October Road: Season One

There is an old saying that ‘you can’t go home anymore’. Whether your childhood experiences where good or bad your home town or neighbor doesn’t exist in the same way you remember it. Friends grow up, move out and move on. This is the core premise of the ABC television series, ‘October Road’. Here a young man has made a success for himself but in the process burned some proverbial bridges in his home town. When he returns later he attempts to fit the pieces back together. For ABC this was a mid season replacement. Instead of a normal 22-24 episode season or even a 13 episode short season this show had only six episodes in the spring to prove itself. In some ways it is amazing that ABC picked the series up. The pilot was not exactly the best one ever aired, smacking of overly sentimental moments strung together in a way that is too familiar. Yet there was something almost comforting about the premise. The thing here is the show grows on you. The characters are just so well portrayed that you can find yourself pulled in. Sometimes a series has to work to find its niche. The five remaining episodes of the abbreviated first season just seem to improve; you can almost watch the writers finding their groove.

The series centers on Nick Garrett (Bryan Greenberg), the prodigal son of the small town of Knights Ridge, Massachusetts. Back in 1997 he left home to study a few weeks in Europe. Eventually he winds up living in New York City plying his craft as a writer. In the post 9-11 environment his novel of growing up in a small American town, ‘Turtle on a Snare Drum’ becomes an instant success. It is even brought up as a film and Nick is an author and screenwriter. Like many writes Nick drew heavily upon his own experiences and included very thinly disguised versions of his friends in his novel. They were not always portrayed in the best light, however. Nick is growing bored with his existence going to one social gathering after another. He is also afraid that his success with a film and a novel makes him little more than a one hit wonder. He has writer’s block, as most television characters who are writers seem to have. Things begin to change for our intrepid protagonist when he receives an offer to teach a one day seminar at Dufresne College, located, where else, back in his home town. To make matters just a little more interesting and give some rational for the series’ title, the university is located on October Road. This is the dividing line between the right and wrong side of the town; those living on one side look down on those on the other. With some trepidation Nick accepts the offer and goes back home for the first time in a decade.

Once there he meets up with his old friends. Hannah Daniels (Laura Prepon) was the love of Nick’s life. She is now a single mother of a ten year old boy, Sam (Slade Pearce). He is a bright boy with a killer vocabulary and more importantly an allergy to peanuts. It seems that all male members of Nick’s family, including our hero, have a similar aversion. This makes Nick think that he should stick around town. His one day lecture was a bomb but he manages to talk the Dean (Penny Johnson) into letting him stay on the faculty. Nick’s father, called the Commander (Tom Berenger) also sees the resemblance and is sure of the paternity. I guess Dad never put things together for the last ten years. Since this is a small town on television there are more than enough strange characters to go around. Nick’s boyhood best friend, Eddie Latekka (Geoff Stults), is still in town. The two were going to open a window hanging business back in the day. The high school bully, Ray 'Big Cat' Cataldo (Warren Christie) only got meaner and more prejudice over the years. This is a soap opera and you need someone to be the bad guy. He dated Hannah ten years ago and many think he is Sam’s father. Physical Phil (Jay Paulson) has become extremely agoraphobic after the 9-11 attacks. He is infatuated with the pizza delivery girl (Lindy Booth), imaginative called in the credits, Pizza Girl. There is also a mutual attraction between Nick and one of his female students, Aubrey (Odette Yustman) forming the required love triangle. There is also Janet "The Planet" Meadows (Rebecca Field) who winds up accepting a date with the town womanizer, Eddie.

In order to get the most from this series you have to accept it for what it is, a night time soap opera. Many may look down on this genre of television but let’s face it there is a reason why some soaps have lasted for decades, people love them. There is an addictive nature to the beast and that holds for this show. Although the series gets off to a rough start you have to remember that there is a lot of back story to get through to set up the present situations. The emotional reactions are frequently over the top but that is part of the genre. The series depends on the strong cast and spot on direction. He flows nicely after it gets going and has the potential for a much stronger second season. Six episodes are not enough to really tell the story and I look forward to its return.

Bryan Greenberg does well as the angst filled Nick. He is a capable actor who can project the necessary emotions in proper measure. He also has that small town boy made good vibe that helps him carry the role. I look forward to see what he does with his role next season. For a female lead in this type of series Laura Prepon was an excellent choice. She is best known for her long standing role in the hit ‘70’s Show’ but here she demonstrates that she is able to play more dramatic parts. It might be the Celtic genes in me but I would prefer her to go back to her natural red hair instead of the brash blonde she sports here. She sells her character as a single mother who never thought she would see Nick again. Not many actors can switch between television and films as easily as Tom Berenger. He can work as an excellent character actor or leading man with flair. Always a pleasure to watch he adds a lot to this series.

You have to give credit to the ABC network and their parent company Buena Vista. At at time when so many quality series are axed before they have a chance to get going they have decided to give this one a opportunity to find its footing and audience. ABC has some of the highest rated series on television and they find they are able to go with what many may consider a long shot. The anamorphic 1.78:1 video was not quite up to contemporary standards, it has some problems with clarity. The colors are some times muted but over all it is passable. The Dolby 5.1 audio is focused on the front speakers and has reasonable channel separation. For extras there is a behind the scenes featurette of the production and a look at next season. Give this one a shot, you won’t be disappointed.

Posted 10/20/07