Hidden Palms

Forget the WB, Hidden Palms should uproot to NBC. I'm usually not a fan of the soap opera-types either, but this show really had me on the edge of my seat & looking forward to the next episodes.

I didn't actually work on this show, but I know some of the crew/cast & the casting director, so that's how I heard of it, and honestly I watched the pilot expecting to see a good attempt at a Dawson's creek-type show. What I ended up seeing was a great ensemble, with Handley & Cassidy coming over from the OC, and Amber's oh so mysterious yet sexy performance as Greta (she's in Pineapple Express, coming out August 2008, go see it!), everyone gave it that real-life, but not real feel to it. Like it's a sort of twilight-zone community trying to be normal. Oh, and if you want to see a woman with classic beauty, watch it for the lovely femme-fatale Valerie Cruz. Valerie, I AM single and happy to take out a young cougar anytime!

And the fact that there was always something dark and sci-fi to it, but before it got to be too "out there" to be real, its revealed to be a genius plan by one of the characters... keeps you guessing what's real and what's not. I thought the writing was great, the acting was stellar, and the photography and production value was much better than I expected for a WB series.

I'm glad to say I've helped bring back Family Guy, and I think if everyone who loves this show speaks out, we can resurrect Hidden Palms and it's haunting plot can continue.

-Jeremy

Johnny Miller (Taylor Handley) moves into Palm Springs, California. He hates his mother Karen (Gail O'Grady) and her new husband Bob Hardy (D.W. Moffett) after his father's suicide a year ago. He's a recovering alcoholic with Jesse Jo (Leslie Jordan) as his new AA sponsor. His science nerd neighbor Liza Witter (Ellary Porterfield) is an admirer from afar. He falls for the enigmatic Greta Matthews (Amber Heard). Cliff Wiatt (Michael Cassidy) is his next door neighbor who claims to be a friend to the previous occupant Eddie who committed suicide in his room. Tess Wiatt (Sharon Lawrence) is Cliff's outrageous mother. Nikki Barnes (Tessa Thompson) is the last new kid in the upper class oasis community who also has an alcohol problem. Johnny starts getting IMs from a person claiming to be Eddie.

Kevin Williamson returned to TV after 'Dawson's Creek' but he lost that teenage connection temporarily. He tried to tap into his love of murder and mayhem but he needed to show Eddie's death in the first episode. If the pilot showed Eddie's murder and a cover-up, then it would have hooked the audience on a murder mystery right away. Of course, the most photogenic of this beautiful group is Amber Heard. I was actually more interested in Liza but she turns into a secondary character for episodes 2 and 3. It was perplexing at the time to introduce a main character in the pilot and then sideline her. Williamson tried to make O.C. with a mystery but I was never invested in the mystery and the teens are much less likable.

Taylor Handley is cute, and a pretty good young actor. I have seen him in movies. So I gave this new series a try. He is a great lead here in a night time soap set in Palm Springs. Handley has a natural acting ability, and he should not be judged solely on his pin-up good looks.m He is actually talented.

The supporting cast is not bad either. The story lines are interesting and addictive. Without giving away spoilers, I just wanna suggest you give this new series a try. Nice looking cast. Slick production and editing. And great location shoots. I hope CW picks this excellent new show up for a 2nd season in the fall. And, Taylor Handley is pretty hot!

Hidden Palms had potential as a murder mystery teen drama. The writing is surprisingly solid and the whole cast does a great job. Fans of both The OC and Veronica Mars will notice familiar faces and appreciate the concept.

Sadly it had the misfortune of airing right after The OC ended which coincidentally also starred Taylor Handley as well in its first season. So people were a bit burned out on the "outsider/loner in a new zipcode" premise which is why the ratings were low resulting in HP's cancelation.

But Palm Springs provides a very interesting backdrop to watch the story unfold. All 8 eps of S1 are currently on YouTube for free. Worth a watch.

I recently discovered Hidden Palms and I instantly have become enthralled. Don't be fooled by the cheesy romance and sometimes cringey acting, because beneath the guise of a cliche teen drama show is a beautifully written and engaging plot that instantly hooks you. Kevin Williamson is quite an esteemed writer, and his effort shows here. Honestly, I don't really think the show needs any more episodes. It is a great story within 8 episodes, that didn't have to suffer through extensive and tiresome sequels or subsequent seasons like many other CW shows. (The newer 90210 series is a good example) This show deserves some recognition however, for the story and the characters are more 3-dimensional rather than cliche. Michael Cassidy's performance as Cliff is pure gold, and he is easily the most interesting character in the show. Valerie Cruz's performance as Maria Nolan and Tessa Thompson's performance as Nikki Barnes are also worth noting. Overall, a great show with perfect pacing, plot, characters, and light humor. While some scenes such as the drag queen show are at times cringe to watch, it is a great show that deserves some appreciation. It also needs to find an outlet or platform to be found on. Your only options to watch the show are either on Youtube (often taken down due to copyright infringement) or a foreign dvd release that may not even work with standard US dvd players. I understand that it was once on netflix, so I am urging the CW to find a good place to allow people to view it. Possibly on CW seed or the CW app for mobile devices?