In the eighties, spy was apparently a high demand occupation causing bosses to recruit just about anyone -- homemakers (Kate Jackson's Amanda King of SCARECROW AND MRS. KING), models and fashion photographers (COVER UP), bank computer operators (JUMPIN' JACK FLASH), struggling actors (OUTRAGEOUS FORTUNE, THE LITTLE DRUMMER GIRL), suburbanites (PACK OF LIES), songwriting partners (Elaine May's ISHTAR), retired geriatrics (LEONARD PART 6), 11-year-old boys (CLOAK & DAGGER), rock & roll singers (TOP SECRET), US Navel Intelligence (NO WAY OUT -- recruited to be a double-agent), high school students (LITTLE NIKITA), paintball champions (GOTCHA!), insurance agents (REAL MEN), comic book artists (CONDORMAN), ex-cons (GO FOR IT), rodents (DANGER MOUSE) . . .
The fascination with liars and tricksters continues today and the latest entrant? TRUE LIES on CBS.
The 90s James Cameron film was never a great movie. It's the weakest of all of the Cameron films. Possibly that's due to the fact that the main female character is the weakest as well. There is no Ellen Ripley, there is no Sarah Connor, Dr. Lindsey Brigman, no Rose, no Neytiri te Tskaha Mo'at'ite. It's just Jamie Lee Curtis letting herself be the joke over and over. It's a smarmy role and one not worthy of a James Cameron film. As for when the character becomes sexy, that's just flat-out laughable -- and not in a comedic way.
So we find some criticism especially tired and ignorant -- such as when some so-called critics gripe about the character in the TV show not being kept stupid and mocked for not grasping that her husband is a spy.
We find a lot curious, to be honest.
If we're really being honest, we went into watching this show very eager. People we trust told us it was awful. Critics went to town on it in their half-assed way and we were ready to burn it to the ground.
Sadly, we made the mistake of watching and all our thoughts of clever bitchery quickly faded.
TRUE LIES is not a great TV show that's going to sweep the Emmys but it was never intended to be that. It's a simple weekly adventure based on a weak escapist film.
For what it is, it succeeds providing an hour of diversion via light comedy and flying bullets.
Steve Howey plays the husband Harry Tasker. In the 90s film, Ahnuld played the role. Is anyone really going to pretend that Ahnuld gave a performance? Of course, Howey's an improvement. He's a scaled down model and we're not just speaking of muscles, we're also speaking of the fact that he's a character on a weekly TV show. Ginger Gonzaga takes the role of Helen Tasker -- and does so with a take on Helen that makes her both understandable and intelligent -- way beyond the scared (and pathetic) little girl who did a lap dance for her husband in the film.
Strong support comes via Mike O'Gorman, Erica Hernandez, Deneen Tyler, Omar Miller and Beverly D'Angelo. But a show like this lives or dies on the chemistry between the leads and Howey and Gonzaga nail that.
It's the chemistry that carried SCARECROW & MRS. KING. That was Kate Jackson fourth series run in a row. She started on DARK SHADOWS, moved on to THE ROOKIE and then, of course, CHARLIE'S ANGELS. She was one of the original Angels along with Farrah Fawcett and Jaclyn Smith. Later, Cheryl Ladd, Shelley Hack and Tanya Roberts would join the show. Though five of the six all attempted to follow up the success of CHARLIE'S ANGLES with a starring role in another TV show, only Kate did it. CUTTER TO HOUSTON, HOT LINE, ONE WEST WAIKIKI, GOOD SPORTS -- none of them made it to episode 21. (Of the six women, only Jaclyn Smith never attempted to star in her own TV series.)
SCARECROW & MRS. KING starred Kate Jackson and Bruce Boxleitner and aired on CBS for four seasons (88 episodes). It ran on charm and, if you doubt that, it streams currently on TUBI. If TRUE LIES can pull it off, it may be able to pull in viewers on Wednesday nights for similar reasons. If not? Steve Howey and others are talking about rebooting the sitcom REBA (others does include Reba McEntire).