Show: “Galavant”
Starring: Joshua Sasse (“Rogue”), Timothy Omundson (“Psych”), Vinnie Jones (“The Cape”), Mallory Jansen (“Young & Hungry”) and Luke Youngblood (“Community”).
Genre: Musical / Single-camera comedy
Premiere Date: Sunday, January 4, 8:00 p.m., ABC
Direct Competition: “Madam Secretary” (CBS), Sunday Night Football (NBC), “The Simpsons”/”Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (Fox)
Premise (in 140 characters or less): A once-celebrated hero must face the woman who broke his heart, as well as her new husband, the king.
Initial Reaction: So, it’s a unique programming choice. I’ll give ABC that. And there’s sure to be some“Once Upon a Time” fans who’ll be enticed by the notion of another weekly fairytale. This just isn’t for me.
Conclusion: “Galavant” is too peculiar for this day and age, and I can’t imagine it strikes much of a cord with any sizable audience. I found it less annoying than, say, the recently canceled “Selfie,” but that’s not saying much.
Timothy Omundson gives a delightful performance as King Richard, and Vinnie Jones has a lot of fun as his henchman. Even the music, though it verges on parody, manages to entertain, and it helps pick up the slack where the narrative itself is lacking. Guest stars like John Stamos have fun with what little they have to do, and never take the focus away from the show’s ensemble.
Watch Live, DVR, or Skip?: Skip it unless you have a high tolerance for musicals. Musicals aren’t my thing, and I’d have to feel the script around the music was strong enough to recommend committing any time to this alleged ‘four-week extravaganza’. I watched three of the eight episodes, and that’s about all I could stomach. There’s a lot of good television on Sunday nights. You and I can do without “Galavant.”