“Nashville” (8 p.m. Central Wednesdays, ABC, starts Oct. 10) starts off with a good-but-not-great first episode (it’s now available on Hulu); among “going inside the industry” shows it’s considerably better than “Smash,” but not as free-wheeling and fun as “The L.A. Complex” or — to go back a few years — “Love Monkey.”
Since we’re in the midst of the Great Recession, “Nashville” comes off as decidedly caught up in First World problems, but not in a guilty-pleasure way. I knew going in that Hayden Panettiere’s Juliette would be the unlikable pop-country ingénue, and that’s true (although she does have one sympathetic trait — her mom’s a meth head).
But I was a bit surprised how much I didn’t sympathize with Connie Britton’s Rayna. She’s had a great career, her new album isn’t selling that well, and her label asks her to open for Juliette. And, of course, she balks at being on a bill with someone who’s music sounds like feral cats, telling the label president to “kiss (her) decision” on the way out of the office. Well, boo-freakin’-hoo, Rayna: Either you’re in it for the money or you’re in it for the music. Pick one and move forward. (I suspect she’ll choose the latter in episode two.)
Part of the problem, too, is that the snippets of music we hear from Rayna aren’t demonstrably better than the snippets we hear from Juliette. Sure, professional songwriters are working on “Nashville,” but so far that just means it’s not hokey when the actresses sing. It does not mean every episode is going to make you want to rush out and get the soundtrack. The folkier tune performed by Bluebird Café waitress Scarlett (Clare Bowen) is better, and it works well over the closing montage, but it’s still not memorable.
Rounding out the cast, Powers Boothe plays, well, Powers Boothe. Technically named Lamar, he’s Rayna’s politically powerful father who ropes Rayna’s husband (Eric Close) into running for mayor. And there’s also Charles Esten as Deacon, Rayna’s longtime lead guitarist who gets an offer for the same gig with Juliette. Further spicing things up, Deacon used to have a thing with Rayna (indeed, he admits all of his songs are about her), and Juliette gets her claws into him, too, leading to a weird love triangle that doesn’t really ring true, at least so far.
Shot partly on location, “Nashville” could’ve spent more time showing off those locations in its first episode. The Bluebird Café — meticulously recreated on a Hollywood soundstage — pops off the screen, but otherwise a lot of action takes place in record-label offices, recording studios, concert venues (the Grand Ole Opry makes a brief cameo) and homes. There’s not enough of hustling, bustling downtown Nashville, nor is there much recognition that it is “Music City,” not just “Country Music City.”
I expect some of the flaws will be smoothed over in coming episodes, but the biggest problem after the first hour is that “Nashville” is too much about business and politics and all that serious stuff. And, along those lines, it needs to have better music, too.
What are your thoughts on the first episode of “Nashville?” Share your comments below.