Has Ugly Betty Lost The Funny?
May 29, 2008 by Tom
Yesterday, TV Guide’s Ausiello gave out his grades to all the season finales in TV land. (By the way, Ausiello is leaving TV Guide! But, he’ll be with Entertainment Weekly, so our spoilers will still be forthcoming).
In his critique of Ugly Betty’s finale (episode 2.18 – Jump), he was pretty harsh. He gave the episode a “C”, and had this to say:
As I feared, ABC is looking at those sagging ratings and fixing what ain’t broken. I’m all for refocusing the show around Betty, but does it have to come at the expense of the funny?
Now, he wasn’t the only one who was disappointed with the finale; I thought it was good, and would have been great had they had more time to develop the stories, but I understand that everyone went into the episode with their own expectations.
But, Ausiello’s grade makes me think that he dislikes the overall post-strike changes made with the show, espcially how they affect the comedy. I must admit that I’ve been compiling a list of the funniest moments of season 2, and most of them happened before the WGA strike.
So, we have to ask, has Ugly Betty lost the funny?
I don’t think so; I think that the show is now a different kind of funny, and everyone has their own taste in comedy. I know that there is a significant group of people who prefer the campy, absolutely fabulous style of funny – I’ll admit, I like it, too. But, there are only so many times that Michael Urie can raise one eyebrow before it stops being funny. The show can’t rely on just that type of funny.
To me, by far, the funniest moment of the post-strike season was the Betty/Daniel seduction scene in episode 2.15, Burning Questions. Certainly it was one of the few times they’ve allowed Eric Mabius to be the funny guy.
One suggestion I would make: make Betty “ugly” again. I know her physical appearance hasn’t changed, but reactions to it have. Now, she’s just another person at Mode. Even strangers first appearing at Mode are no longer taken aback by Betty’s unorthodox (for Mode) appearance. Bow Wow flirting with Betty? I’m sorry, but that just wasn’t right. She already has two (sort-of) hunky guys fighting over her – the show has literally lost its original premise.
Not that you can tell the same joke over and over again, but part of Betty’s charm is that she is quite aware what others think of her looks, and presses on anyway. That’s gone now, because nobody seems to think she looks out of place anymore. Remember the point-of-view cafeteria scene from the pilot? Those add to the comedy, especially when Betty gets her revenge.
Some things will take care of themselves. Having Marc and Amanda back together will help (please, Michael and Becki, deliver those zingers a little slower so we can digest them!). With the romances supposedly wrapped up, the show can get back to situational comedy (think episode 2.04 – Grin and Bear It). If he’s careful, Silvio Horta can inject comedy into Justin’s “journey”, now that puberty has arrived.
Hopefully, guest stars in season 3 will be added for comedic value (think John Cho and David Blue, although the latter mostly played straight man to Micheal Urie – straight man? See? Inadvertent comedy!).
Oh, and Becki Newton needs to sing at least twice a season.
So what do you think? Has Ugly Betty lost the funny? What can the show do to get funnier?
Image:Newscom
Yeah I noticed that!
I mean I have laughed, but just not as much. As much as I love the romance situations with Betty and how much I LOVE her sweet moments with my favorite Nerd, it have seemed that post-strike stuff wasnt as funny, or its a diferent kind of comedy. Maybe because Silvio did say that some things had to be cut, that means some of the punchlines also, to make room for the plot.
I was SOOO glad that Marc and Mandy are back together! As much as I loved Marc with some of his one-liners and Amanda also, its not as funny as them back together.
I also agree that we need some more Cliff and Kenny. They just added to the funny! Maybe even nick Pepper also!
Actually, one of the things that I enjoyed the most was some things that reminded me of some moments in season 1 like in See Me ICU when Betty and Henry were stuck in Bradford’s office.
One of the things I wished the most was that they would keep some of the characteristics we saw in season 1 would be in season 2. It just was part of their natural funniness.
Overall I did think Season 2 post-strike was funny, but just not as much as pre-strike. Lets hope Season 3 (uninterrupted of course) will bring the funny!
I think ur right. Did u see this?
Victoria Beckham is reportedly set to return to U.S. TV show Ugly Betty after her successful cameo role last year.
The Spice Girl appeared in the show playing herself as a bridesmaid to Vanessa Williams’ catty fashion boss character, Wilhelmina Slater.
Impressed TV bosses asked Beckham to return and the star has now reportedly agreed to a regular guest spot on the programme.
A source tells Australian newspaper the Sydney Morning Herald, “The producers are delighted she will return. She is going to feature quite a bit.”
The show is becoming famous for its celebrity cameos, with supermodel Naomi Campbell and Lindsay Lohan both appearing in the latest series of the hit comedy.
agreed… for the most part. they have lost a lot of the funny, but i think it’s a combination of the ‘refocusing’ and also losing the producers that were fired after the strike.
it’d be great to have kenny and cliff back, but the real question is, will they be back in a good way? or will the ‘refocusing’ sacrifice them as well?
