Each fall, most of the broadcast and cable networks debut a ton of new shows in the span of a few months, making it difficult to sort out which ones to make time for and which to skip. So we’re starting the WIRED Pilot Program, where we highlight what you should continue watching, and what you can just let sit on your DVR until it automatically deletes. Today's entry: I Love Dick
The Show: I Love Dick (Amazon)
The Premise: Loosely based on Chris Kraus’ novel of same name, I Love Dick follows a Brooklyn couple to Marfa, Texas where they both become infatuated with a cowboy intellectual named Dick (Kevin Bacon). Chris (Kathryn Hahn) is a filmmaker. Her husband, Sylvère (Griffin Dunne), is a writer. They’re both the kind of neurotic creatives that will likely become both more creative and neurotic as their weird infatuation with Dick grows.
The Pilot Program Take: This is showrunner (and patriarchy-toppler) Jill Soloway’s next project for Amazon, which means even if everyone onscreen seems like kind of a lot at first, there will be something about them that you can’t quite look away from. (It doesn’t hurt that two of the people here are Bacon, dusting off his Footloose swagger for his Dick, and Hahn, who as never been bad in anything ever, not even Bad Moms or Bad Words.)
But beyond the smart-weirdos-in-a-unique-situation scenario Dick sets up, there’s a lot of promising material to dig into here. For one, there are Sylvère’s classmates in the writing seminar he’s participating in with Dick. Only a few are introduced in the pilot, but you get the sense that anyone who would go to Marfa (or stay in Marfa) with an aloof academic like Dick is likely just as fun to unpack as the show’s central couple. There’s also Sylvère and Chris’ neighbors, who bring a certain level of Texas realness to the scene. Their neighbor Devon, for example, is the kind of person to loan Chris boots and write a play stoned—and that’s just in the pilot.
Then there’s the prospect of Dick himself. As Jen Chandler noted on Vulture, he’s the kind of guy whose pointed and prodding observations about life could easily inspire “ranty think pieces” or intense levels of interest (or both)—and in the hands of Soloway, it’ll likely be the latter. She creates characters you hate to love and Dick could be her masterpiece if she’s given enough leeway.
The Verdict: The jury will be out even longer than usual on this one. Because of Amazon’s policy of releasing pilots and letting viewers comment on them before committing to whole seasons, I Love Dick only just got picked up for a full season this week. So even though the pilot is out now, it’ll be months before we see where it goes. Keep your eyes open for this one, though.
TL;DR: You’ll love Dick, too.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLomoowuH7I
