DeathWatch Watch

DeathWatch Watch

CBS Bets on a Bad Guy

September 25, 2006

Page 1 | Page 2

Liotta (a fine actor of Goodfellas fame) heads a star-filled cast, some of whom join him in jumping over from the big screen to television. Virginia Madsen (Sideways) plays his wife, the optimistically named Hope. She has the thankless role of playing a woman so clueless that she has absolutely no idea what her husband of many years really does for a living.

The correct term for Smith is “antihero.” But network television is too pretty a world to wrap a show around an unrepentant career criminal (you have to go to HBO to see that).

While telling a story from the standpoint of the bad guys is different, the show misses out by not making Liotta’s character pure evil. Liotta is perfect as the guy smiling at you one moment and beating you senseless the next. Not allowing him to be that guy is criminal.

Comments

Sam wrote:

Smith, "out of shape"? You're crazy. I liked this show a lot. The pilot episode was very reminiscent of something Michael Mann might have produced. I wasn't overly crazy about Liotta, but Simon Baker and Amy Smart were very good in their respective parts. And Virginia Madsen...she just oozes sexuality! Despite what the critics and self-appointed experts are saying, "Smith" is one of the best shows of the new season thus far.

Barbara wrote:

Smith is a GREAT show. It is completely different from anything else on the air. It is perfect for those who are tired of having to endure the endless amount of shows that have been cloned from others and it is also for those who want quality as well as entertainment in the tv shows they watch.

stysonss wrote:

Very "out of shape" indeed. Are these the criminals with the hearts of gold? Pure bad guys? Evil mobsters but with nice kids? This show seems stuck between "We're hardcore, like The Sopranos, we swear!" and "We're also the network that brought you Touched By An Angel; we're the holy ones!" Not impressed. I ended up watching some of the middle bits on fast forward, and by the end I was bored stiff.

Rich Dula wrote:

My wife and I watched the premiere episode, and we did like the premise of the show. But we did have questions about how long this show may last. At the end of the episode, Smith told Charlie "three or four more jobs, and I'm done." The big unknown is whether we will be watching three or four more heists (and the planning for them) spread out over the course of the season, or if they pull off those heists in the next three or four episodes, and then Charlie blackmails Smith into committing more heists for the rest of the season. Only time will tell, but we'll keep watching.

Dennis Callahan wrote:

Absolutely not "out of shape", but I'm not sure if it will last. I find it refreshing for TV. It's like watching a movie -- it's filling. Finishing watching Studio 60 last night I thought... "fun, but I spent an hour dropping in on peoples' fast moving (and fast walking) conversations. This show has so much more. But as in the case of the 90's classic "Wiseguy", it may not make it. I also agree with the above poster, Simon Baker may save this thing.

Greg wrote:

Anyone remember NBC's Heist? Can anyone tell me the difference between the two shows (other than Smith's better cast)? And where is that show now...?

Aurlie wrote:

Eager to taste the new flavours of the season, I watched Men in Trees, Psych, and Smith this week- but I'll only watch Smith next week. It's got plot and character complexity - I'm in for the fast ride. Hopefully it won't end too soon, and hopefully, the writers have long-range plans for this - nothin' worse than a show with great opening episodes but no follow through.

slevin wrote:

I really enjoyed this show alot,Smith was something different that i have seen after a longtime on tv.the creators tackled it was kinda like the Ocean's 11 & 12.it shouldn't be compared toHiest

the only downside ,its a little slow paced which makes it boring sometimes , they should make it fast & action packed as 24.

Side Note :

it was really nice to hear a Bollywood ( u know wat bollywood means?} movie song used in one of scenes ,they used it as background score during the jail scene where one of the character is being released and when he walks out of the gate.

Ron Yardley wrote:

Two really tremendous actors in Liotta and Madsen so I really hope this makes it. At first, I had trouble accepting his anti-hero on broadcast TV -- I'm used to it with HBO (Sopranos) and Showtime (Brotherhood), two excellent series, but mainstream TV? The questions are: can the network continue to flesh out the character without backing down; and will the audience stick with a "bad" lead character in order to appreciate really fine acting?

The No wrote:

CBS is crazy for canceling Smith. That was one of the best shows they had this season. I hope they move it to syndication, because canceling it is a very bad idea.

Iron Lung wrote:

I really wanted to like this show. Big Liotta fan and it's always nice to see Virginia Madsen. But despite how much I was looking forward to the premeire, I just couldn't get into it. The characters were decent, but the pacing was terrible and it just didn't have "it" for me. Episodes two and three were languishing on my TiVo until I decided there were too many other shows I was actually getting into and killed the season pass, barely beating CBS to the punch.

dkm wrote:

I agree, I did like the show a lot, very well balanced. I just hope they'll end up not cancelling it, that would be a pity.
First Heist is cancelled, then Smith, don't they like robbery stuff ? Is it too controversial for them ?

Danielle wrote:

I am beyond upset atthe canceling of this show. I feel cheated because I invested three hours of my life watching CBS (a network I usually avoid like the plague-- it just seems subpar to its' competitors) and they are not even willing to give their own show a fair shot. I seriously hope they have enough backlash to reconsider (and maybe this time actually try advertising).

Curt wrote:

I am so upset that Smith was cancelled. CBS has made a big mistake. They should at least run the rest of the episodes for those of us that watched it. Does 8.4 million viewers not count? Ridiculous!! C'mon CBS, bring it back, throw it in another time slot, just whatever it takes, it was something fresh.

smithfan wrote:

If you are upset that CBS cancelled Smith, consider filing a complaint.

With enough viewer complaints, CBS may reconsider its cancelling of the marvelous fast-paced Smith with its excellent cast including Ray Liotta, Virginia Madsen, Simon Baker and Amy Smart and the show's superb writing.

Blame it on CBS's bad marketing, its only giving the show three episodes of airtime, and CBS's lack of promoting online viewing of earlier episodes of Smith for those who needed to catch up.

CBS could have given a better re-cap at the beginning of episodes for new viewers just tuning in. It could have re-run the episodes during off-hours, much like Bravo does, to allow viewers to catch up.

To complain, call CBS viewer relations at any time day or night to leave a message, or, to reach a live person, call during the hours of 10 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. - 3:30 p.m. EST - telephone CBS viewer relations at 212-975-3247.

You may also email audsvcs@cbs.com (short for audience services).

You may also go to CBS's feedback form online to submit your complaint at http://www.cbs.com/info/user_services/fb_global_form.shtml Smith is still listed in the shows on that feedback form.

You may also sign this online petition to CBS to bring back Smith. http://www.petitiononline.com/cbssmith/petition.html

Monica wrote:

Smith was a good show. I only was able to see 2 episodes. there are worse shows on the air. Ray Liotta is one of my favorite actors. What are you thinking?

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