TV GUIDE: "Speaking of stars, you'll love his cast. Just don't fall in love with them. Explaining how the big ensemble will vary from race to race, season to season, Minear says, ''You will find out that some people were working for the [mysterious] race [organizers]. Some people will die if they don't behave. Some people will lose, some people will win, and new people can be added at any time' ."

That's our Tim - threatening death, even before it officially airs.

(People - remember not to tell him anything about your favourite characters - or they'll be for the chop.)

:>

Variety was (typically) a bit snotty; the Reporter review was pretty favourable and a more interesting article, to boot.

From his timminear.net website:
"I happen to think a lovely, well planned massacre is delightful compromise."
"I hold the power of life and death and, yes, leather pants. I am drunk with it."
"Ya'll just keep tellin' me who to kill. Just keep talkin..."

QuoterGal | April 13, 12:58 CET

My column ran yesterday: http://blogs.news-journalonline.com/247/2007/04/fox_is_driveing_me_crazy.html

C. A. Bridges | April 13, 15:18 CET

It was nothing compared to this character assassination review.

Simon | April 13, 15:42 CET

The newspaper reviews are coming in thick and fast. They're mixed. The last one I saw said "If the show isn't canceled while it's in the middle of being aired, well, then, hopefully in a future episode everyone in the race will die". I'm not sure if they liked it. One reviewer praises Fillion’s worried husband, whom I'm presuming is Samuel L. Jackson.

gossi | April 13, 15:55 CET

Hrmm... currently it's getting a 57 on Metacritic (mixed or average reviews, with 6 total). It seems like a lot of critics are hedging their bets because it IS an outlandish premise and Tim has a, shall we say, spotty track record as far as shows lasting.

(Really, reading the reviews, it often sounds like the critics are worried about becoming too attached to a doomed show, a feeling to which we can all relate.)

Septimus | April 13, 16:30 CET

Yes, a lot of the critics are reviewing FOX and Tim's track record, rather than the actual show, which is a shame in my book. As I can imagine a review starting out 'This will get cancelled after 4 episodes' will just put people off.

gossi | April 13, 16:40 CET

In case anyone missed it, CTV in Canada will be airing the two hour premiere of Drive at 8pm tonight, not Sunday. This news took me by surprise -- I happened to see it in the paper this morning, but I don't believe it was listed in the TV Guide for this week. CTV has a bad habit of changing their schedule without announcing it (I missed Nip/Tuck two weeks ago because of it *grumble grumble*), and I have seen no ads for Drive at all. Until this morning, I wasn't even aware that they would be airing it.

I wasn't sure it was worth posting a separate story here to point this out, but I hope my fellow Canadians will realize it's on and tune in! Gotta support the team and all. :)

spidermansays | April 13, 17:19 CET

Thanks spidermansays
I would have been really ticked off if I missed it...

redfern | April 13, 17:28 CET

Nice interviews, especially the iF one. Reviews... well, there's nothing like getting to say, "HA! Told ya so!" after something comes out well! :-D

OzLady | April 13, 19:44 CET

Just noticed the CTV news in my paper this morning- I have looked on website after website to find which Canadian channel would pick it up, including their site, and never found anything. Though I can't find anything in the TV guide regarding where the Monday episode will be.....*sigh* might have to resort to actually watching on Fox.

Now the real dilemma: Drive, or Canucks? :S

Trek_Girl42 | April 13, 20:48 CET

You're welcome, redfern! Glad I could help you out!

Knowing them, CTV will probably announce an 8:00pm Monday airtime for the Monday episode on Monday at 8:03pm. ;)

spidermansays | April 13, 21:03 CET

I checked the listings at zap2it. It shows 2 hours tonight at 8:00 for CTV. Starting Line at 8 and Partners at 9.

redfern | April 13, 22:40 CET

Man, that's a damn fact:

"For the last few years, Minear has been involved in a financially lucrative but sado-masochistic relationship with Fox, producing these shows, then handing them off to the network, where they'll suffer a quick, ignoble death in an out-of-the-way timeslot."

However, they do make some good points, and they liked Nathan -- although I wasn't sure what to do with Nathan being "shockingly tall for a TV star." (I think that's a new nickname-in-the making for "Captain Tightpants.")

The main thrust of the article, though, was that Tim and Fox together kill TV shows, which is not particularly helpful at this particular moment.

And I'm not sure why, if they think that this show "has a nice mix of thrills, comedy and pathos..." they gotta say "will the detours be interesting enough to keep this from feeling like a trip to nowhere?"

This review appeared in the New Jersey Star Ledger - without being overly snotty about New Jersey, I would just like to say that this is the newspaper which, when my brother-in-law passed away and we submitted his obituary, refused to accept that among the survivors was myself, "living in sin" with my partner for 14 years and retaining my own last name. Despite our representations to the contrary, they changed "life partner" to read "wife" and altered my last name to that of my partner's.

Of course, this is totally irrelevant, but they're just that classy!!

QuoterGal | April 13, 23:17 CET

Actually, the guy that writes for the Star Ledger is a very good reviewer. On the subject of "Drive", though, I find that he too makes the same mistake most of the critics have committed. He cares more about the future than what is available right here and now.

dark_tyler | April 14, 00:22 CET

Well, the metacritic score is now down to 52, with the notable addition of a NY Times review that accuses the show of being a thinly veiled car commercial.

[ edited by Septimus on 2007-04-14 21:47 ]

Septimus | April 15, 00:26 CET