Pilot Thoughts: Ringer

Here's a quick question to ponder over before diving into what I thought about Ringer's pilot: Would people have been excited for this show if Sarah Michelle Gellar wasn't in it? Maybe, but it definitely wouldn't have had the pre-buzz it had heading to its premiere. You can't really blame people for this though since it has been about eight years since Gellar has graced the small screens and that was when she starred in the best show ever. Unfortunately, this show is not Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Of course Ringer was never going to be like Buffy and I do hope that in time it'll get judged by its own merit versus people trying to compare it to Joss Whedon's show. With that said, I would still say it was a wobbly and clunky start that provided enough intrigue to coax me into giving it a few more episodes. Some of the problems I had with the premiere include its lazy dialogue, laughable green screen scenes, and the heavy-handed imagery (Mirrors! Everywhere! Get it?).

A few reviews I've read criticized the dullness of the characters, but I actually got into them much quicker than I thought. They weren't asked to do much in the premiere after all. The only relationship that I felt didn't really gel (or at least wasn't developed as much as I would've liked) was Bridgette's and Siobhan's which is a big problem since this is the central relationship of the show. Perhaps their relationship was purposefully left vague in order for the cliffhanger to work or perhaps Gellar isn't use to acting one-on-one with a body double. But if the show is going to improve, this relationship needs to be much more compelling than it was. B-