I still find it surprising that I got so into Make It or Break It in its premiere half-season. Not necessarily because I’d categorize the show as being made for a younger — and less male — demographic, but rather because of the copious amounts of teen drama that are guaranteed to play out in its life. It’s why I’ve never so much as glanced at anything on The CW these days.
And yet I find myself eagerly anticipating Make It or Break It’s return this coming Monday night. Which means that I find everything else that the show has to offer far more interesting than I find the teen drama irritating. And part two of season one picks up at a rather precarious point in time, with a new national champion crowned and the old #1 in the gym out of gymnastics for good. I got a chance to preview the first two episodes of the coming installment. Shall we dive right in? WARNING: Spoilers to follow.
First of all, I wanted to share some of the information I gleaned from a Josie Loren(Kaylie) interview with you, which I had held back on before because she, unlike Candace Cameron Bure, really provided solid information on the coming episodes. Josie briefly discussed how the show will spend a lot of time focusing on her role as national champion. MJ (Marsha Thomason) returns as Kaylie’s manager, after Kaylie dumped dad Alex (Jason Manuel Olazabal) from the position, but it’s clear that no one did a good job of preparing Kaylie for what lies ahead (that’s my own opinion based on what I’ve watched so far). And I really hope that this role played no part in Thomason leaving White Collar, because if it did … bad call.
Kaylie will exhibit a lot of guilt over Payson’s (Ayla Kell) injury, with Kaylie feeling that she’s now in possession of something that is rightfully Payson’s. That, of course, won’t be helped at all by the fact that Payson’s carrying around a lot of anger of her own. Yet Loren says that Payson will still be an active member of the Rock, in addition to leading a new life of her own outside of the gym, one that her friends become eager participants in.
Finally, Kaylie will forgive Lauren (Cassie Scerbo) for sleeping with Carter (Zachary Abel), but she won’t forget. And apparently the experience won’t mellow Lauren at all, who has another major deception coming somewhere down the road. The most confusing thing Loren shared was that Kaylie had shed Carter from her life, yet will focus a lot on him. As she explains it, Carter was Kaylie’s first love, and that sounds as if it may end up outweighing his deceit. I guess when you don’t get to meet people outside the gym, you can only afford to be so judgmental.
All very super dramatic, but nothing particularly surprising considering the first ten episodes of the show, or where things were left in the mid-season finale. But the first two episodes back do surprise in how focused they are on teen drama and immature nonsense. With the Rock set as the training gym for the national team, the committee selects Marty (Erik Palladino) to come in and train the girls, leading to uncomfortable situations with Sasha (Neil Jackson) and scheming by the girls to oust Marty. Will Kaylie reveal that her mother had an affair with him? Will Lauren reveal how her father was blackmailing him?
It is an opportunity to introduce some new characters, but bringing Kelly Parker (Nicole Gale Anderson) back into the mix does no one any favors. Especially since, while she actually respected Payson, she certainly doesn’t feel the same for Kaylie. It’s all very junior high.
The most interesting plot belongs to Payson, whose struggles with her new reality are going to be a strength of the show’s going forward. Her frustration at where her life has arrived, as well as her delusional aspirations for the future, are going to be a powerful engine driving the series. But her own feelings toward Kaylie, as well as the eggshells everyone at the gym is walking on around her, get old quickly. It may be real, but that doesn’t mean it’s good TV.
Emily (Chelsea Hobbs) has quickly been relegated to “B” stories, and this time around will be no different than last — the only story of hers worth telling revolves around her love life. And with Razor (Nico Tortorella, now free after his new series got cancelled) back in the picture, this one promises to disappoint mightily.
The Lauren/Carter/Kaylie triangle seems destined for more, as Lauren continues to stick her nose in where it doesn’t belong. And a twist comes when Lauren finds herself in a position to blackmail a new source of potential drama. We’ve yet to see her dad, but Summer (Bure) is working at the Rock as promised. So far she feels very forced into the script.
