Andrew Robinson
Rise brought it again on Tuesday, March 20th – it is quickly becoming one of my favorite shows on right now. Tackling hot topics of today and featuring beautiful musical performances, Rise is an important teenage drama that isn’t too heavy. Hopefully its ratings stabilize (preliminarily, its Tuesday numbers are only down slightly from the premiere which is a very good sign, as its current numbers, in my not-so-expert-but-very-informed opinion, will put it in good shape) and NBC gives it a second season! *As always, minor spoilers may follow.
Summary
(First, a quick recap of the show’s plot)
A financially-struggling small town that is football-crazed becomes interconnected in several ways not because of football, but because of the drama department, which is headed by passionate English teacher Lou Mazzuchelli (How I Met Your Mother‘s Josh Radnor). When Lou decides to present the mature (to put it mildly) musical “Spring Awakening” and looks to cast a star football player, however, both he and the musical itself face extreme backlash.
(Now, for “Most of All to Dream”)
The production budget for “Spring Awakening” is severely cut, leaving Lou – who is also dealing with a major personal issue regarding his son, Gordy – and the entire drama department with difficult decisions to make, and tough battles to wage. Lilette grapples with romantic feelings for a co-star. Robbie must decide how to spend him time. Gwen deals with personal issues that threaten the musical. Michael seeks acceptance. Simon continues to deal with the ramifications of his character in “Spring Awakening.”
Analysis
As you can tell from the summary, a lot is going on with many different characters. For many shows, this spells doom; they put too much on their plate, and characters feel severely underdeveloped or, worse, are difficult to empathize with. So far, Rise has not had this issue, and I don’t foresee the show suffering in the future. Despite the multitude of characters, I have had no issues relating to each and every one of them, and even found myself mumbling to myself when characters were left blindsided and hurt, or smiling when characters experienced good things. For me, a mostly stoic person who rarely shows emotion (except when I’m coaching basketball, lol), a show really captures my heart when I empathize with the characters right off the bat. When this happens, I know that I have found a good one and, like Stranger Things, This Is Us, Game of Thrones, Twin Peaks, Hannibal (poor Will Graham), and Freaks and Geeks (among a few others) before it, Rise is able to do this for me.
One thing that every show I mentioned above has in common is a brilliant cast – basically, every single actor does a great job at portraying their character in a way that makes them easy to empathize with. For example, consider how Stranger Things may have turned out without Millie Bobby Brown as Eleven, or Twin Peaks without Kyle MacLachlan as Cooper. Probably not as good! So far, Rise was shown this same quality – there is not a single actor that I have singled out as less-than-excellent, and I am normally quick to point these out, no matter if I love the show or not. Whether it be Radnor (who I am ecstatic to get to see act again), Marley Shelton as Gail Mazzuchelli, newcomer Auli’i Cravalho as Lilette, Damon J. Gillespie as Robbie Thorne, Amy Forsyth as Gwen, Casey Johnson as Gordy, Oscar nominee Rosie Perez as Tracey Wolfe (Lou’s assistant director), Ted Sutherland as Simon, Ellie Desautels as Michael, or any of the other supporting actors that I, unfortunately, cannot take the time to name, great performances are given, resulting in believable, relatable characters. For this, major props to the casting department, which includes Justin Huff and Bernard Telsey (who is also a casting director for This Is Us), among others. Without these brilliant casting choices by wonderful casting directors, Rise may never have gotten my viewership.
As a show billed as a drama that also includes a good deal of music, it could be said that Rise is a show built for a very specific audience: musical-lovers. However, the events of “Most of All to Dream” have proven to me that this is simply not the case. While the episode features some singing, much of it fits the bill of a typical drama that is willing to tackle some hot topics that many shows refuse to touch, such as teenage alcoholism, teenage homelessness, discovering one’s sexuality, and discovering one’s identity. While music is incorporated in, much of the show is focused on the characters rather than the play and, with this, Rise has captured my interest.
Watching Lou do what he has to do towards the end of the episode regarding Gordy is heartbreaking, and I’m not so sure I’d be able to make the same decision. It certainly shows how loving Lou is; he is willing to forever change the dynamic between him and his son in order to do what he feels is best for his son. I am very impressed with him for this. It’ll be very interesting to see how this relationship continues to evolve, especially considering the fact that Coach Strickland (Joe Tippett) is now in the fold, as well.
My heart breaks for Simon. The fact that his parents decide to do that at the end of the episode all because they aren’t super fond of his character in “Spring Awakening” is both awful, a gross overreaction, and heartbreaking. I hope the situation changes, but things look set in stone right now, and I think his situation will only worsen as the season goes along.
(*Spoiler for the first episode of the show in next paragraph)
I like that there are ramifications for the drama department’s actions at the end of the pilot episode, which saw them burn the costumes. That scene is what made me feel like the show was a tad unrealistic, as the principal seemed content to allow it to happen, so seeing that there are actual consequences for the action (although the punishment is on the lighter side) is very nice.
(*Spoiler over)
Watching Michael’s face as he enters the locker room is very heartwarming. I like Michael a lot and hope that he continues to experience nothing but success.
Robbie seems to be a really nice guy, but I’m not sure if he and (blank, as to avoid a spoiler) are going to work out, or if they even should give it a try. Still, I feel bad for (blank) as we watch her realize this is probably the case.
Gwen’s backstory makes me like her character a bit more – before, she seemed to be caught up in herself but, after watching her dinner scene, it is clear that this isn’t really her fault. Her solo scene when she is onstage is really sad, yet actually shows me that she is going to be okay, in a really strange way.
With another major shakeup in the musical seeming to be on the horizon, it will be interesting to see how everyone reacts. Hopefully, there aren’t any major issues, but I’m sure there will be!
Verdict
I very much enjoyed “Most of All to Dream.” I think the casting choices are perfect, and I can empathize with every single character. While there are a multitude of characters, the show is not difficult to follow, and I feel like I can relate to just about every character, in one way or another. My only true gripe is that I believe the punishment for the shenanigans from the pilot episode is far too light. Besides that, I legitimately cannot think of an issue that I have with the episode, which is pretty incredible. I am already looking forward to another 43 minutes of Rise on NBC next Tuesday @ 9!
9.75/10
