NBC
One reality of being a TV critic is that you have to be a generalist; you may know a lot about a lot of TV shows, but you will never know as much about any particular TV show as its biggest fans do. There’s simply so much TV that—unlike, say, a movie critic, who can reasonably watch every major release a year—you have to take it in selectively. So there are always going to be TV series that are off my radar, that I don’t have time for or that, for some reason of personality, I’m just not quite capable of “getting.” (Many USA shows fall into this category for me, for instance.) Thus this new feature: Explain It To Me, in which I call on you, the residents of Tuned Inland, to explain why a particular off-my-radar show hits your sweet spot.
In this installment: The Voice.
I watched some of the early installment’s of NBC’s singing competition, but I soon dropped it from the rotation; it began during the regular season, I was already doing weekly American Idol reviews, and there was only so much reality-TV singing I was going to work into my week. I don’t dislike the show as it’s turned out, but to me it’s a little dull and a little redundant, regardless of the talent of the contestants or the coolness of Cee-Lo. And the differences from Idol—the “teams” and mentoring process—feel like a distraction for the sake of distinguishing the show. (The show’s title and hook aside–and notwithstanding its giving a second chance to Frenchie Davis, above–I’m not convinced it’s any more “just about the music” than Idol is.)
But in the spirit of Explain It To Me, I must admit: maybe it’s just me! The show has been NBC’s biggest new hit in a long time. And it’s possible that a lot of those fans are following The Voice for the same reason I don’t: because it’s basically a couple extra hours a week of American Idol.
Those aren’t the people I want to hear from most, though: I’m curious to hear from people who watch the show because it’s different from Idol, and who like it better. Is it the format? The singers? The attitude of the judges (who seem even kinder and gentler than the new Idol panel)? You’re the critic: Explain It To Me.