Bad single mom pilots: NBC’s The New Normal and FOX’s Ben & Kate

by An Nicholson

What do 'The New Normal' and 'Ben & Kate' have in common? They both feature, blonde, waif-like, single teenage mother leads with too-smart-for-their-age daughters who form saccharine sweet non-traditional families. What else do they feature? Uneven messes as plot lines.

The New Normal

Like Ben and Kate, The New Normal suffers from a split focus difficulty. The New Normal surrounds blonde, waif-like waitress, and former teen mom, Goldie (Georgia King), who after discovering her cheating lover, offers her uterus as a surrogate to perfect couple Bryan (Andrew Rannells) and David (Justin Bartha). Like Ben and Kate’s Dakota Johnson, Georgia King rocks the innocent waif-like waitress character magnificently. Like Ben and Kate’s Ben, The New Normal features over-the-top one-note characters, Rocky, David’s assistant (NeNe Leaks) and Goldie’s Nana, Jane (Ellen Barkin). Like Ben and Kate’s Maddie, the New Normal features a too-smart-for-her age female child, Shania (Bebe Wood), rocking an Abigail Breslin costume. Like Ben and Kate, the show has too many focal points: the love between Bryan and David; the noisy, aimless, one-note shouting of Rocky and Jane; the disintegrating life Goldie abandons; and the instant family Bryan, David, Goldie and Shania form.

Considering the behemoth Glee has become, I was hesitant about The New Normal, Ryan Murphy’s new brainchild. However, my uncertainty didn’t prevent me from enjoying The New Normal; the show’s uneven pacing did that on its own. In The New Normal everything happens too quickly. Goldie’s decision to become a surrogate mother, her live-in situation with David and Bryan, and their perfect family bonding all happen off stage. I feel this show required an hour, as opposed to a half hour, to fully handle each plot line. Just focusing on David and Bryan would’ve taken up twenty-two minutes, but bringing in Goldie’s messy life, her mother Jane’s aimless racism, and Rocky’s unnecessary noisiness further splintered the focus.

And, yes, you can see the worst of Glee in The New Normal. Ellen Barkin plays Sue Sylvester’s most racist tendencies to the extreme. And, NeNe Leaks portrays her swim coach character, Roz Washington, in heels. While Glee’s Roz-Sue face-offs provided legendary snapbacks, The New Normal’s Rocky and Jane face-off is just insulting, aimless noise. Like Ben and Kate, The New Normal can do better. Like Ben and Kate, The New Normal has a talented cast which the writing misuses. Just as Ben and Kate reminded me of Raising Hope, The New Normal reminded of Modern Family … just not as funny or smart. The writing needs to stop playing up the chipper, oh-look-how-funny-that-is, one-dimensional acting. Any show featuring Ellen Barkin has already won part of the game. Justin Bartha, Andrew Rannells and Bebe Wood also do excellent jobs. But, The New Normal felt like a reality TV show where the production staff believes all we need are over the top characters and outrageous scenarios to make us tune in.