letterten 2003-04 fall preview

debuts Friday, Oct 3, 8:30pm

premise from	When an only child New Yorker moves to Kansas so his wife can be closer to her family he finds things getting a little too close for comfort. From her bug-collecting brother to her smug, condescending uncle, he struggles to fit in while still keeping his distance. [ABC link]
stars	Breckin Meyer ("Inside Schwartz"), Kiele Sanchez ("That Was Then"), Sam Anderson ("Angel"), Nancy Lenehan ("Thirtysomething"), Emily Rutherfurd ("The Ellen Show"), Josh Braaten, Derek Waters
producers	Tom Hertz, Brad Grey
studio	Brad Grey Television, in association with Twentieth Century Fox Television

opinions
	It's a "fish-out-of-water" story, set in Kansas City with the New Yorker being that fish. For starters, although I like Breckin Meyer, he doesn't exactly scream "New Yorker" to me. The concept, like most this year, seems very "been there."
	The good news is that no one seems to overplay his or her role too much; the Kansas-dwelling Kelly family aren't made out to be a bunch of braying yokels. The likable Meyer also shows no vestiges of Woody Allen-ness in his role as a reticent New Yorker. The bad news is that the fish-out-of-water premise can wear thin quickly. The show will need to make the characters three-dimensional to work.

my thoughts on "Married to the Kellys"
	At least half, probable full season and possible slot switch. It's the second half-hour in the all-new TGIF comedy block. As such, it's in an important slot to get viewers from "George Lopez" to "Hope & Faith." It's up against two new sitcoms and the second half-hours of two new dramas. Gut feeling says crash and burn, but the TGIF concept worked once before, let's see if ABC has the right mix.