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Some four months ago, when NBC ordered The Mysteries of Laura to series, I wrote on the
SpoilerTV article that broke the news: "This one might be interesting." Oh, how I was wrong!
Let's first explain the premise. The Mysteries of Laura is about Laura Diamond, an NYPD detective who has a funny way of solving cases. More importantly, however, is the fact that Laura is a mom to her twin sons. Sadly, these aren't exactly sweet boys, but are in fact quite a challenge to Laura. What's more, her husband Jake is taking another approach at handling the boys. While Laura tries to be strict with her children and punish them for the tricks they played, Jake doesn't care much about punishing the boys and instead gives them all hugs and presents. Also, Laura and Jake are set to divorce, but Jake is unwilling to sign the divorce papers, something that heavily bothers her.
In the pilot, the NYPD tries to solve a homicide case of a man who is about to bring a new phone on the market. Laura and her boss were present in the house right before he died, so they are able to prevent any suspect from leaving the crime scene. This leads to somewhat of a Cluedo investigation, although apparently all the suspects are let go. If you look closely at the promo, you might find some hints as to who is the killer.
Meanwhile, Laura's sons cause trouble at their school, leading them to be expelled from school. Laura tries to find a new school for them, but her sons aren't very cooperative. And of course, Jake doesn't care that much either.
I don't know what this show is trying to be. The show's stars have billed as a mix between drama and comedy. However, it fails as a comedy. I can't remember laughing once during the entire pilot, and I've seen it yesterday so it's not that long ago. The case of the week did not hold my interest either. The characters too are hard to connect to, they don't come off as very likable characters. I must say that I do feel sorry for Laura for being in this mess, but other than that, I don't really care. I don't know half the secondary characters so it's difficult to give my opinion on them too. There does appear to be another NYPD agent who is established as somewhat of an antagonist to Laura, though nothing of that is actually explained or developed in the pilot.
Conclusion: While some people might like The Mysteries of Laura, I am not going to have a weekly appointment with it. In fact, I don't think I will check out any other episode besides the pilot which I've already seen.
In the SpoilerTV pilot ratings table, I gave this show a 6 but I think I've been too generous. The more I think about it, the worse it gets. I think this show deserves a rating of 4.
Watch the promo for The Mysteries of Laura below. The Mystiers of Laura premieres Wednesday September 17 at 10 pm on NBC following America's Got Talent finale. The show will settle into its regular Wednesday 8/7c timeslot the following week. Will you be checking it out? Share your thoughts in the comments!
About the Author - Daniel
Daniel is a Dutch university student studying Psychology. On SpoilerTV he is a reviewer of NCIS, The 100 and the upcoming shows Madam Secretary, Battle Creek and Odyssey. He also enjoys Arrow, NCIS: LA, Nikita and The Blacklist. Recently gotten into LOST which he really loves. He is excited for the new shows Stalker, Scorpion, NCIS: New Orleans and a bunch of others.
Of all the upcoming pilots that I've seen so far, this is the worst. It is just so awkward to see Laura trying to handle her kids, specially a cringe worthy scene in which the kids are peeing in the street and a woman calls them "white trash". Ugh, seriously, the case of the week was beyond boring and the family drama aspect of the show doesn't work because the characters are way too cartoony.
ReplyDeleteI won't be watching this, and it makes me sad that this show is airing on Revolution's timeslot; I can't imagine The Mysteries of Laura being a hit, in fact I foresee a heavy flop, but hey! I can be wrong
I agree, this has cancelation written all over it.
ReplyDeleteSeems this one is gonna crash pretty hard ...
ReplyDeleteI've seen the preview (above) several times and thought the series looks like it has possibilities. Are you saying the trailer is much better than the actual product, or don't you like the trailer either?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review Daniel, with all due respect to Debra Messing, and crew, when I saw the preview, the show didn't give me reason or interest in checking it out, I'm afraid it's going to be one of the first casualties, I hope I'm wrong I just want be there to see it!
ReplyDeleteSadly this looks quite unappealing to me. I like Debra but these projects she picks really doesn't work out for me. Sadly I have to pass.
ReplyDeleteUTD Second season was awful , I dropped it at episode 2. I was thinking of continuing it , but I don't think there is any point in watching a show that is just terrible , even if its a tiny bit enjoyable. I much prefer to spend my time watching shows that are thoroughly enjoyable and that make brilliant television.
ReplyDeleteWhen this flops , it will make NBC regret cancelling Revolution.
Good point! There aren't enough shows with a female lead, especially a strong female lead. Sadly this one isn't very strong either although I do feel somewhat for her character. I admire your wish to check it out though, and I hope it appeals to you.
ReplyDeleteCouldn't make it pass the season 2 premiere of UTD; it's biggest sin was being boring as hell.
ReplyDeleteRevolution improved so much on its 2nd season that it is sad it got cancelled :(.
When NBC announced this remake, I went and watched the pilot of the original series. My first thought was that there was no way to translate the original to a US environment, much less New York of all places, and make it work; no sire! That trailer leads me to think I was right, very much so.
ReplyDeleteWhy?
- The original series taps on a very peculiar side of our (Spanish) sense of humor, and yet, the original series has much more mystery and less comedy. It posses a game of deduction that traps the viewers and makes them play along, doesn't need action sequences to catch anyone's attention (for instance, the original Laura has never used her firearm, ever). The comedy is timely, well thought of, but scarce.
- The family side of Laura's life has less weight in the original, and the ex is in fact a great dad, which helps to put this ongoing storyline squarely in the subplot category.
- And can't help but add: looks like some scenes have been literally recreated as they are in the original, and yet, they've missed the point; remember that "bloody" image that greets Laura when she goes to the twins school? In the Spanish version that red looks like blood, and discovering what really is surprises the viewer and gets a good laugh out of them; here is obviously paint, fells flat.