I also agree. Post-strike episodes have been fine, but not SO fine. The refocusing has sacrifised too much. I just hope season three can do a right mix between the things of season 1 that made Ugly Betty so good (the funny part, the role of Betty as a fish out water, and so on) and the good things of season 2 – the focus on ALL characters, and the new characters like Cliff or Kenny.
I agree completely. Everyone has their own perception of what is funny, and what is not so much. I did love the Betty/Daniel seduction bit in Burning Questions. As to making Betty “ugly” *again*, I have to agree and disagree. In Mode, she has made a name for herself, and has seemed to find even more confidence that I think makes people notice her. The Bow Wow thing was a little far-fetched, but Betty just has a natural beauty to her that people are finally realizing.
As for Kenny, I would love to see him back (even though he is Henry’s pal in Accounting and well, not everyone is so keen on Henry *for the time being* or well as much as they used to be. John Cho was great in this role, and I loved his interaction with everyone, especially Betty.
I would like Nick Pepper to come back, because well he did make out with Amanda, and leave her out to dry. And the actor, Max (something).. *sorry* is currently on Greek (ABC family).
For anyone who is interested in Cliff coming back for season 3, I saw this article a couple weeks ago..
“On Cliff, Marc’s boyfriend (who is played by David Blue): The character will be back next season. The writers have been looking for an opportunity to bring him back and put in him in a story that will have him interacting with Betty and the show’s main cast. The writers don’t want to put him into a “satellite story” that only involves Marc.”
http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/entertainment_tv/2008/05/ugly-betty-gets.html
But, all in all, Betty’s appearance, character, and life, are/have going through major changes, and we can only hope they are for the best.
Kenny and Cliff would be great to have back! And ya know who else I want? Dr. Farkas. Sure, he probably has nothing to do with the plot…. but Jesse Tyler Fergueson made him like my fave guest character of season 1 (except for Henry)! But we definitely need more plot lines that involve more than 1 or 2 people… like the paintball war! That allowed us to have our fill of Alexis, Daniel, Kenny, Nick Pepper, AND Amanda, all in one plotline!
Omgoodness I didn’t want to admit it, but… yeah! It just seems as though things are little fake. I realize it’s acting, it’s supposed to be fake. … It’s just getting a little too fake… a little too out there.. you know? I still love it!! It’s the only show I watch where people are NOT allowed to bug me haha. :]
Its a different kind of funny, I think. Seems like the post-strike episodes have been more of a serious nature, concerning *really* big events that need to happen in order to advance the plot (like Willie getting EIC for instance). The comedy is still there, but its not as light-hearted, to me. I imagine they’ll get back to it once we get some of these issues ‘out of the way’ concerning who/what Betty chose and where/how Daniel fits in.
I agree with all of you. It needs to be light and funny. I think it would be great if Madonna answers Betty’s video in some way. And like she gets a t-shirt with Madonna’s face on it or something corney like that. And I loved when Hilda did Betty’s hair up and all the guys on the street were looking at her LOL. Now I call that funny!!
I also agree that Amanda should sing more. Love that! And now that Amanda and Marc are back together again at Mode, they need to pull some new stunts on Betty.
Daniel needs to get back to how he was in S1. Needs to have a few more flings where Betty will step in and help him out…
oh I have many ideas
I dunno, I’ve actually been enjoying most of the post-strike episodes. 24 Candles didn’t impress me so much, but I felt like they got better from there. I agree they’ve lost some of the funny in favor of more serious plotlines, but my guess is they had a *lot* of plot to get through before the season finale and some of the funny-but-not-essential moments had to go. But I also think pre-strike season 2 was getting way too campy and they were trying to tone it down.
Here’s hoping season 3 hits back on that winning mix they had in season 1, where they gave us gut-wrenching drama right alongside the side-splitting comedy. *fingers crossed*
Although I disagree about “making Betty ugly again.” I think the whole point is that she’s growing to the point that the people at MODE can overlook her oddities. And even visitors to the magazine have probably heard of Betty already and wouldn’t receive the same shock they would have when she was first hired.
And I actually think it’s great that Betty has her pick of guys while her dashing boss just can’t catch a break in the relationship department. That says a lot. Her inner beauty is shining through and people are responding to that.
I agree that comedy has been in short supply since the strike break. I’m concerned with the refocusing of the show, but one post-strike change I really like. Have you noticed the increase in Betty-Marc-Amanda scenes? I love when those three team up. Surprisingly, aside from “Fey’s Sleigh Ride,” there are only a handful of scenes centered on those three throughout the first two seasons. That’s one change I’m very happy with.
I don’t think Ugly Betty has lost the fun AT ALL! I love ugly betty and I hope it never ends!