2492 replies to this topic

[c3k]

So I know there's gotta be Secret Life fans out there....for those of you that are, have you seen the promos for the show coming on after it? It's called Make It or Break It, about a team of would-be Olympic gymnasts. I like the premise and it looks like a good follow-up show to Secret Life...I'm liking my Monday night summer tv so far!

[Featherhat]

Wow, I remember hearing about this earlier in the year . I was a gymnast for while, trained every day after school for 2 years, was never near Olympic or even Championship standard though.

Should be interesting. There's going to be a hell of a lot of stunts, I wonder how they'll handle those. Because I doubt many of the actors can do much and that insurance would let them if they could (and they'd be majorly screwed for filming if an accident happened.) But in that little clip they seemed to be the same people. Some good change overs and SFX.

Nice to see Peri Gilpin get some more work as well. But some of the actors look a little old, especially as there will probably be a few seasons build up to an Olympics.

Edited by Featherhat, May 28, 2009 @ 4:16 PM.

[Susanlea]

I'm looking forward to seeing Anthony Starke on a regular basis!

[c3k]

That's so cool that you were a gymnast! I don't know if I could ever have that kind of discipline, especially to be Olympic caliber. I think the show will definitely be interesting to see all the work that goes into training to be an elite level gymnast. I know I was obsessed w/ the whole competition during last year's Olympics - and yeah, it should be cool to see all the stunt work involved!

[Featherhat]

Well I didn't really have the discipline (or skill) to carry on doing it to the exclusion of every other part of my social life when I started high school. My family and decided it wasn't worth it just like Peri Gilpin's character seems to be wondering.

I think this could be a hit for ABC Family, watching gymnastics is a lot of people's favourite part of the Olympics and it fits quite well with Secret Life I think.

[Peterased]

Fun fact: this show used to be called Perfect 10. I suspect the name changed when someone at ABC Family figured out what's at Perfect10.com (which is not at all safe for work, unless you happen to work in porn).

[Susanlea]

The other possible reason for the name change, although the web site would be a great reason why, is ABC Family has another new series starting this summer called "10 Things I Hate about You" and I guess they want to avoid confusion.

[c3k]

Interesting about the title. I think Make It or Break It works, though...kind of a good metaphor for the Olympic AND teenage life experience, right?

Yeah, I also think it's a good follow-up to Secret Life. It's appealing for the same kind of reason, but it's still different enough with the kinds of characters, relationships and of course, the whole gymnastics thing :P

[Susanlea]

Happy Birthday, Anthony (Steve Tanner) Starke! Looking forward to seeing you on this show!

[soapygirl]

Third reason for eliminating the "perfect 10" is that in the elite (meaning Olympic/World Champion level) you can't get a perfect 10 anymore. They changed the scoring system so that it's open ended and now gymnasts get scores in the 13-15 range. Some of the Olympians in Beijing were getting up to 17.

Anyway as a long time gymnastics fan I can almost garantee this show will be a festival of innacuracies. From just the few promo I counted at least 3-4 major things that didn't seem very realistic.

[Susanlea]

Anyway as a long time gymnastics fan I can almost garantee this show will be a festival of innacuracies. From just the few promo I counted at least 3-4 major things that didn't seem very realistic.

Well, in TV they sacrifice accuracy for ease of story telling. I usually just snark on what I know is wrong and enjoy the humor that results.

[Cherzdotes]

Anyway as a long time gymnastics fan I can almost garantee this show will be a festival of innacuracies. From just the few promo I counted at least 3-4 major things that didn't seem very realistic.

Starting with the fact that all of the girls shown look way too tall? Also, the scene where "The one they found on a PLAYGROUND!" runs towards the vault springboard and then her feet are shown taking off at the weirdest angle I've ever seen, followed by a huge gasp. :::GASP!:::: I've seen vault crashes, but never one that looked quite like that. Yeah, um... no.

As a former gymnast I'm sure I'll check this out. However, if this is aimed at the Secret Life fans, I'm pretty sure I'll hate it. (I'm still shaking my head in wonder at what the hell Molly Ringwald was thinking.)

But here's to hoping that the snark is plentiful!

[c3k]

Yeah, I can see how those little inaccuracies might annoy hardcore fans (when I see movies about soccer like She's The Man, I'm like...really? REALLY?!) But I think for the casual gymnastics fan, those won't matter as much...and I agree w/ Susan that when it comes to TV shows, the storytelling trumps realism. I mean, as long as it's real enough and it's enjoyable, you know? I think it'll be enjoyable

[soapygirl]

Starting with the fact that all of the girls shown look way too tall? Also, the scene where "The one they found on a PLAYGROUND!" runs towards the vault springboard and then her feet are shown taking off at the weirdest angle I've ever seen, followed by a huge gasp. :::GASP!:::: I've seen vault crashes, but never one that looked quite like that. Yeah, um... no.

