Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Just when you thought TV could not get lower: "Swingtown"

Tim Stevens @ http://www.leadingsmart.com has posted an interesting review of Swingtown on CBS.

"This is a show about couples that "swing" -- that is, trade spouses for sexual pleasure. And it is not on HBO or Cinemax. Nope, it's on CBS during primetime when your adolescent kids are likely to be flipping channels. Entertainment Weekly describes Swingtown as "a partner-sharing show whose pilot episode features its protagonists doing drugs and engaging in a foursome."

After watching the first two episodes, he notes the message of the show:

  • Sexual relationships with multiple partners have no consequences.
  • Your spouse is a prude if she/he won't let you sleep around.
  • You can have sex with another person without bonding emotionally or impacting your current committed relationships in any way.

After describing the background of the executive producer and show creator, Mike Kelley, he goes on to talk about how he pitched the show to CBS after being declined by several cable networks. He told the Nina Tassler, president of CBS entertainment: "We still want the leading lady to take [drugs] and have sex with the neighbors. We still want the underage daughter to smoke pot and flirt with her teacher. We still want the crazy neighbor lady to snort coke." The amazing thing is that Tassler wants us to think this show reflects normal life".

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