Eastwick – Fall TV Preview

Starting Wednesday, September 23rd at 10:00pm est, ABC is adding witches to the mix of supernatural popularity with Eastwick. Based on Updike’s classic, and the film, the theory of the show is to mash small-town New England life with a fun, wild trip through untethered wish-fulfillment. As the residents of a truly tiny speck on the map (which looks a hell of a lot like Stars Hollow) go about their fairly mundane existence, and all the seething drama that apparently entails, three women begin to discover strange things are going on, which are perhaps connected to the town’s new resident.

ABC/BOB D'AMICO

Roxanne, Kat, and Joanna not only aren’t friends as the show opens, they specifically dislike each other. After a strange event brings them together, they find they connect, and that there is more going on than the easy stereotypes they have used to label each other. As they each run into Darryl Van Horne, the changes they dream of seem to start coming true, and in the oddest of ways.

The trick of a show like Eastwick is how the elements are combined, and I’m not convinced by the pilot that the aim is quite true. On the other hand, the first episode is geared toward such a routine sense of establishment, that it’s hard to say for sure how things will develop.

For the story to play out to its best effect (if Updike can be believed), we have to develop our whole town such that it would make a workable and interesting story without the magic, then throw magic at it. It’s Peyton Place with witches thrown in, not Sabrina the thirty-something witch. And, it’s got to be rather dark and ugly, even when not dealing with anything supernatural.

ABC/ROBERT VOETS

So far, Eastwick feels as though it’s trying to be a little too friendly. It may be aiming too hard at its target demographic, instead of making the best possible version of the show it can, and letting the chips fall where they may. It has its dark moments, and two out of the three witches are well-played and likable, but the connections throughout the town seem a little forced and thrown together almost as an afterthought.

There are positive hints that things might come together pretty well, but I can’t say there are strong hints, or that I’m confident about anything. This is just such a difficult attempt, and nothing has come through enough that I believe the show has what it takes to avoid turning corny, farcical, or just plain boring.

I don’t mind recommending the pilot, because if it happens to work out it could develop into something wickedly (ha) fun, but use caution.

Below check out more detail on the characters from the press release, and some clips.

ABC's "Eastwick" stars Jaime Ray Newman as Kat Gardener. (ABC/BOB D'AMICO)

The free-spirited and artistic widow Roxanne lives by her own rules; with a much younger boyfriend and a cash flow problem, she doesn’t exactly cultivate favor among her neighbors. But Darryl’s arrival in Eastwick seems to indicate that a change for the better is coming for Roxanne and her teen-aged daughter, Mia. What doesn’t change are Roxie’s vivid dreams, which may be premonitions for an exciting but dangerous future.

Joanna just wishes she could shut her mouth sometimes, especially as the most inappropriate words spill out at the most inappropriate times. But Darryl tells this uptight, bespectacled reporter that, if she would just look someone straight in the eye, she can give a proper voice to what she wants… and get it. To her shock, it works – namely on her longtime crush, Will. But is it real?

ABC's "Eastwick" stars Lindsay Price as Joanna Frankel. (ABC/BOB D'AMICO)

Kat wants a change in her life. A nurse, she possesses natural healing abilities and has an uncanny green thumb. But her powers can be destructive too, as she discovers when Raymond, her unemployed husband who spends his days observing life from a hammock with a can of beer, becomes their unintentional target.

As these enchanting women realize their talents, it doesn’t necessarily bode well for some of the locals. Darryl’s wealth stirs the pot just as Eastwick is going through tough times. When he quickly buys up the local businesses, including the town’s newspaper, candle factory and a long-empty mansion, the locals become understandably curious about just who Darryl Van Horne is.

Among the curious is Joanna’s co-worker and best friend, Penny. Since Darryl appeared on the scene, Joanna’s been spending more and more time with Kat and Roxie – which means less time with Penny. Left behind, she decides to investigate the man who’s stolen her friend.

ABC's "Eastwick" stars Rebecca Romijn as Roxanne (Roxie) Torcoletti. (ABC/BOB D'AMICO)

Bun, the head of the Eastwick Historical Society, is like the fun and kooky aunt that Roxie never had. When Bun suddenly plunges into a coma at the very moment the three women spark a connection, waking only to blurt a bizarre warning about Darryl, it becomes clear that she may be a key to his mystery.

Eastwick is turned upside down as these enchanting women come into their own, but it’s still the best thing to happen to this small New England town in centuries.

Eastwick stars Ashley Benson as Mia Torcoletti, Jon Bernthal as Raymond Gardener, Veronica Cartwright as Bun Waverly, Jamie Ray Newman as Kat Gardener, Lindsay Price as Joanna Frankel, Rebecca Romijn as Roxanne (Roxie) Torcoletti, Sara Rue as Penny Higgins, Johann Urb as Will St. David and Paul Gross as Darryl Van Horne.