This Show Sucks

photo courtesy of LAtimes.com

I moved to the LES in 2003 after college and lived there (and in the East Village) for 6 years. Though my living space may have moved on, my heart is still there. So naturally when a show from HBO comes along that purports to be about late-20-somethings trying to make it in NYC while living in the LES I'm hyped. What a mistake that turned out to be.

The characters are supposed to represent some kind of NYC "cool" but are completely uncool. Never mind the plot of starting a clothing line which is gone about in a completely unrealistic way. Ben and Cam are one-dimensional, uninteresting and vanilla. Some of the subplots and supporting characters have promise but are victims of the show's overall direction, and aren't given the chance to develop.

Not only are the characters inauthentic, the New York represented by the show seems completely superficial. Whereas NYC was the "fifth character" in Sex and The City, it feels like an empty backdrop here. For a show that's supposedly representative of the downtown spirit, there is a distinct absence of legitimiacy.

This isn't NYC. I hope HBO drops this hot turd of a show to make room for more Bored To Death. Better luck next time.