Fall is back! Midseason is back! Pilot season is back! Seasonal broadcast TV development is back on track!
Ordinary Joe had no ordinary path to series. It was originally written in 2009 by Matt Reeves. The pilot wasn’t ordered by NBC until January 2020, in that fateful before-time, the script having been bought but not ready for 2019. Matt Reeves had just EP’d The Passage – one of those special single season series that gives me chills just thinking about it. (The ending was devastating!). Sometimes a push is the right answer – a lot of momentum was lost in the following year for new series. Some of the pilot had been filmed by March 16, 2020. Filming resumed late 2020 and it was ordered to series end of March 2021. By the time it premiered for Fall 2021, the slate was bare and it had a fighting chance.
“Every decision you make, you write your own life story. But you don’t always get to write your own ending. All you can do is chase what you love and see what’s next.”
I enjoyed this series. I love time travel stories, and this related to different timelines. I also really connected to the main character’s love of Billy Joel. During the time this aired I got super into the Billy Joel Sirius XM channel and realized how much I love Billy Joel too. The channel went dead one day and I found out that it was only a temporary channel to promote the live concerts returning to MSG. I was upset! Episode 107 aired shortly after and filled the void. I’ll always appreciate that.
I also appreciate that Joe’s best friend Eric comes out as bisexual to Joe in an onscreen flashback and develops cute, healthy relationships with both men and women onscreen!
One of the strongest aspects of the series is the attention to the character of Joe and Jenny’s son. In every timeline he has a strong character, striking voice, and a form of muscular dystrophy. The kid steals every scene he’s in and is so much fun to watch. I found myself looking forward to his scenes most of all.
I rewatched some episodes as I was writing this, and it stands up to a light rewatch. I’m pleased with the way the first season turned out and look forward to season 2.
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