Actually I saw a picture of Nastia Liukin the 2008 Olympic AA champ with some of the actresses and she was taller than them, but of course Nastia is unusually tall for an elite gymnast 5'4 or so.) they could all stand to buff a bit, none of them have the musclature of a real athlete.

And the vault had me laughing, if she had done that in real life she'd not be able to get over the vault. She'd probably bump into it.

And while Nadia Commenci got scouted from a playground it's not likely that would happen today.

[Featherhat]

None of the girls look like top level gymnasts and yes she should have done a nose dive into the vault but I am going to try and look passed those things because a) they aren't chosing girls based on gymnastic bodies and skills, but acting and b) I'm sure its very difficult to get the stunts exactly right when they have to switch between actors and stunt gynasts and make it look like the same person. Even if they had offered a role to an actual ex professional gymnast chances are she wouldn't have been able to do her own stunts anyway because of insurance and what happens to the series if she badly injures herself.

The fact that they are even attempting a gymnast based series with apparently lots of action and stunts is very ambitious in itself, so whilst it will be snark worthy I give them snaps for that. I enjoy "Secret Life" purely for the unbelivable comedy value Brenda Hampton's idea of "real "teen" (or even human) life" brings to it so it can't get any "worse" than that.

Edited by Featherhat, Jun 10, 2009 @ 5:54 PM.

[Cherzdotes]

And the vault had me laughing, if she had done that in real life she'd not be able to get over the vault. She'd probably bump into it.

Exactly. If someone actually left the springboard at that angle, she'd crash into the horse with her stomach. In fact that shot actually looks to me like someone ran, jumped onto the board and then just jumped straight ahead - no rotation whatsoever.

And while Nadia Commenci got scouted from a playground it's not likely that would happen today.

Right, and it's been awhile since I read the Mary Lou / Bela book, but wasn't Nadia 6 or so at the time? That's hardly the same as finding a teen / pre teen and turning her into an elite gymnast.

Yeah, I can see how those little inaccuracies might annoy hardcore fans... But I think for the casual gymnastics fan, those won't matter as much...and I agree w/ Susan that when it comes to TV shows, the storytelling trumps realism. I mean, as long as it's real enough and it's enjoyable, you know?

I don't disagree, but it's harder to suspend disbelief if the inaccuracies are so blatant. But this is a determination I'm making based on a promo. Who knows what the storyline will actually be, let alone the quality of the writing or acting. It may be great... or not. Who knows? We'll all just have to wait and see.

[soapygirl]

I wonder if they could have just gone ahead and cast gymnasts into these roles? I mean let's face it, this kind of show isn't attracting Academy/Emmy award calibur acting and it might be easier to train athletes to act rather than vice versa.

[Susanlea]

I wonder if they could have just gone ahead and cast gymnasts into these roles? I mean let's face it, this kind of show isn't attracting Academy/Emmy award calibur acting and it might be easier to train athletes to act rather than vice versa.

I would think that gymnasts might be more interested in pursuing their gymnastic career rather than risk getting hurt doing a TV show.

[Featherhat]

Even if they did get ex gymnasts who therefore looked the part and would be able to complete the stunts accurately, they still wouldn't be allowed to do a lot of the routines personally because of the risks of getting injured and then the headache that would cause the production. Imagine if the lead broke a limb badly and would be in plaster/bed for months, and it wouldn't always be easy to write into the script. Not to mention that a lot of accuracy is sacrified for the sake of story, not just actors, like most medical and cop shows could be more accurate they just chose not to be because they want A to happen so C does down the line.

Having said that I wouldn't be surprised if real life gymnasts did pop up, especially Shawn Johnson because she already has a connection with ABC due to her DWTS win.

Edited by Featherhat, Jun 11, 2009 @ 2:49 PM.

[c3k]

I would love see some real life gymnasts guest on the show! I think Shawn Johnson would also be a pretty good bet. I think she actually also did a cameo on Secret Life last fall. Since that's MIOBI's lead-in show, I wouldn't be surprised if she popped up on this too, would make sense right? I'd like to see Nastia Lukin on there as well.

