M.V.P.

MVP was a huge mistake on every level I can possibly imagine. The acting, writing, directing and production as a whole in every way was simply put, pathetic. It is one of those shows where we are left wondering "how did something that bad get put on television in the first place?" The basic premise is that this is a soap-type drama about professional hockey players and their wives. Sorry but whoever thought that just because this is Canada you can make up a show revolving around hockey and have it be good is just plain wrong, this show is terrible. The most annoying thing was the characters, they were all unbelievable and horrible, and that had a lot to do with the awful acting.

Except for the glossy look, this show had little to recommend it. The writing was patronizing and convoluted. Without exception the characters were shallow and unsympathetic. The female characters came off the worst... reduced to spoiled, selfish airheads whose soul ambition was to run around in slip dresses and stilettos, and try to bag a man. This aspect of the show is all the more curious as the series was produced by two women! The acting for the most part was dull and humourless with the cast playing one dimensional characters attacking every scene on the same note. This is not entirely the actors fault. Had they spent more time developing the characters and the storyline, adding a little injection of style and humour, MVP might have been a hit. What we're left with is something flat and vaguely unpleasant.

This show was really hard to watch. Incredibly boring start to finish with awful writing - actors are OK but the show was so stupid it didn't even matter because they are all wasted in this.

I just heard it was canceled. This is a HUGE mistake. I went against my best judgment and watched this show even though the advertisements on CBC made it look like an embarrassment. I actually can understand why there were not more viewers. You have to give people a taste of what makes this show addictive to watch and use that in the commercials for it. Instead, the ads make it look like a pitifully lame Canadian Desperate Housewives wannabe. I thought I'd give it a chance anyway just to see how bad it was. I ended up glued to the screen every week. Big budget, fast pace, tongue-in-cheek fun, over the top scandals, EXCITEMENT! It's not brain surgery folks, but this show had it all and now it's gone. Just plain fun to watch.

OK, I want to start off by saying :

a) Don't watch this if you consider hockey a religion b) Don't watch this if you can't stand women in lingerie c) Don't watch this if you can't stand drugs, violence, adultery, cheating etc.

Now that we have settled a few things, let me just say why you SHOULD watch this show : Because it is entertaining.

I don't recall the last time the CBC has offered a show with beautiful women, beautiful men, great acting and a catchy storyline. M.V.P is a big surprise for me, since I had decided not to watch it, thinking it was only a low budget production with strippers in it. I would love to take back what I said, because this show is a gem. It is very underrated and I cannot stand people bashing this show because of the sexuality and mature subject. Hello, there is a warning before the show that warns you not to watch it if you don't like these subjects...

The greatest aspect of the show is the contrast between the lighthearted subjects (which are treated with humor) and the more profound sad realities of life (which mostly revolve around the character of Trebuchet - great acting on his part also). This show should be watched for its entertainment values, I mean who doesn't love seeing women bickering and men fighting?

On another hand, the only bad thing I would point out would be the clichés and stereotypes that these women (in general) live out. The rich and beautiful women who don't care about their kids and end up being leech's, sucking their husband dry, that kinda character. But all in all, every character has a certain charm and intrigue.

Hopefully everyone gives this show a chance, and I actually took the time to write this review (which I don't normally do) because I was saddened by the bad press this show kept getting.