No one who pays any attention to the television business would have been surprised in the least if the new version of "Ink" had been a total failure.
The fact that it's pretty darn good is, however, at least a bit of a shock.After all, there aren't many shows that can claim to be new and improved when airing their premiere episode. But then, "Ink's" history is already almost unprecedented.
Good TV shows aren't supposed to get made this way.
CBS paid the show's stars, "Cheers" veteran Ted Danson and his real-life wife, Mary Steen-burgen, big bucks to star in a sitcom. That resulted in the first incarnation of "Ink," created and produced by Jeffrey Lane.
Just one small problem - "Ink" wasn't very good. It was OK, but certainly not worth the money CBS was paying for it.
At first, Danson, Steenburgen and the folks at CBS tried to put the best possible face on it. When meeting with television critics back in July, they admitted that, no, they weren't real happy with the pilot - but they were sure that upcoming episodes would get better.
Three episodes later, not much of anybody at either CBS or the production company, DreamWorks SKG, was happy. Reportedly it was Danson and Steenburgen who engineered the ouster of Lane.
CBS and DreamWorks took the unusual step of scrapping those four episodes of "Ink" - the equivalent of flushing millions of dollars down the drain. Except for the critics who saw the original pilot, not much of anybody is ever going to even see what "Ink" used to look like.
(Not that this is a bad thing. That original pilot wasn't good. It had a few moments but was flat and lacked appeal.)
All this happened less than two months ago.
Under the circumstances, no one would have been surprised if the premiere of "Ink" had been pushed back to January, at the earliest. But CBS Entertainment President Leslie Moonves decided to push ahead and get the show on its feet - and on the air - as quickly as possible.
He engineered the hiring of "Murphy Brown" creator Diane English to remake the show. And, in a matter of weeks, she's done exactly that.
The "Ink" that airs tonight at 7:30 p.m. (Ch. 2) actually isn't just a reworking of the original show. It's a complete overhaul.
All that remains from the original concept is that Danson and Steenburgen play divorced newspaper people - and she's his boss. The two actors, the newspaper setting and the title are the only things that haven't changed.
The show is so massively different that Lane no longer receives any credit for the product at all - English is credited not only as the show's executive producer, but also as its creator.
Among the many changes in "Ink" are:
- Originally, Danson and Steenburgen played reporters at a wacky New York daily. She became the paper's managing editor by a fluke of luck.
Now, he's a well-read, high-profile columnist and she's an award-winning foreign correspondent who got the job because of her talent.
And the newspaper is no longer a failing rag, but a competitive paper.
- Originally, the two were divorced in the show's opening scene after a brief, childless marriage.
Now, they've been divorced for a decade. And they've got a 15-year-old daughter, Abby (Alana Austin).
- The show was originally played on a chintzy-looking set where the reporters used typewriters (which immediately raised the ire of TV critics for being so outlandishly outdated).
The new set is sleek, open and impressive.
- The entire supporting cast - made up of unknowns - was dropped. In their place are familiar TV names like Charlie Robinson ("Night Court," English's "Love & War") and Christine Ebersole ("Saturday Night Live").
- Even the names of Danson and Steenburgen's characters have been changed - from Jack and Kate Brittenham to Mike Logan and Kate Montgomery.
The biggest change, however, is that "Ink" has gone from being just another predictable, formulaic sitcom to something that's sleek, witty and entertaining.
Danson's new character, Mike, bears more than a passing resemblance to Sam Malone, the character he played for 11 years on "Cheers." Mike's pretty full of himself, and he's quite a ladies' man.
He's not, however, happy about working for his ex-wife. When Kate makes a charming, heartfelt speech introducing herself to the staff, Mike's reaction is instantaneous.
"What a witch!" he exclaims.
And, soon after, Mike's trying to drum up support against her.
"This is a dangerous situation," he says. "We have to take control away from Evita in there."
His co-workers aren't buying, however. "All I can say is that it must have been all your fault," says Donna (Jenica Bergere), the editorial assistant.
The difference in the relationship between Danson and Steenburgen's characters in the two incarnation of "Ink" is relatively simple - the first time around, they got along fairly well but there were few sparks between them.
Now, they fight a lot more but the chemistry between them is also more volatile.
"We can't work together," Mike insists. "Do you remember trying to build a bookshelf together? The police came to the front door."
The original "Ink" was pretty much a two-actor show. Now, it's much more an ensemble comedy.
Robinson is great as a veteran police reporter. Ebersole threatens to steal her scenes as the over-the-top society/gossip columnist.
And don't forget either Saul Rubinek as neurotic financial reporter Alan Mesnick or Bergere's bright, energetic and sardonic editorial assistant.
The addition of the teenage daughter was a stroke of genius. Not only does she maneuver to try to get her parents back together, but the character also adds a generational-conflict dimension to the show. Like when Abby makes a startling confession to her father - she's a Republican.
"I don't know how it happened. I guess I just always knew I was different but didn't want to face it," Abby says.
"Abby, listen to me. Kids like to experiment. It doesn't mean you're going to be like this for the rest of your life," Mike responds.
Altogether, English and her team have worked wonders. "Ink" is a show worth watching - and one that could well turn into a long-running hit.