New show doesn’t suck; character flow chart introduced

Posted by Maggie July 11th, 2006 at 10:05am In General

I watched a new show this weekend: USA Network's Pysch, the latest in their roster of Persnickety Hero-Geniuses and the current "character" to be "welcomed." Get it? Characters welcome? … Nevermind.

It's trying for the sweetness/silliness combination of Monk, which is a worthy goal. And there were some genuinely funny moments. But I worry about the lead character. I like eccentric geniuses just as much as the next girl, but he doesn't seem to be tortured enough about his skills, his life, the crimes, etc. So he doesn't get along with his father. It's not like his father was a monster who locked him in his room until he could solve crimes by sense of smell. The dad just seems to be a regular guy trying to give a hyperactive kid some focus. What's the big deal?

Maybe we'll meet his mom and realize there's some totally weird Oedipus shit going down. That might add some complexity/awkwardness to his general glib know-it-all-ness. Or he starts being mean to everyone around him rather than (literally) charming the pants off them, and they take their pants off anyway. That's the type of perverse, conflicted character I like to see on my basic cable original programming.

I have a flow chart to back this up:

Charming behavior – - -> everyone is charmed: dull (this show, Clark Kent, Riley Finn)
Obnoxious behavior – - -> everyone is annoyed: predictable (terrorists in 24, Marisa Cooper)
Charming behavior – - -> everyone is skeezed out: getting there (Sam Malone, Logan Huntzberger)
Obnoxious behavior – - -> everyone is in love despite themselves: awesome (all my favorite shows)

I know some of those examples don't work. This flow chart is still in its development stage.