Right from the start, CBS wants you to know it's intent on accomplishing two things zapping you directly back into 1976 and convincing you that Jessica Fletcher doesn't live there. And boy, do they do it well. Before the show itself even starts, we see the actual CBS logo from that year a neon glowing eye, accompanied by the musical slogan, "Turn us on, we'll turn you on." Then wham we see what appears to be a scene of oral sex.
And even though "Swingtown" is a drama, the show's creator's take every opportunity to treat viewers to all the camp that symbolized the 1970s, and they do it with pinpoint precision: an airplane cabin decorated in garish orange and gold, populated by passengers wearing leisure suits and smoking cigarettes on board; a woman with a modified Dorothy Hamill hairdo opening a pull-top can of Tab; an episode of "The $10,000 Pyramid" featuring Tony Randall feeding clues to a contestant for the puzzle, "Things that are Spread;" men sporting bushy porn star mustaches and wearing Angels Flight pants or cut-off blue jeans shorts. Then there's the music nearly every scene has signature 70s pop tunes playing in the background The Captain and Tennille, Chicago, Seals and Crofts, Johnny Nash. If you were alive during this awkward decade, you won't be able to stop smiling, sometimes uncomfortably.
As for the show itself, well, it's deeply flawed, but it's got potential, mainly because of the terrific performances by the principle actors. Grant Show and Lana Parrilla play Tom and Trina Decker, an airline pilot and his former stewardess wife living in an upscale Chicago suburb. Their singular mission appears to be recruiting anyone and everyone to join them for group sex sessions. Jack Davenport and Molly Parker are the new, naive neighbors who immediately become the prey of the Deckers' lust hunt.
The Deckers invite the Parkers to their 4th of July party, where Jack and Molly discover Quaaludes, pot, cocaine, and orgies. Jack and Molly seem to get comfortable with it all a little too quickly, and by the end of the episode, they're sharing a bed with the Deckers. And as if all this weren't enough, there are other subplots involving involve teenage angst, a whacked-out and drug-addled neighbor, and possible allusions to budding homosexuality.
It's hard to know how long the show's writers can sustain the gimmick of 70s nostalgia while building a drama that revolves around key parties and wife swapping, but there's no doubt that it's going to be fun watching them try. I can't wait for the episode featuring the Pet Rock!
And even though "Swingtown" is a drama, the show's creator's take every opportunity to treat viewers to all the camp that symbolized the 1970s, and they do it with pinpoint precision: an airplane cabin decorated in garish orange and gold, populated by passengers wearing leisure suits and smoking cigarettes on board; a woman with a modified Dorothy Hamill hairdo opening a pull-top can of Tab; an episode of "The $10,000 Pyramid" featuring Tony Randall feeding clues to a contestant for the puzzle, "Things that are Spread;" men sporting bushy porn star mustaches and wearing Angels Flight pants or cut-off blue jeans shorts. Then there's the music nearly every scene has signature 70s pop tunes playing in the background The Captain and Tennille, Chicago, Seals and Crofts, Johnny Nash. If you were alive during this awkward decade, you won't be able to stop smiling, sometimes uncomfortably.
As for the show itself, well, it's deeply flawed, but it's got potential, mainly because of the terrific performances by the principle actors. Grant Show and Lana Parrilla play Tom and Trina Decker, an airline pilot and his former stewardess wife living in an upscale Chicago suburb. Their singular mission appears to be recruiting anyone and everyone to join them for group sex sessions. Jack Davenport and Molly Parker are the new, naive neighbors who immediately become the prey of the Deckers' lust hunt.
The Deckers invite the Parkers to their 4th of July party, where Jack and Molly discover Quaaludes, pot, cocaine, and orgies. Jack and Molly seem to get comfortable with it all a little too quickly, and by the end of the episode, they're sharing a bed with the Deckers. And as if all this weren't enough, there are other subplots involving involve teenage angst, a whacked-out and drug-addled neighbor, and possible allusions to budding homosexuality.
It's hard to know how long the show's writers can sustain the gimmick of 70s nostalgia while building a drama that revolves around key parties and wife swapping, but there's no doubt that it's going to be fun watching them try. I can't wait for the episode featuring the Pet Rock!