I remember the Fall 2002 evening that Everwood premiered like it was yesterday. It was the Monday before the rest of the networks rolled out their crop of new and returning shows, so reruns abounded. I was in the middle of my usual channel surfing right before 9 p.m., when I stopped on a preview for a new family drama that looked to pack a bigger punch than its sugary-sweet lead-in 7th Heaven. So, I decided to stick around and visit the world of Everwood, Colorado. After all, my usual Monday night at 9 p.m. fare, Everybody Loves Raymond, wasn't premiering for another week, so why not give another show a chance? From the first word of Irv's narration, I knew my Raymond days were over. I had abandoned television for the most part during my four years of college, but Everwood's overwhelming heart and quality marked my triumphant return. I began to believe in television and its unmistakable ability to move us, make us laugh, make us cry and make us think about the important things, and this all happened after viewing the pilot episode of this incredible series. I guess this is why I will always hold a very special place in my heart for Everwood. Throughout the remainder of the summer, PTR will take a look at some classic episodes of this show just as we're doing with both Veronica Mars and Cold Case, but Everwood's Flashback Editions will be more of a tribute to a show that has given us so much. Today, we're going back to the beginning with the very first episode. All of the screencaps in this edition are courtesy of Seeking Grace: The Everwood Archive.
As you all know, pilot episodes are designed to introduce us to all of the show's characters and set up scenarios that will carry us through its duration. This sort of formulaic necessity can wear us down some, but what made Everwood's pilot shine so brightly was the fact that we met the characters at the same time that the Browns, whom we had already decided to root for because we learned their story right off the top from Irv's narration, met them. When we first meet Andy, Ephram and Delia, things are at the worst of times for the broken family. Their wife and mother, Julia, died in a car accent and Andy decided to move the family to Everwood because of a promise that he made to his late wife. Unfortunately, he failed to explain this fact to his children, leaving Ephram sad, confused and angry. The two never had a strong relationship because Andy, a prominent neurosurgeon, worked all the time, leaving Julia to raise the kids. Things only get worse for Ephram as he navigates the difficult halls of Pike County 
High School and learns that the girl he's crushing on, and will eventually fall in love with, is in love with a boy in a coma. Enter Amy Abbott, one of television's most realistic and complicated teenage characters ever, and her boyfriend Colin Hart, who was severely injured in a car accident. Ephram can't quite compete with a boy in a coma, but he can't get Amy out of his head either, so when she wants him to ask his father to take Colin's case, he can only say yes. And with that heart wrenching set up, Everwood was off and running with its colorful characters, emotional storylines, complicated relationships and one of the best love stories to come out of series television.QUICK CUTS
*ABC is pulling the plug on its summer reality series How to Get The Guy. The show's most recent ratings performance (July 3rd) turned in only 1.2 million viewers in the 18-49 year olds category. The decision leaves two unaired episodes. ABC will air an extra repeat of Supernanny in its place this week and a CMA special next week until the previously announced freshman series One Ocean View premieres on July 31st.
*And finally, it's TV on DVD Monday! Look for the 1st season of Weeds to hit store shelves tomorrow along with ER (season 5), I Dream of Jeannie (season 2) and Reno 911! (season 3). To see a complete list of tomorrow's releases, visit tvshowsondvd.com.
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That's all for today. Be sure to tune in tomorrow for the return of the Veronica Mars Flashback Edition featuring another classic episode! Plus, all the latest television news!
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2 comments:
You've made me miss Everwood with a vengeance. I actually just watched the Pilot a couple of weeks ago. I was channel surfing and came across the rerun. It was SO good--what you described and then some. Can't explain exactly what they did right in that series, it was so many things--all I know is, the show felt very REAL. Even when it seemed like there was TOO much going on, TOO much tragedy, they didn't wear it out like in most shows. The storyline had real quality.
It will be missed. :(
~DF
Reading your Everwood pilot discussion brought back some very sweet memories of a show i wish I could have seen more of than the first season. Oh! I just remembered ABC Family is putting it on this all! Thank you ABC Family!!!
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