Summer Mondays are looking up! The reason: Lifetime’s wickedly entertaining new drama UnREAL. The premiere episode of the drama, about the juicy behind-the-scenes manipulation on a Bachelor-esque reality show, is chock-full of scheming, lust, manipulation, and sex. It’s also driven by fantastic performances from two standout females, which is always wonderful to see.
The June 1 premiere episode introduced the key players — both in front of and behind the fake cameras — and showed why it'll keep you glued to your TV this summer. Here are the highlights from the premiere:
Everlasting Love
The scripted UnREAL takes a scathing look at the behind-the-scenes scheming on dating competition shows like The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. In this show, the Bachleor stand-in is called Everlasting, and is compelling, fascinating, and totally addictive. The series, cannily premiering on the same night The Bachelorette airs (conveniently in the time slot just after the reality hit), was inspired by former Bachelor producer Sarah Gertrude Shapiro's award-winning independent short film Sequin Raze.
Girl Power
Shiri Appleby's performance as a superstar producer is like nothing we’ve seen from her before. She’s been in popular shows like Chicago Fire, Girls, and Roswell, but as Rachel Goldberg, a cunning producer who knows how to find and manage women who will be prime fodder for trainwreck television, Appleby gives a shaded, memorable performance. By the end of the premiere, we've learned that Rachel had a crisis of conscience and melted down during the filming of the previous season of Everlasting, but the desire for a paycheck (and the legal restitution she owes) brings her crawling back. Rachel is living in a production trailer, working around the clock, and in debt, but also incredibly good at her job.
No, Really, Ladies Rule
Constance Zimmer rules the roost as no-nonsense, driven executive producer Quinn King. Her name is King but she’s the queen of this little TV fiefdom and nothing happens without her knowledge, thanks to the ever-present cameras and surveillance system throughout the Everlasting house and grounds. Quinn has very personal ties to the show because of her ongoing affair with Everlasting creator Chet, played by Craig Bierko. Where else can Quinn find love when she literally works 24/7? Quinn also becomes a maternal figure to Rachel, her star producer, and likes to pit her producers against each other, baiting them with bonuses if they get the women to fight, call 911, or cry. All Quinn King wants is good TV and nothing gets in the way of her quest for it.
The Dudes Are Hot, Though
Everlasting bachelor Adam is allegedly looking for love, but he has other, self-serving reasons for participating in the dating circus. Actor Freddie Stroma looks like Chicago Fire star Jesse Spencer’s twin brother, which is mildly distracting, but he’s very good as a TV-friendly British bachelor who has no problem getting friendly with his castmates. Adam quickly learns how to play to the cameras, always keeping in mind how to make himself look good and promote his hotel business. He's slightly smarmy yet charming, unlike many real dating competition bachelors, who are often boring.
Pointed Criticism
UnREAL is a show ABC could never make about The Bachelor and The Bachelorette, a smartly observed drama that examines how people use television exposure on dating shows for wildly varying reasons: to seek love, or more likely, to seek fame and a way to make the public remember their name. It’s also a scathing commentary on the complete sham of many dating competition shows, where mostly everyone has an agenda that doesn’t have anything to do with love or romance.
Tell Us: What was your favorite part of the UnREAL premiere? Will you keep watching?