Again, I'm comparing a full, 90 minutes episode, with the trailer of what will be a 45 minutes one; I may very well be proven wrong, but I seriously doubt it.
Interesting point, but I'd rather see Revenge, OUAT, The 100, Homeland or Scandal for that. Each day there are more and more female leads on TV; we need more- I love them!-, but this show... I don't think it is what you are looking for
ReplyDeleteWhy woman lead need to be strong? Why? Seriously this is such a nonsense. Cannot character be just interesting and layered instead of being just strong? And what do you mean by "strong" character anyway? Physicall strenght, mental, or intellectual? Or someone who doesn't cry, who doesn't ask for a help, or someone who doesn't have any weakness? But those are in fact traits that make a character interesting.
ReplyDeleteYep i agree Revolution improved a ton from it's first season , I am more mad that it ended on a cliffhanger. I would have at least preferred them to cancel it with everything tied up.
ReplyDeleteJust so you can see what I'm talking about (apparently I'm not the only one who's noticed that flaw, this collage is not mine): left, original - right, NBC version
ReplyDeleteThe promo gave me the impression that this was a comedy. Now that I know it's a drama, I don't think I'm liking the look of it.
ReplyDeleteBy strong I don't mean physical strength but more mentally strong. I mean women that are independent and are not easily manipulated or put off by others. Women that know what they want and are willing to stand up for their goals and dreams. Women that know where their strengths lay, but are also aware of their weaknesses. Crying and asking for help are absolutely no signs of weakness but in my opinion a sign of their courage to put themselves in a vulberable place. By the way, all of this also counts for men equally.
ReplyDeleteI think the shows Pablo mentioned have strong female leads. Also coming to my mind are Benson from SVU, Ziva from NCIS and Juliet from LOST.
I'm sorry if I sounded offensive, that was not my intention.
Btw, I would also recommend watching Madam Secretary as it had a female lead as well. That one had a great pilot!
ReplyDeleteYep, it looked very fake indeed, you just knew it was paint. The picture from the original looks much better.
ReplyDeleteIt fails as a comedy, it'a OK as a drama.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry but I too think it will be one of the fall's first cancelations.
ReplyDeleteI think the trailer gives the right impression of the show. It didn't do much for me when I first saw it, and neither does the entire pilot. But if you like the promo then there's a chance you might like the show as well.
ReplyDeletethank you for the recommend for Madam Secretary one show I was looking forward to watching
ReplyDeleteEven though i think it will be cancelled i stil intend to watch it looks cute and i love the view on her messy life but the promo might be better then the show
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you said that about, Madam Secretary, that's one I was looking forward to checking it out, and for some reason I trust your taste in shows:)
ReplyDeleteI would say your confusion is the best indication that the show will be terrible.
ReplyDeleteI knew it was a drama but the promos try to convince you it is a comedy, a "funcedural", they are so bad that made me laugh because of it.
As much as I like Debra Messing, I'm just not feeling this - especially now that I know it's a drama and not a comedy. There are too many shows I want to watch this fall that I don't think I'm even going to give this show my normal three episode benefit of the doubt shot at winning me over.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to point out that they already revealed who the killer is in the promo. So, I was even less invested in the pilot than I normally would have been if I didn't know who the killer is.
ReplyDeleteNot even Elias & Scarface could save this one? INCONCEIVABLE!
ReplyDeleteGood you are checking that out. And wow, thank you for the trust!
ReplyDeleteYeah, so did I. Not very smart from NBC's promo department.
ReplyDeleteSame here, I have too many new shows as well and there's no room for The Mysteries of Laura.
ReplyDeleteIt's a good thing you're still checking it out because my taste might differ from your taste. I'm afraid though that the promo is better than the actual show, but I'm curious to know what you think of it.
ReplyDeleteYeah, that "peeing on each other" scene was a bit too much for me. Who does that?
ReplyDeleteHuh?
ReplyDeleteGrey's Anatomy, Revenge, Rookie Blue, Scandal, Mistresses, Extant, The Good Wife, Two Broke Girls, Unforgettable, Beauty and the Beast, Hart of Dixie, Reign, Bones, Glee, Sleepy Hollow, L&O SVU, Parks & Rec, Taxi Brooklyn, Bates Motel, Chasing Life, Pretty Little Liars, Switched at Birth, The Fosters, American Horror Story, The Americans, The Bridge, Girls, Veep, Devious Maids, Witches of East End, Homeland, Nurse Jackie, Shameless, Bitten, Continuum, Haven, Lost Girl, Major Crimes, Rizzoli & Isles, Covert Affairs, Playing House, Awkward, Faking It, Finding Carter, OITNB, Orphan Black, Outlander...
Okay I watch every show you just name I'm saying we need more strong female leads on Tv all I was saying I'm going support any show with a female lead
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I haven't see 'Laura' but I screened the Madam Secretary review and it was indeed quite interested with a great lead + strong supporting cast. Hope you enjoy that one!
ReplyDeleteI'm very 50-50 on this on one hand I will tune in and watch tonight but on the other hand it doesn't look that great. I love Debra Messing but this doesn't seem like a good enough show to keep my attention on it. We'll see what happens.
ReplyDeleteI actually liked the plot, even tho it's not awesome.. I mean it's something we already seen with a cop divided between private life and her\his job... I'll watch it for Debra Messing bc I like her.
ReplyDeleteYou might want to ask yourself if you're doing women everywhere a favor if you support any show with a female lead, no matter how stupid and shoddily made the show is. All you'll be doing is giving producers the idea that they can foist any kind of cheap, poorly made nonsense on the female audience...which is, then, all that they'll be producing.
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