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The "new" Practice....... a first?
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Posted by: Family

Have the cast changes saved this show and improved it tremedously or what? I never remember a former hit show receiving such a makeover and having it work. Other shows like Mash/Cheers replaced characters with better ones.... one by one.... but I never remember wholesale changes that worked so well. I was skeptical when they did this, but it's a success.

Has this ever happened before?

Posted by: dthmj

Well I'm not so sure it's such a success. The jury is still out for me. I really miss Lucy - and I can't stand the new paralegal. If they could just replace that new paralegal with Lucy it would improve the show. And I'm also not sure if I like Allen - he's creepy.

Posted by: Rob Helmerichs

I stopped watching early last year, and started again this year because of James Spader, who in my opinion is a national monument. And I think you're absolutely right. He is playing (as Tami said, but I mean it as a compliment) the creepiest character on TV, and the most fascinating (especially since Vincent D'Onofrio, another national treasure, has become much less creepy and more of a standard TV detective this season). This show has me excited for the first imte in years; I actually watch it live in HD after HD Alias, rather than watch the TiVo'd Criminal Intent.

Posted by: will_not55

Agree. A great improvement. I'm so relieved at not having to see the former lead character (what was his name again?). Both he and his wife always looked like they were crying when they spoke. :rolleyes:

Love the 'Alan' character, smug and weird.

As for Tara, well, she's sizzling. And I expect men to love her and women to hate her.

Posted by: rtype

I guess I came in at the right time. I really like James Spader. Is it even worth it for me to go back and catch the previous seasons in syndication? I only started watching this season.

Posted by: scooterboy

James Spader's character is the only thing keeping me watching. I put that character in the same category as Lionel Luther from Smallville and Miles Drentell from Thirtysomething. Weird, sometimes creepy and evil, but always fascinating and often the best part of the show.

Posted by: BrettStah

James Spader is so completely cool... we (my wife and I) love his character. So bad but also good, at the same time.

Posted by: bareyb

As with most Kelly productions, this show is slowly becoming a parody of itself... However, in this case (at least so far) I still really like it. Once my Wife pointed out that the new Paralegal rarely ever closes her mouth (ostensibly to keep it in some sort of sensuous poise) she has really started to bug me. Other than that I think the show is still pretty interesting.

Posted by: Satchel

quote:
Originally posted by bareyb
As with most Kelly productions, this show is slowly becoming a parody of itself... However, in this case (at least so far) I still really like it. Once my Wife pointed out that the new Paralegal rarely ever closes her mouth (ostensibly to keep it in some sort of sensuous poise) she has really started to bug me. Other than that I think the show is still pretty interesting.

Yeah but man is she smokin' hot or what...

Posted by: Rob Helmerichs

quote:
Originally posted by bareyb
As with most Kelly productions, this show is slowly becoming a parody of itself...

Oh, I disagree--it had become a total self-parody by last year, when I stopped watching it, and it still falls prey to many of the same quirks-for-quirks'-sake, but the additional of Spader has completely changed the dynamic and breathed new life into the show. I hope the cutesy-weird stuff doesn't take over again, as it seems to be threatening to do, but if they keep the focus on Spader and his richly-nuanced struggle between the good and bad sides of his nature, they could easily get another year of good hunting out of this old hound.

Posted by: Family

As I wondered... has any other show every made this type of dramatic turnaround with so many new characters?

Posted by: rtype

quote:
Originally posted by Family
As I wondered... has any other show every made this type of dramatic turnaround with so many new characters?

Star Trek? :)

Posted by: HTH

I like the Alan Shore character... in a Jim Profit kind of way. ;)

Posted by: MacThor

quote:
Originally posted by rtype
I guess I came in at the right time. I really like James Spader. Is it even worth it for me to go back and catch the previous seasons in syndication? I only started watching this season.

