# Mockingbird Lane **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 27, 2012, 1:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995 "2012-10-27T01:38:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![TBG](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@TBG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TBG)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/21 "2012-10-28T00:15:16Z")
> [@randwill](#): > > How’d they stretch a rerun of “Jeopardy” to an hour? There was some other thing on from 8 to 8:30, then the Jeopardy rerun. They (local NBC affil) do this sort of garbage all the time. The first half of Season 2 of Community was preempted more often than it actually aired. I suspect they had this thing lined up back when Community was supposed to be starting on fridays by now, the rat bastards. ---
**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/22 "2012-10-28T00:57:15Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > I’m not getting the Jerry O’ hate. Ditto. Teeing off on him as if he drowned a bag of kittens and kicked handicapped children out of the way to get to the river. He’s okay. The show with Belushi was pretty good. Koosh was a dick to Jerry McGuire, but I don’t hold that against the actor. ---
**Author:** ![Aquadementia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aquadementia/32/555_2.png) [@Aquadementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aquadementia)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/23 "2012-10-28T01:11:51Z")
Herman looks less like a Frankensteins monster then a perv into autoerotic asphyxiation. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/24 "2012-10-28T01:39:45Z")
Eddie Izzard in men’s clothing? Kinky! Really, though, it’s that they did not bring over the dynamic that made the Munster family so much fun: Despite their origins and appearances they were wholesome and normal. They did not win that American Average Family contest by a fluke. They were a sweet extended family, and the writers played off that. By going edgier, but not completely off-the-wall like _The Addams Family_, _Mockingbird Lane_ just became boring. I didn’t like or care for any of the characters. Grandpa’s “old” makeup looked like someone had applied the latex with a toothbrush, Portia de Rossi is rather fetching as a brunette in spiderwebs, and Charity Wakefield has much more range than Pat Priest but (and?) lacks her artificially-perfect features. If the original Herman looked like he was assembled out of spare parts in a dungeon Marilyn looked like she was ordered out of a catalog. ---
**Author:** ![D-bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@D-bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D-bear)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/25 "2012-10-28T01:56:20Z")
The scene at the end when Izzard had the artificial heart hooked up to the scoutmaster making him into his own personal juice box was great. Grandpa’s drinking again! Like a chery on top of a sundae… ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/26 "2012-10-28T02:43:02Z")
I liked it. I wish it had been picked up as a series. There were rough patches, but they also had some very good parts and I can see that it had potential. I absolutely loved the visuals (Jerry O’Connell’s entrance in silhouette was perfect, I rewound it and watched it again.) They were obviously finding their way with the tone, but I think it could have gotten there. I think I would have liked it. Too bad. ---
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/27 "2012-10-28T04:26:27Z")
They hinted that Marilyn was the most monstrous of them all. Was this explored, or is it just a backhanded way of calling her “normal”? ---
**Author:** ![D-bear](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@D-bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D-bear)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/28 "2012-10-28T04:54:08Z")
Marylin had so much potential. A wolf in sheep’s clothing. Like every serial killer of modern times. “She seemed so normal, just kept to herself, so quiet…” ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/29 "2012-10-28T04:59:58Z")
Loved it, loved every little bit of it. They even have a reason for the dragon. ---
**Author:** ![Enkel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Enkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkel)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 8:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/30 "2012-10-28T08:44:57Z")
If you haven’t seen it, here is a link to it on [Hulu.com](http://Hulu.com): [http://www.hulu.com/watch/417829](http://www.hulu.com/watch/417829) ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/31 "2012-10-28T09:21:43Z")
> [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#): > > That was better than many programs that have lasted multiple seasons, and better than it had any right to be. Good cast all around. They’d have to find the right tone for the black humor/ghoulishness, but it had promise. This is my appraisal too. I liked it, and think it wouldbe fun to watch. A lot of the other supernatural themed shows I just can’t get into, as they’re too dour and grim, but this I like. ---
**Author:** ![Enkel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Enkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkel)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/32 "2012-10-28T10:02:51Z")
If you haven’t seen it, here is a link to it on [Hulu.com](http://Hulu.com): [http://www.hulu.com/watch/417829](http://www.hulu.com/watch/417829) ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2012, 9:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/33 "2012-10-28T21:05:18Z")
