this week: Life Unexpected

Life Unexpected premiered this Monday night on the CW. Promoted as "Juno-meets-Gilmore Girls", there was good potential for this being something I'll love. Well.... let's just say, not yet, but here's my first impression.

The cast is very attractive. Almost too attractive. It was hard for me to forget I was watching a TV show and just fall for the story. (Jack from Dawson's Creek didn't help.) Britt Robertson, who plays the almost-16 year old Lux is watchable, but she's no Rory Gilmore. She didn't express much of a personality - just a desire to be independent from crappy foster care - but who wouldn't want that?

So in episode 1 Lux decides she wants emancipation, and seeks out signatures from her birth parents (whom she finds fairly easily). After she finds them, there's a court scene, and of course her parents (who are suddenly emotionally invested) show up to see how her case goes. The judge figures out who they are and (not-so-surprisingly) grants them custody. Lux walks out of the court house saying, "Well that was the opposite of emancipation." Ha. Cute. Unfortunately, the only witty thing about her birth parents, however, are their names: Cate & Nate.

In general, the writers were all over the place trying to craft these 2 not-so-parental parents - showing each of their personal lives, as well as scenes of the 2 together, where they were accused of being selfish, immature, and uninspired. But they're not complete losers. Nate owns a bar. Cate is a radio DJ. And despite not seeing each other since high school (I'm assuming 15 or so years ago), their still-present sexual tension was a major focus. By the end of the episode the 2 had jumped back into bed together, momentarily forgetting about each of their current relationships. That felt very rushed. I would have liked the sexual-tension to have been drawn out over at least a couple episodes because now I'm left really unsure about what could happen next.

The show takes place in Portland which automatically promises scarves, knit hats, and coats, just as east coast based Gilmore Girls did. However, the surroundings we've seen thus far are in Life Unexpected are lacking the personality and/or charm of other CW show locations. The town of Stars Hollow in GG was a character in itself, and I think it's odd that they chose not to create a fictional place which would leave room for not-so-believable scenarios, such as the the one that the characters of LU are living out. However, I suppose if they'd taken the small town approach to this story, Lux would never have been given up for adoption, and we wouldn't have a city-life / career woman approach to the "knocked up teen" scenario. We'll see how it goes next week! Maybe there is a lot more to be developed.