Dear Ugly Betty Viewers Past and Present,
Last night, Ugly Betty‘s ratings were rather dismal–not surprising, since ABC shuttled it off to Friday nights at 9 PM, eastern time, also known as the Death Slot. It would be difficult for me to persuade new prospective audience members to join this still wonderful series at this point. It is, after all, just beginning its fourth year, and it’s rare for a show to gain an upsurge in viewership this far into its run. With three years of characters and convoluted, soapy plots (and that is meant as a compliment in this case) to catch up on, most people don’t have the time or the energy.
That’s why I’m not going to attempt to convince new viewers that this still vital show is worth giving a look-see. Instead, I’m going to tell all of you who loved the series in the past but may have lost interest after last season–admittedly its weakest and most uneven–why you should come back now.
The third season’s biggest flaw, which I discussed in previous reviews, was that the show no longer seemed to know quite what it wanted to be–a fabulously campy Americanized telenovela, a cartoony comedy, or a legitimate drama. In the first two seasons, it was able to beautifully maintain this delicate tonal balance and be all of these things at once. Last season, however, much of the marvelously over-the-top fun that had made Ugly Betty so brilliant in the past, was toned down, in favor of making the series more emotionally realistic. In an effort to infuse it with more heart, creator Silvio Horta, accidentally eliminated its spark and much of what made it great in the first place. The old Betty brilliance would appear again in odd episodes or at odd moments, but not consistently, which made the whole season feel shaky and slipshod.
As the season started to reach its end, however, Horta seemed to remember that Betty‘s charm had always been its blend of ridiculous soap and emotionally truthful drama, and that he had erred on the side of mundane reality. He began to bring back the fun and, by the third season finale, had almost fully restored the series to what it once was. And now, the two-hour season four premiere, “The Butterfly Effect” shines the spotlight on Ugly Betty in top form. It is blessed with countless, immensely witty one-liners, the likes of which equal and exceed those from the show’s early days; lovely character moments and arcs, particularly for people like Justin, Marc (the amazing Michael Urie), and Amanda, who were ignored far too often last season; deliciously soaptastic plot twists; hilarious (and dynamically filmed) dream sequences, the first of which smartly parodies the film classic, 2001: A Space Odyssey; and most importantly, heart.
For those of you who were chagrined by the softening of Wilhelmina last season, the Divine Miss S is back, scheming and dreaming like the major league, scenery-chewing villain she has always been and always will be. For those who missed Justin, he is already at the center of a very sweet plot that causes him to further bond with Marc and might even eventually, finally, lead to his coming out. Hilda is also given some wonderful material here, some of her best since the show began. And thanks to an outrageous guest appearance by the hilarious and statuesque Kristen Johnston (Third Rock from the Sun), even Amanda seems to be on the verge of character development.
And then, of course, there is Betty, who is now an editor and has to learn how to work at Mode all over again–an intelligent manner for the show to reinvent itself. Betty clearly couldn’t remain Daniel’s assistant forever, nor could the show forever stay in the same gear. Over the course of the first three seasons, Betty has grown a great deal and has found her footing at Mode, among the assistants. Making her an editor, however, has put her in a new situation, where once again she is effectively the new kid on the block. In some ways, it mirrors the first season, but unlike before, she isn’t starting completely from scratch. She is stronger and more confident than she was, and though she no longer has her best friend, Christina, except in spirit (Christina is touchingly mentioned numerous times throughout the episode), she does have experience and potential, and knows the ropes. In a truly lovely scene, butterflies inside a reclusive jewelry designer’s (Lynn Redgrave, in a sweet performance) apartment flock around Betty. As metaphorically obvious as the image might be, it still works. By the end of the episode, Betty does begin to emerge from her chrysalis, while retaining what makes Betty, Betty.
And unlike last season, the series is now developing and moving forward, narratively speaking, but is not doing so at the expense of what makes Ugly Betty, Ugly Betty. If you used to be a fan of the series but haven’t been back in a while, drop in for a visit next week. You might find yourself rediscovering what made you fall in love in the first place.
Many thanks,
Rob
Related posts:
- The Ups and Downs of Ugly Betty
- Ugly Betty 4.20: “Hello Goodbye” (Series Finale)
- Ugly Betty: "Things Fall Apart"
- New York Hell: Ugly Americans
- The 10 Best TV Shows of 2006
