I was ten minutes into Bunheads when things started to feel oddly familiar. A tall, wordy, brunette in a small town full of kooky characters, teenage girls who make pop culture references way beyond their years, and Emily Gilmore. A quick Wikipedia visit confirmed that Amy Sherman Palladino, the creator of Gilmore Girls, is responsible for ABC Family's new show. It seems that Ms. Palladino is somewhat of a one-trick pony, and has written a show that is nearly identical to her first success. There are, of course, differences between Gilmore Girls and Bunheads. Michelle, the lead, is a Vegas show girl who drunkenly elopes with her long time admirer Hubbel...or Hubble...or Hubol. Hubbeaul whisks her away to his small California town named Paradise. Because Michelle is new to the town, we the viewers meet everyone and experience the town as she does, unlike Loralei who was a long time resident of Stars Hollow. Michelle is also not a single mother like Loralei, however her relationship with the young girls in her MIL's dance class is the foundation for the show, making her a motherly figure. There's no Rory, but instead four teenagers who can recite script just as quickly as Alexis Bledel, although not quite as convincingly. And there's dancing. Michelle is a dancer who could have been fabulous but ended up in Vegas. Her new mother in law (Emily Gilmore incarnate, even played by the same actress), is a dance teacher, who once could have been great but had Huubal and had to choose parenting over dancing. And the teenagers are dancers who may someday be great, but that's probably not the point. The point is that it's a tall, wordy, brunette in a small town full of kooky characters, teenage girls who make pop culture references way beyond their years, and Emily Gilmore. We've seen this before. But I like the pony and I like the tricks. I loved Gilmore Girls. No, that's not accurate. I wanted to be Gilmore Girls. I dreamed I lived in Stars Hollow. I dreamed I dated Jess. I dreamed I ate at Luke's. I was heart broken when it ended. So I welcome the resemblances in the new Palladino production. It's like meeting the sibling of someone you loved then lost. Is Bunheads as good as Gilmore Girls? I'm going to say it's too early to tell. So far I've seen episodes 1,2,3 and 6 (curse you, Hulu donut), and they've been enjoyable. Surprised at times and generally entertained. There are some kinks to work out (teaching actors how to sound like humans and not hyper-speed line reciting robots, making Emily Gilmore somewhat likable, and making whoever plays Michelle a unique character and not a Lauren Graham imitation), but it's the first season and the first season is the time to figure this stuff out. And it doesn't really matter if it lives up to the GG legacy, now does it? As long as it remains surprising and generally entertaining, I'm in.
