According to a New York Times story, Candace Bushnell, was writing a book called Lipstick Jungle at Darren Star's East Hampton house at one point. Lipstick Jungle is about empowered women juggling work and relationships. Those who followed Sex and The City know who Bushnell and Star are --- they're the force behind that cult series. Darren Star had wanted to do Lipstick Jungle into a series, only NBC was able to buy the rights from Candace Bushnell first. Of course, Ms. Bushnell was happy about it, expecting another big hit, and so she holds a celebratory cocktail party. Guess who was supposedly missing? Her TV partner Darren Star. As it turns out, Star was also celebrating something himself. His new TV Show Cashmere Mafia has just been picked up by ABC. What's it about? Empowered women juggling work and relationships. Needless to say, the two are supposedly no longer BFFs.
I had previously seen Lipstick Jungle's pilot last year. I had expected more from Cashmere Mafia, granted it was pitched as the thinking woman's Sex and The City. :P
Boy, oh boy...have I got it all wrong.
Like Lipstick Jungle, I can't begin to point out what I so dislike about it.
For this series, being a successful woman these days you're bound to:
- have your less-powerful husband/boyfriend cheat on you --- Juliet's storyline, played by Miranda Otto. Juliet is a hotel chain CEO.
- have your less-powerful husband/boyfriend be the woman in the relationship --- Zoe's storyline, played by Frances O' Connor. Zoe is an investment banker.
- have your less-powerful husband/boyfriend resent your success --- Mia's storyline, played by Lucy Liu. Mia is in publishing.
- have no less-powerful husband/boyfriend so you turn to girls --- Caitlin's storyline, played by Bonnie Sommerville. Caitlin is in cosmetics.
These ladies are cliches. The plot line --- convenient. Their characters --- predictable and mechanical. The chemistry between actors --- not there. I don't believe for a minute these women had been friends for fifteen years. And somebody please let Miranda Otto lie on a tanning bed for a few minutes, she's so ghostly and she's scaring me!Frankly, I like this one better when it had an all-male lead and was called Big Shots. That one was at least funny and had a heart somewhere.
In a nutshell, Cashmere Mafia is a show about smart women depicted in a shallow series.
Cashmere Mafia will run for at least seven episodes (strike casualty).
