A look back at The OC from Fletcher and Paul..

One of the greatest shows of my generation ended a few years back unceremoniously as FOX pulled the plug on The OC right in the middle of Season Four while Taylor Townsend was in the middle of blooming into the NEW STAR of the show. Did the show make a mistake killing Marissa off? Yes, but she was leaving the show. Why didn't they just let her go out on a boat? I don't know. Probably punishing her for being a dbag (see previous blogs). But during its run, The OC was clearly a GREAT show that had writing to rival ANY teen drama EVER. Some folks say it was nothing but a rip-off of 90210, but I spit at those people.
The first episode caught me in the summer of 2003 when Fox had ordered 7 episodes for a Summer filler, in between episodes of Paradise Hotel. (PH was on Tuesdays and Thursdays, while The OC was on Wednesday and would reair on Fridays.) My first summer in Clayton was MADE! Those seven were HOT and the writing so zonetastic.

I feel that the season should have ended there, and it did, sort of with Marissa OD'ing in TJ. The remainder of Season one (really season two if you ask me) is where the writers tested what they could do. They failed with Oliver and with the Eddie/Ryan/Teresa storyline, but found a bit of gold with Anna and the Luke/Julie storyline. And if you didn't cry during that finale, you don't have a soul.

The writers got all of the kinks out in that season with the goodwill of the first seven episodes that they were ready to avoid a "sophomore slump" that most shows endure with season two, since they sort of already had it.

Season two was great IMO, except for the Trey/Risky Business episode and Season three brought back a villian for Ryan in Volchek.
Season four was a bit of a downer, except that it gave Taylor Townsend the chance to really shine, but her run was cut short by idiot Fox execs that wanted to air The Loop instead. (The same genii that cancelled Reunion, but let Til Death continue to drain life)
Sportsbyfletch Correspondent Paul Mac was a huge OC fan too (but it's OK, we do a sports radio show, so we are manly men that both also enjoy So You Think you Can Dance's Cat Deeley) and he and I exchanged thoughts on the writing of The OC

Fletcher:
I still say that The OC was SOOOOOO hot for the first "Summer Season" ie the first 7 episodes that the remainder of the first season was in fact garbage, but in Season 2, (as they called it) I felt the show was back.

Lindsey and Zack and even Alex's addition (before she turned gay. that was just a strange story twist and really, what was up with Marissa going gay?)

Season three died when Johnny died, though Volchek I thought was great.

Actually, I really liked season 3. I guess just episodes 8-23 of season 1, then EVERY SINGLE SCENE in season 4 NOT involving Taylor Townsend were crap.

But I did enjoy season 2, especially the rainy day episode AND the
Mallposode. certainly more better than not episodes.

Paul Mac Responded:
The summer season was brilliant television. I was a little sad that I knew all you talked about in your blog and was nodding my head (about Marissa). I feel a little ashamed for watching all those shows.

Still, I had a nice crush on Marissa Cooper early on before all that happened, and Alex is still pretty hot on House.

There were good and bad episodes of the OC after that. I'd still watch it if it were on though. I like the fake fake OC better than the "real" fake OC (ie The Hills and Newport Harbor).

Fletcher responded:
I don't know, you just can't beat Grant for this guy's money.
In all honesty though, I think the casting of Marissa was great, it was just that she couldn't expand her character at all. I am not sure when she was cast if she was expected to have as big a role as she had. I think the casting of Ryan and Marissa, and Seth and Summer (Adam Brody and Rachel Bilson) if they had been switched, you NEVER would have had this show turn the way it did. Atwood's character became a bit of a stiff in season 1's second half and the show more or less turned into The Seth Cohen show. It stayed that way. The rainy day episode for example. The Seth/Summer saga had CLEARLY upstaged the Ryan/Marissa drama. IT just had. I was MUCH more interested in whether they would get back together opposed to Ryan and Marissa. If fact, I think Ryan had better chemisty with Lindsey, but they kicked her off. Ryan and Taylor (though that was maybe all Taylor again) was even better than Ryan/Marissa.

And are Sandy and Kirstin the best TV parents EVER? Maybe Eric and Tammy Taylor from FNL, but I vote the Sand-man and the Lush. They just seemed to fit together. Why the writers tried to mess with that, I don't know, but they were the PERFECT parents/couple.

Overall, this show dragged a bit at the end, but ONLY I think because we were all expecting the greatness of the summer season to continue. Even comets darken and I guess that is what happened. But I agree with Paul, if this was still on, I'd watch it...probably because Taylor Townsend would be front and center of the show.