Shondaland’s Still Star-Crossed‘s Monday run is over after three low-rated outings.
Starting this coming week, the Romeo & Juliet sequel no longer will air in its assigned Monday time slot. After a break, the ABC series will continue its freshman run on July 8, airing on Saturdays.
I'm sad. But it was bad. Wasn't it?
The casting was off. The female star didn't look right with the black guy or the white guy. Something about the men chosen to play her love interests were just wrong -- the black guy and the white guy were both cute but too small in some way. I never could quite put my finger on it.
Starting the series in summer on Mondays was dumb. Not having it follow something like Grey's Anatomy (which already has a following) was dumber still.
But maybe it was just bad?
I love Shonda
I love Shakespeare
I love Romeo and Juliette
And I still forgot the third episode had come and gone for a week.
So, maybe it was just bad.
Can't win them all. Not even Shonda.
Something about the colorblind casting just didn't work. I've seen it work before...I think. But this was done too widely. I mean, this is supposed to be a story about two families. And with a period piece you're already working to understand the language, the times, and the customs. And then you add not being able to figure out who is related to who when there are only two families? Really?
I mean, even when there are all white folks there's some sort of an attempt to do some physical matching with hair or something -- isn't there?
Maybe not. But I don't remember being this confused in a story about who is related to who before.
Or maybe it's just that we started in the middle of Romeo and Juliette when there were dozens of characters "already on the stage," all being introduced at once.
Or maybe if you don't have skin colors match when two families are at war, you should have all the men of one family be in one color uniform then have all the men of the other family be in another uniform -- so you know which set of people you're watching.
I knew all the players because I know the play, and my confusion STILL didn't wane until the second episode --where nothing had really happened.
Maybe STILL STAR-CROSSED will save itself in the Saturday time slot? Maybe something will happen that makes the character's interesting.
But maybe it was just bad. Three episodes in and the characters are all saying the same things in the third episode that they were in the first.
Even so, ABC seems to have given this show the short shrift. A Jimmy Kimmel special or re-run replaced STILL STAR-CROSSED in the third week.
So ABC decided the show was a failure by episode two and killed what little momentum it might have had?
Was it that bad? Was it bad enough to put a Steve Harvey game show on instead of the fourth episode? Is FAMILY FEUD really going to get more ratings if you switch it out last minute? Really?
That seems like a slap in the face.Or maybe they extended Shonda all the grace they could. I mean, I don't think THE CATCH is that great. I think it got a time slot where the other shows are carrying it.
And I think some black folks, like myself, love HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER because so many people of color are in it --even the black extras, black minor characters, and famous black guest stars. But the ratings aren't so great that it seems safe. Viola Davis winning acting awards helps keep it on the air, I'm sure.
In any case, I'm sad STILL STAR-CROSSED is dying on the vine. I really am -- and in less than a month. I really wish it had been given a chance during the fall when people are gearing up to watch new shows...instead of putting it on in a place where it was almost guaranteed to fail unless it was awesome.
And STILL STAR-CROSSED definitely wasn't awesome.
However, I am going to try to give it some love on Saturday's hoping it manages to pull itself out the hole it's in. I'll be DVR-ing it at the very least.
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