I do still see the strengths that made this show so enjoyable a few months ago, and I look forward to watching how many of these plots unfold. But Make It or Break It spent some time on the bubble after their first outing, and I worry that the writers may have skewed the show for a younger audience in an attempt to bolster their ratings. Better to focus on one demographic that you most connect with, I suppose, but it would suck for the rest of us who tune in for other reasons. No judgment call on anything yet, but I’m definitely very aware of where things are right now. And I figure you’re better served being prepared.
Make It or Break It returns this Monday night, January 4, at 9PM. The Rock is back.
Clacked by Aryeh S.
on Jan 01, 2010 @ 11:00 EST5EDT
I’m a bit envious that you’ve watched ahead already. With only the first episode to judge, I’m satisfied with the few changes to the show thus far. I actually prefer Emily being merely part of the ensemble, rather than the hero, even if that means less screentime for her brother. I don’t find Summer to be more forced than any of the other parental figures, personally.
*POST AUTHOR*
I think I prefer Emily this way too, but still, what a step down.
Get back to me on Summer next week. ;)
I totally agree with your opinion that Summer now seems forced into the script. Why is she more qualified to run the Rock than any of the actual parents? Also, perhaps it’s because I’m slightly closer in age to the parents than to the kids, but I miss the parents having their own storylines (and lives). The season premiere definitely left something to be desired for me.
It’s not that Summer’s more qualified, but she doesn’t seem any less qualified than most of the parents we’ve seen. The manager job seems to be networking and fundraising as much as actual administration, so I think that she could do as least as well as Kim did.
I agree with you that I would much rather watch substantive storylines about the parents than be overloaded with more high school drama. However, the season premiere was top-loaded with Payson’s fall and Kaylie’s rise, and there wasn’t much time to deal with the secondary characters in that one episode.
It just seems like one of the parents should have been asked first, instead of an ex-girlfriend that hasn’t spent that much time around the kids. Ah, no biggie. I understand they needed an excuse to keep her around.
*POST AUTHOR*
Ryan – Sarah’s point is exactly right, though. While Summer may not be less qualified than the parents to run the gym, there’s no reason Sasha would have asked her in the first place. It’s that disconnect, because as Sarah says above they needed a reason to keep Summer around, that makes it smell so fishy, and makes Summer feel so forced. Had they built a little foundation before (a friendship with Sasha, management experience, gymnastics as a kid), then maybe I’d say okay, even as I knew it was for ulterior motives. I like Summer, and I’m just hoping she doesn’t end up feeling like she doesn’t belong.
It’s been a while, but my impression was that one of the reasons Sasha asked Kim to do the job in the first place was that she was interested in the kids and had the time (I don’t remember if the position is paid or not). He didn’t know her for very long either, but felt it would be a good fit. It could simply be that Summer is the most convenient fit right now, and she has the emotional commitment and the time. She is also an actual, responsible adult without severe issues. Payson’s parents can’t be spared, Steve’s a lawyer, Kaylie’s parents are rich and busy, and no one would want to depend on Chloe to be responsible for everything. That just leaves the anonymous parents of the other gymnasts, but I feel introducing and building a completely new character who would be better suited for the position would be even more of a stretch than Summer, or Kim in the first place, just stepping up.
*POST AUTHOR*
Your thought-process is completely right, but you overlook one key thing: Summer has no connection to anyone in the gym. She was engaged to Lauren’s dad, but no longer is. For that disconnect alone she seems like a forced choice. I’m glad she’s still around, but a little foundation would have been appreciated, that’s all.
Summer’s connection to Steve has been severed, but it’s only her relationship with Lauren that matters in this case. That was their storyline in last season’s finale, that Summer still cared for this girl and showed up to support her at Nationals even after she called off the engagement.
She has no connection to Lauren legally, but I doubt that matters to Sasha as much as her commitment to the girl, and the other gymnasts by extension.
I could take or leave the character personally, but they’ve laid the groundwork for this development. I’ll see if I feel differently in the next few episodes, as you’ve said.
*POST AUTHOR*
I definitely see it differently already, but let’s see what happens as the show moves forward.
I think this is a way to make Summer have a bigger role in the show, which I like. I love Candace Cameron Bure, so it is exciting that we will be seeing more of her. I loved the first episode and can’t wait for next week now!