> [@D\_Odds](#): > > O’Connell is a mountain of suck that makes nearly any show unwatchable. His co-stars have to overcome his awfulness. I firmly believe the man has dirt on all the top Hollywood execs - stuff that would be bad by even LaLaLand standards. It’s the only was he could continually find work. Teaming him with Belushi meant every other show on TV could be better, as the two worst were occupied. Obviously the show sucked, but that never stopped shows from being continuously renewed (see _Two and a Half Men_). > > And I’m jealous that he got to bang Mystique, but I despised his lack of acting before I knew about that. That was just the icing on the cake. Wow. That’s a pretty forceful condemnation of someone I would consider to be a solid C- actor. He didn’t steal your lunch money back in the day, did he? I do, however, have to agree with you that the man must have some truly astonishing dirt on the right people, given that he has arranged for his no-talent brother Charlie to have an acting career. You wanna see a genuine mountain of suck in action? Charlie’s your man. ---
**Author:** ![D\_Odds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/d_odds/32/2882_2.png) [@D\_Odds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/D_Odds)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2012, 11:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/34 "2012-10-29T11:39:54Z")
O’Connell would have to be 300% better to be a barely F actor. I have no idea who Charlie is, though. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2012, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/35 "2012-10-29T17:51:25Z")
Not overly impressed, and it was really was a failed attempt at The Addams Family in Munster suits. The Addams Family were a group of very weird people who thought that everyone else reveled in their weirdness; the Munsters were a very mundane family who didn’t understand why people might think they weren’t mundane. This was a very weird family who knew everyone thought they were weird and didn’t care. So you had the Addams weirdness but not their oblivious to the impression they gave. It helped that Bryan Fuller was involved, but he’s more attuned to cute weird rather than serious weird. O’Connell – an actor who isn’t terrible, but is far from memorable – was bland as Herman and doesn’t really fit in with the series. Portia de Rossi was inspired casting as Lily, but the script gave her next to nothing to do. Only Eddie Izzard brought the character completely to life. Marilyn and Eddie were undistinguished. If it’s picked up, it needs to show more than what it already has. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2012, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/36 "2012-10-29T18:50:06Z")
DeRossi and Izzard ruled the screen. I liked the new take on Herman. Jerry is an everyman actor, and thus he fit fine. Overall, I am going to give it another shot. ---
**Author:** ![BrassyPhrase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea666f/32.png) [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2012, 10:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/37 "2012-10-29T22:27:37Z")
> [@twickster](#): > > It was okay. I watched it primarily because I love Eddie Izzard, who was wonderful. Portia di Rossi was good, and Jerry O’Connell wasn’t intolerable. I liked it. Sad to see it won’t be a series. My Eddie looked horrific and for a split second I thought “Omg! Is he sick? He has let himself go!” Then I realized “Oh Dummy, he’s playing an old vampire–he’s supposed to be scary not sparkly.” Portia was good and I like Jerry O’Connell, frankly. ---
**Author:** ![amarinth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3be4f8/32.png) [@amarinth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amarinth)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2012, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/38 "2012-10-29T22:48:52Z")
> [@BrassyPhrase](#): > > I liked it. Sad to see it won’t be a series. My Eddie looked horrific and for a split second I thought “Omg! Is he sick? He has let himself go!” Then I realized “Oh Dummy, he’s playing an old vampire–he’s supposed to be scary not sparkly.” Did you also notice, at the end after he’d exsanguinated the scout leader, he looked young (well, Eddie Izzard age, at least) again? ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [October 30, 2012, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/39 "2012-10-30T12:47:43Z")
I kind of liked the shifted dynamics: Grandpa is firmly in charge, Herman is an outsider in his own family, Lily and Eddie strive to suppress their monstrous urges. And I actually loved this take on Marilyn; she\* looks \*normal but there’s definitely a lot of darkness there. “Well, then, they’ve found homes now, haven’t they?” These could all be very interesting characters if given a chance to develop further. And Eddie Izzard absolutely ruled the screen. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2012, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995/40 "2012-10-31T20:29:27Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The Addams Family were a group of very weird people who thought that everyone else reveled in their weirdness; the Munsters were a very mundane family who didn’t understand why people might think they weren’t mundane. > > This was a very weird family who knew everyone thought they were weird and didn’t care. So you had the Addams weirdness but not their oblivious to the impression they gave. This is a great observation. It was odd, because it wasn’t the old version. I’m not sure how I feel about it. I like Jerry O’Connell. This was just awkward. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mockingbird-lane/638995.md?page=3)