly Parker.

During the the bicentennial summer of '76, she's drawn semi-reluctantly into a fast-lane life of bed-hopping and Quaalude-dropping after she and her stock broker husband, Bruce (Jack Davenport), and their two children, teenager Laurie and preteen B.J., move to a swankier part of the suburbs. The new neighbors there are a more stereotypically '70s types: Grant Show's Tom Decker sports a  handlebar mustache and loud-print shirts unbuttoned to his navel; Lana Parrilla is the former flight attendant Trina  (Tom is a successful pilot) who now lives it up in a fancy house and a kid-free "open" marriage.

I found it hard to believe in the pilot that beautiful-but-frumpy Susan, a woman depicted as being torn about moving away from the family's old house and old neighborhood pals, would be so easily and quickly drawn into the unconventional world (and bed) of her sex-addled new neighbors. I think that was mostly pilot-itis and the need to fire up the plot engine for the remaining first batch of episodes.

Without giving anything away, our second visit with the Millers addresses some of my complaints by bring more depth to the storytelling. And it does a much better job of harnessing its period-piece potential in examining the bigger-picture of a moment in recent history when social norms and mores were very much in transition (sound familiar?).

The show does not hinge on the titillating sex (which is more suggested than shown, natch) in the pilot. The characters and setting are a prism for reflecting on how gender roles and stereotypes have changed, or not, during the past 30 years; how women deal with the marriage-kids-career juggling act; how men and women are expected to relate to one another; and how bad parenting, really bad parenting, is painful to watch in any era.

(Pictured above from left, Molly Parker, Jack Davenport, Lana Parrilla and Grant Show)