Good call on the injury risk factor too. I mean, obviously they're going to use stunt doubles for long shots of the gymnastics but yeah, you can't get the actual actors injured on set! I saw a 10 minute clip of the show on Facebook (the link is here) that shows a TON of the gymnastics and stunts, and I think they do a pretty seamless job of transitioning between the gymnastics and the actors themselves. That, plus it sets up the show to have some pretty intense rivalries. It kinda reminds me of that line in Stick It - "It's not called Gym-Nice-tics!" :P

[Cherzdotes]

I love that line. In fact, maybe that should be added to the thread title.

[c3k]

haha...I'm not sure how to change the thread title? That is a pretty classic line, I have to say. I think that girl Lauren is going to be one of those characters I'm going to love to hate. The actress who plays her (Cassie Scerbo) played Brooke in Bring It On 2 and she was REALLY good at playing the mean girl. Yeah, she's probably not going to make gymnastics nice, haha.

[c3k]

Series premiere tonight!!! Finally. I've been seeing a ton of promos on ABC Family. Are ya'll excited to check it out tonight???

[Susanlea]

I am! Nice to see ABCFAM promoting this show. Hope it does well.

[Featherhat]

haha...I'm not sure how to change the thread title? That is a pretty classic line, I have to say.

I think maybe you PM a mod. I think that quote should definitely go in the title it would seem to sum this show up completely.

The 10 min promo was interesting. I think they are doing a good job of transitioning between the stunt gymnasts and the actors so it seems real even if a lot of the footwork/positions/take offs are wrong. And that scene between Peri Gilpin and her husband rang very true to me. I was never good enough to be able to compete internationally but I and my family have up a lot of other stuff for a few years to have me train every day and travel to competitions all around the UK.

I don't expect it to be at all accurate and I will snark on that but also looking forward to it as it is ambitious and somewhat different to the average teen show.

[Athelyna]

I watched the premiere, and the nasty girl is officially nonredeemable for me. Screwing with another girls vault setting so she has a potentially fatal fall, that's just beyond wrong. I actually found it rather unbelievable that the main character could supposedly fall on her head/neck like that and be up and able to vault just a short time later. I would think any gym with any sense of liability and litigious possibilities would force her into an ambulance, no matter how she says she feels. I'm not a doctor, but everything I've ever read says accidents with potential head/neck/spinal injuries are to be taken extremely seriously. Even if she thinks she's fine, she could still have injuries that would mess with her balance and awareness, and possibly cause even more damage in trying another vault. I'll probably watch the show again next week, but if they make me try to feel for the mean girl or have further serious accidents with no repercussions, I'm out.

[KaveDweller]

I watched the premiere, and the nasty girl is officially nonredeemable for me.

I thought so too, but it seems like they aren't going to try. I think the new gym sets her up as openly being the main villain (as opposed to just being secretly bitchy) that the other three are competing against.

[ZoeMc]

I work in gymnastics and we've been getting pretty heavy promos within the industry. I'd like to recommend this show because -- lets face it -- shows about a particular sport always promote and create interest. I was suprised however by the language, and therefore I won't be recommending it to our young families. I'm sure the pre-teens/young teens will watch it anyway, but I'll have to warn the parents of our younger students that it may not be appropriate, and that's a shame because I know the girls would like to watch a show about their chosen sport.

While I've been known to make my husband blush with my cursing, and I'm the farthest thing from a prude, I certainly don't use those words at work (even relatively minor ones), and I wouldn't expect a show on ABC Family, aimed primarily at pre-teen girls, to throw in an "ass" here and there. In the end, it's probably a blessing because I'm sure the themes will eventually be inappropriate for very young viewers so maybe the language will run those families off before we get to the bulemia/anorexia, unexpected pregnancy, fooling around with a coach storylines.

[ReachforDreams]

That mean girl is just nasty. Not even a lovable Regina from Mean Girls mean. I tried to sympathize with her. I did. Then the show just went on...I mean it would be different if she worked extremely hard and stayed late, but it's just another spolied teen.

Interesting show though! Not entirely accurate, but I liked it. I'm tuning it next week!

[strawberryblond]

I agree the mean girl is just too evil. She almost ruins the show for me. Villains are great and all, but they need some complexity to work. I just want this one to disappear.

I thought the show was pretty bad (mostly due to the extreme lack of realism), but I can't stay away from anything gymnastics-related so I'm sure I'll keep watching it. There was a lot of actual gymnastics- I would think this is really limiting the people who will want to watch the show because I can't imagine enjoying it unless you enjoy watching gymnastics.