'The Newsroom' Premiere: 6 Moments That Made Us Cringe
Full disclosure: I am a woman and I like HBO’s The Newsroom. I don’t hate-watch it, and I don’t watch it because I’m an entertainment reporter and it’s my job. I fall squarely in the faction of people that watch by choice and genuinely like it.
I love a good Aaron Sorkin-penned speech, and I love the idealistic spin on reality that fills his shows.
But with all that said, I understand why people don’t like it, and I can’t disagree with the argument that the women — particularly Emily Mortimer, Olivia Munn, and Alison Pill’s characters — are written really, startlingly poorly. It kind of breaks my heart, especially given the strength of some of the ladies on Sorkin’s previous projects, namely C.J. Cregg from The West Wing and Dana Whitaker from Sports Night. For the past two seasons, I’ve prayed to the TV gods that Sorkin would figure this out.
Related: Aaron Sorkin: I’m Done With TV After ‘The Newsroom’
Sadly, if Sunday night’s premiere is any indication, he hasn’t. Here are the six moments that really made me cringe:
1. She Wants How Many Bridesmaids?!
You’re really going to open the season with this? MacKenzie McHale is naming nine bridesmaids. That seems like an awful lot for a woman as independent and intelligent as she is supposed to be. “My sisters, your sisters, Sheila, Sloan, Maggie, and Diane,” she rattles off. The sisters, I’ll grant her. Maybe even Sloan. But Maggie? And Diane, as in Diane Sawyer? Yeesh.
Kudos for Mac? No, but we’ll give a point to Will for this scene. “Nine bridesmaids is madness!” Thank you. I couldn’t have said it better myself.
2. Sloan Is Oblivious
Sloan Sabbith is supposed to be whip-smart, but apparently she doesn’t read her email. From the time between the bomb going off at the Boston Marathon and Don getting dismissed from jury duty and walking into Sloan’s office had to have been at least 30 minutes. Having worked in news as it’s breaking, I assure you, she would have received at least 50 emails in that time. And she would have looked away from her fancy new financial screens at some point to make sure no major news had broken — and seen that it had — if she were half as smart as she’s supposed to be.
Kudos for Sloan? She was pretty quick on her feet when an expert started to give the recipe for a bomb on air.
Related: ‘The Newsroom’ Premiere: Olivia Munn Says, ‘Season 3 Is Our Best Season Yet’
3. And Again
A woman such as Sloan, who doesn’t sleep at home but has the wherewithal to pick up a new dress before going to work so her co-workers don’t know about her extracurricular activities, is also the type of woman who’s going to remember to remove — or at least tuck in — the tags. Further, she’s going to feel them. Right away.
Kudos for Sloan? At least she later admitted that she’s not so good at the whole sneaking-around thing.
4. What’s Out the Window?
When Will is questioning why he was left Greek yogurt instead of all the bacon he requested, Mac is hiding as best she can and looking out the window. Own it, girl. Donna Moss certainly would have.
Kudos for Mac? Nah, but we’ll give one to intern Jenna, who stood up to Will’s incessant barking.
Related: Know Your Jeff Daniels: Who Said It, Will McAvoy or Harry Dunne?
5. Since When Does Maggie Wear Glasses?
Maggie gets a couple of big breaks as a producer in this episode, and it’s nice to see, given her big breakdowns in Season 2. But when her moment to appear on camera comes, it’s apparently time for her to look “smart” — and that means more than just putting on MacKenzie’s black dress, lipstick, and Louboutins. I can’t say I’ve ever seen Maggie wearing glasses before; it’s a little befuddling why she would now.
Kudos for Maggie? She nailed it.
6. It’s a Black Dress, for Goodness Sake
Spectacles aside, Maggie going on camera was a big moment. Had Will, Don, or Jim been on the line with her just beforehand, they would have told her to relax and given her a pep talk. But what does her mentor, MacKenzie, say? “If you get a stain on the dress, club soda and salt, but it has to be right away. And you have to tell the dry cleaner…” Really?!
Kudos for Mac? There’s really no hope for her, is there?
One last thought: Jane Fonda’s Leona Lansing — easily the strongest female on the show — pops up in next week’s episode, so we have that to look forward to.
The Newsroom airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO.
