True faith

The more "Studio 60" mentions the sketch "Crazy Christians," the more credibility it loses with me. That sketch sounds absolutely like the kind of bad TV they're supposedly avoiding. It's also very odd that it exists in a parallel universe where a show exactly like "Saturday Night Live" in every way exists alongside SNL, and is every bit as revered and long-running but no one seems to notice that they're exactly the same.

As Michael Grady pointed out to me today, the main problem with this show is that the comedy bits they show have to be funny - to make Matthew Perry and Bradley Whitford taking over (the whole premise of the show, mind you) worthwhile. And Aaron Sorkin, for all of his talents, just isn't that funny - as seen in the Gilbert and Sullivan bit.

The rest was pretty good, although Steven Weber has to feel bad that he looks so much worse than Tim Daly at this point (even though Daly is five years his "senior," as we say. And Daly is undeniably a hunk, right?).

On the side-by-side comparison, you gotta just feel bad for the guy:

Could I BE any more running a late night sketch comedy show?

"Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip," for me, succeeded in a lot of the "The West Wing" never did. Mainly because I don't really care about politics yet really like TV (which is why I liked "Sports Night" more - although it only being a half hour might have had something to do with it), so I was able to be a lot more interested (I didn't fall asleep once, a new record for a Sorkin show, I think). Plus, you know, Chandler.

You knew Judd Hirsch (I still call him "Dear John") was toast as soon as he showed up, what with still being Papa "Numb3rs" and all. It's funny that in the very first scene of an Aaron Sorkin Drama (TM) he has a character deliver the exact kind of self-indulgent monologue that he's been mocked for.

Overall, good stuff, even if Bradley Whitford seems terribly miscast as a hip, edgy comedy genius/recovering drug addict. I'm not totally sold on how interesting it'll be to watch on a week-to-week basis, as the first episode plays out like the first 42 minutes of a movie.