Aaron Sorkin is fast becoming a master of second chances. When he was booted from his Emmy-winning creation, “The West Wing,” after getting caught with his nose too deep in a bag of cocaine, he sobered up and won an Oscar for “The Social Network.”
But that turnaround is nothing compared to what he’s done to reverse the fortunes of his much-ballyhooed HBO series, “The Newsroom.” Ripped by critics and shunned by viewers, the show, about a fictional cable news network, appeared headed for cancellation due to universal disinterest shortly after it premiered last summer.
If not for Sorkin’s considerable clout – he also wrote the smash hits “An American President” and “A Few Good Men” – that’s exactly where “The Newsroom” would have ended up. Yet, even with that valuable marker in hand, just about everyone in Hollywood laughed when HBO renewed the series after it picked up a pair of inexplicable Golden Globe nominations, one for star Jeff Daniels and the other for best series.
But once those cynics get a gander at the first four episodes of the new season, they will be picking up their jaws and praising how righteously good the show has become in its second coming.
Still, patience is required. The first hour, premiering Sunday night at 10 on HBO, contains a lot of the same smug, self-important writing that sunk Sorkin last year. But by the end of Episode 2, “The Newsroom” emerges as something close to riveting. It fully earns that designation in its fourth hour, when a story strand centered on the genocide in Central Africa leaves you devastated – and awed. It’s Sorkin at his unpretentious best, as he puts a human face on a shamefully ignored travesty on a continent that’s been dismissed for far too long.
There are still some hiccups along the way, mainly Sorkin’s trivial obsession with office romances and his insistence on forcing in his blustering opinions on world events through Daniels’ periodic on-air rants as ACN bad-boy anchor Will McAvoy. But overall, Sorkin has blessedly toned down and cooled the quip-filled “His Girl Friday” banter enough to inject the show with a healthy dose of realism. Last year, I hated how Sorkin revisited old, best-forgotten news events through his pious characters, all of whom were appalled by the way their competitors (Fox, CNN, MSNBC, et al.) cavalierly handled stories such as the Gulf of Mexico oil spill. This year, though, the news stories and issues Sorkin cherry picks for our re-consumption are handled with profundity, often leaving it to us to summon moral outrage instead of Sorkin.
There remains a left-leaning slant to the topics raised, especially the bashing of Mitt Romney and his blatant dismissal of the press corps during his run for the presidency. But mainly, Sorkin focuses on stories that affect us all, like the controversial execution of Troy Davis in Georgia; the killing of American citizens, a la Anwar al-Awlaki, via autonomous drone strikes; and the under-reported atrocities in the Sudan. Sorkin even reveals a conservative side by boldly attacking the ridiculous – and leaderless – Occupy Wall Street gang, which often looked foolish in an arena of good intentions.
As bad as “The Newsroom” was last year, it was through no fault of its superior, Daniels-led cast, which also includes: Emily Mortimer as “News Night” executive producer (and Will’s old flame) Mackenzie McHale; John Gallagher Jr. as assistant producer Jim Harper; Alison Pill as associate producer Maggie Jordan; Thomas Sadoski as Will’s former EP, Don Keefer; Dev Patel as the network’s Web wizard, Neal Sampat; Olivia Munn as its resident “money honey,” Sloan Sabbith; and Sam Waterston as the wizened president of the news division, Charlie Skinner. Lending them periodic support are Oscar winners Jane Fonda as the coy but demanding ACN owner, Leona Lansing; and Marcia Gay Harden as the network’s snarky lead attorney, Rebecca Halliday.
Following the same structure as “The Social Network,” the season unfolds via flashbacks through members of the ACN team, as they give depositions to Halliday as part of an unspecified lawsuit filed against ACN. The device is a bit stale, but it provides a convenient platform for jumping back in time, as the season recounts the months between August 2011 and last November’s presidential election.
There are four major story strands emerging early in the season: Will uncomfortably riding the backlash from calling the tea party “The American Taliban”; Jim jumping in to replace a fallen colleague on the presidential primary trail in New Hampshire – and being surprised at how his fellow reporters have become sheep; Jim’s replacement, Jerry Dantana (a terrific Hamish Linklater), chasing down a lead about U.S. forces unleashing sarin gas during a firefight; and Maggie traveling to Africa to investigate the genocide – and escape the fallout of an embarrassing YouTube video depicting her in a most unfavorable light.
The strands involving Jim, Maggie and Jerry are highly involving. But the bit about Will having his feathers ruffled by indifferent network execs and bad press is a waste of Daniels’ talent.
Hopefully, later episodes will find more important things for Will to obsess over. And given how quickly Sorkin has righted his sinking ship, I would be shocked if that shift doesn’t lie directly ahead, providing even more good news for “The Newsroom.”
THE NEWSROOM Season 2 cast includes Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer, Alison Pill, John Gallagher Jr. and Thomas Sadoski. Written and created by Aaron Sorkin. Sunday nights at 10 on HBO, and repeating throughout the week. Each episode will also be available on On Demand the day after it debuts. Grade: B.
From www.wickedlocal.com