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Judging Amy 5/4- Spoilers
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Posted by: scubagal

OK.... so lasts night eposide for me, one of the best of the season. It didn't have a lot of drama, but I really liked the family moments.

I did however find it very odd- based on lasts weeks preview- Lauren didn't cry in this episode once, and we saw no Peter, so way to manipulate us CBS!

Maybe it was the lack of the David soap opera - not that I don't like David and he is coming back next year- he isn't the focal point of this show and I was getting tired of the together, break up, drama, I love you, I hate you, yada yada saga... and back to more Amy, Maxine family time. So last nights seemed to get back to that a little more, which I liked.

The Kyle hospital quiting definetly set the stage for his departure next season, which I can't say I am disappointed with either. I like him and his character, just don't feel like it fits in with this show- and with Dan Futterberg coming back as Vincent for the season finale, and possible next season- yeah!!- I am ready for Kyle to leave. It could be a nice spin off though- if they bring Lily back.

And I like Cheech http://65.254.234.159/image_hosting/web_pages/scubagal/Smilies/Weed.gif enough, but he is no Jared..... but I hope he stays, I like to see Maxine getting some action!

Posted by: CatBurger00

Yup, more manipulative advertising.

At the end of the episode when amy was reading her verdict, I realized I had absolutely no idea what the case was about. I miss the episodes where they covered 3+ cases an episode. Now almost all the episode is dedicated to the character's personal lives.

Posted by: Zevida

CatBurger: I agree about the case Amy did. We hardly had a clue what it was about. Watching the earlier seasons on TBS, it seemed like they handled the family stuff and relationship stuff and Maxine's cases and still had time for us to really get into Amy's cases. Now it's like the cases are just filler in between the next drama relatinoship moment.

I thought last night's ep was okay, but not great.

Posted by: scubagal

I think the biggest problem with this season (and a lot is Kyle and the hospital) is to much for an hour...

The stage is set for Kyle's departure- I won't be glad to see him go, and I am a fan of his and his character, I just find it is too much for the show, interjecting these hospital scenes that kind of jar you out of how interlinked (at least it used to be) the Maxine/Amy storylines were. I still believe the core of what JA is about is both the juvenile justice system and the dynamics between family-especially mother/daughters- which we are seeing in a 3 generation setting here.

Kyle was a replacement for Vincent, and if he had more interaction with the family and his being a doctor was more a 'known' and not 'seen', it would work. Kyle and Donna interaction has been missing almost all season, which was what really kept Donna connected to the Gray family during the Vincent years- even more so then her job. That was great writing, including all elements of the characters different lives, without ejecting you from the 60 minute 'story' built in.

But even Vincent's career had impacts to the family (his story on the system; the story he turned down)- for an hour drama, you have to keep things very closely integrated or you feel cheated. At least I do.

What has happened with so much emphasis on the hospital and his career means that we get episodes where there isn't even time for ANYBODY else... If you watch the reruns, you see how in almost every episode- there was a way to incorporate Gillian, Bruce, Lauren, Peter, Vincent, etc... while still creating drama with the court and DCF cases.

With the addition of Kyle and spending so much focus on what is going on in the hospital, Lauren is at her Dads almost every episode, we have gone several episodes with almost NO Bruce, I haven't seen Gillian in how long? And Peter, is he still alive?

The show sacrificed the dinner table and morning kitchen family time to showcase the hospital and it has fundamentally changed the dynamics of the show...

Posted by: cptodd

I liked last night's show. One complaint though: does Max have to cry (that cover my face cry) EVERY episode (OK perhaps not every but you know what I mean)? If she does that it looses it's emotional impact after a while. I wish she would stop blubbering so much.

Posted by: Zevida

scubagal:

I agree and I've felt that way since the hospital stuff started. If I wanted to watch a hospital show, I would watch ER. It really was a whole additional setting that took away from other areas. I don't mind when they have a family moment at the hospital, like Amy telling Kyle his dad died, because you would expect him to be at work in the middle of the day. But I got tired of the stories of the patients and his coworkers. I love the Kyle character, but not what they did to him this season.

I agree - the Kyle/Donna dynamic has really been missing, as has the Amy/Bruce dynamic. The focus on Amy/Stu and then Amy/David all season really kept Amy's relationships with the other characters off screen. I'm looking forward to fresh writers for next season, who hopefully will take the show back to its origins. I think Lauren is obnoxious, but I like to see Amy and Maxine interact (Maxine reminds me so much sometimes of my own mom), I like the court cases and the DCF cases, and I like the story of the Gray family. I want a family drama, not a relationship/workplace drama. Because even the court cases and DCF cases were about families.