The seasons prior to the last two, absolutely. (I don't know what season we are in now). This show was GREAT in its early years, even the best on TV at the time, when it was truly "the Practice" and not "the Legal Firm that represents people that stalk Lindsay, stab Lindsay, kill for Lindsay, get killed by Lindsay, kill Lindsay's friends, and get killed by hitmen hired by Bobby...for Lindsay."

Posted by: MacThor

quote:
Originally posted by Family
As I wondered... has any other show every made this type of dramatic turnaround with so many new characters?

Well, Law & Order is the only show I can think of with MORE cast turnover (none of the original cast is in place) but I don't think it's made any dramatic turnaround, and it's certainly not better for it now.

I'd say no.

Posted by: randyf

I HATED Spader's character at first, but I have to admit, I like him quite a bit now!

Of the old cast the only ones I kinda miss is Dylan Mc Dermott, and to a lesser extent, Lara Flynn Boyle.

Oh, and I did like Lucy, but for nasty reasons :D

but THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for keeping Steve Harris !

Posted by: Tracy

Didn't the show "Ellen" have a huge change after the first season? I think they changed pretty much all of the cast and changed her profession. I suppose "8 Simple Rules" might fit this category as well--although I doubt it will continue to be a hit.

Posted by: Rob Helmerichs

quote:
Originally posted by Tracy
Didn't the show "Ellen" have a huge change after the first season? I think they changed pretty much all of the cast and changed her profession. I suppose "8 Simple Rules" might fit this category as well--although I doubt it will continue to be a hit.

Although Ellen did keep the star of the show the same...

Posted by: scooterboy

quote:
Originally posted by Tracy
Didn't the show "Ellen" have a huge change after the first season?

Including the title of the show. It was called "These Friends Of Mine" for the first season. The two that didn't return were Maggie Wheeler (currently Janice on Friends), and Holly Fulger (previously of the Richard Lewis/Jamie Lee Curtis show "Anything But Love").

Posted by: HTH

And of all the shows The Practice has had crossovers with, only Boston Public survives. (Ally McBeal / Ally and Gideon's Crossing. Where's Ellenor's baby?)

Posted by: GoodN

How about the cast changes on "A Different World" and "Facts of Life"? Didn't half of the Eastland girls move on after the first season? Poor Molly Ringwald. Best thing that ever happened to her.

Posted by: TampaThunder

quote:
Originally posted by scooterboy
James Spader's character is the only thing keeping me watching. I put that character in the same category as Lionel Luther from Smallville and Miles Drentell from Thirtysomething. Weird, sometimes creepy and evil, but always fascinating and often the best part of the show.

Wow, a thirtysomething reference. Couldn't agree with you more about the comparison of the Miles Drentell and Alan Shore. They both chew up the screen. There was a similar performance by Peter Weller recently in The Handler. I'd given up on The Practice a couple of years ago but Spader will keep me watching.

Posted by: AJRitz

My biggest annoyance with "The New Practice" has been the DA's. They've totally sucked the life out of the District Attorney's office. With Laura Flynn Boyle gone (and Richard Bey now long-dead), the attorneys of The Practice have no compelling adversaries. Alan's act is really wearing thin already. He's been interesting, but his act has run its course. He either needs to grow into being a "real" attorney again soon, or he's got to go.

Posted by: loopey

I don't know how I feel about the new cast..

Spoilers as I'm not sure if they are okay here or not..

Spoiler Alert! (highlight to read)
I hate the Jaime-Eugene romance. Didn't we have enough of those already?

And that paralegal needs to close her mouth. She looks dumb with it hanging open all the time. When I pointed this out to Dan he said something like well maybe that's it's natural position (if you know what I mean).

I thought it was going quirky the way of Alley McBeal with the whole Sharon Stone story line, I hope it doesn't continue..

Posted by: HTH

quote:
Originally posted by loopey
And that paralegal needs to close her mouth. She looks dumb with it hanging open all the time.

Does she remind you of Susan Dey (Grace Van Owen)?