Nashville

Nashville

Episode 1: Pilot

By: Carlos Uribe

Nashville is a series about the country music scene and the political scene of Nashville. I will be covering this show weekly.

Spoilers Ahoy!

Country music is very a popular genre of music. There are many variations of country music and it's tough to make it in the industry. This is a show that's predominantly about Raina, the current queen of country but whose latest record and tour has had disappointing results and it's about Juliette, the challenger to the throne. Juliette is the latest country star and it's projected that she's going to be in the top for a while. The pilot has an early scene where the two meet each other. The meeting doesn't go well as the two don't really get along. It's this tension that helps to drive a majority of the tension for most of the pilot. There is also another tension that exists in the pilot and that's between Raina and her wealthy and powerful father. She doesn't like him and can barely stand to publicly support him. She likes to think that she made it out of her own talent but the reason her first record was even financed was because of her father. Raina might be at the top of her career and secure in her life but it's all threatening to come down. What's good about the pilot is that it shows her as fighting to stay where she is. This isn't a passive character that has things happening to her but a character who acts. She has agency and she drives the pilot forward.

The main plot of the pilot revolves around the label trying to have Raina and Juliette co-headline a tour together. Raina would open for Juliette and it would be a massive event that makes money for all sides. This is a good idea if you're anybody who isn't named Raina. Doing the co-headline is admitting that you're not what you used to be and it's a large matter of pride. She likes the spotlight and she doesn't want to have to share it. She definably doesn't want to have to open for someone else. Someone's whose music she doesn't even pretend to like. In many ways, Nashville showcases the constant struggle between the newest generation of music versus the one that preceded it. Raina decides that she would rather leave the label then to tour with Juliette. Juliette isn't a character who remains in the background as she's actively trying to go after Raina's band leader and producer. Juliette is a character who is willing to use her sexuality to get what she wants. The conflict between the two is only the beginning of a war that will certainly last throughout the series. This is where most writers would either stop or if they had more elements they might fail at juggling them around. It's a hopeful sign when the pilot is able to have numerous other plots at work and succeed at every one of them.

There's the large politics sub-plot. Raina's step-father wants a construction of a baseball park to go through because it would make him a lot of money. He wants to ensure that the city council and the mayor won't be major problems. He decides that he needs his own candidate in the mayoral election. He picks Raina's husband, Teddy. This causes a conflict between Raina and Teddy as she doesn't trust her father and because she's afraid of sharing the spotlight. It makes matters worse for Raina because her friend is running against Teddy and she was hoping to support him. She had even agreed to do three songs for Teddy. She does stick by her husband and it seems like they're a united couple. The show also has another sub-plot that involves two young musicians who have considerable amount of talent. It's this talent that Raina is hoping to use so that she remains popular and doesn't become reliant on her father for wealth.

What helps make Nashville work so well is that it truly feels like we're in the country music world. It manages to capture the scene very well and it helps to add a layer of authenticity to this soap. It has an excellent cast that manage to bring their characters to life. The only character I have reservations about is Juliette but the series has time to make her character more likeable rather than a flat-out villain. Nashville is a show that knows what it wants to be: a soap set in the world of Nashville. It manages to handle all of it's elements well. Future episodes will have to prove that they can keep the balance between the political and country music worlds and I wouldn't be surprised if the early episodes struggle.

There's been a lot of critical attention being paid to this show. It seems like a lot of critics seem to be thinking this is the best new fall drama. Based on the pilots that I've reviewed*, I would have to agree. Nashville manages to open out of the gate with a great episode. There's still a whole season ahead where it's going to have to prove itself but this strong opening gives it an advantage that most other shows don't have. Having seen this episode twice, I can state that so far Nashville is a fun and intelligent soap that manages to capture the music industry in a way that is exciting, promising, and it even feels fresh.

Other Notes:

This show manages to use country music well. What's even better is that this show employs original music. The music will be sold by Big Machine Records and they're on iTunes.

*I have yet to see Arrow but that's probably the only pilot this fall that will be able to challenge this claim.