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I believe it was Roger Ebert who once said (and I’m paraphrasing), “It’s not what a film is about that’s important, it’s how it’s about what it’s about.”  This is a fancy way of saying that, more than anything, execution is king.  All kinds of stories can be effective and, while some ideas may be better than others, an idea does not make a film or a TV show.  With Samantha Who? (premiering tonight at 9:30), the new ABC comedy starring Christina Applegate, the overwhelming criticism has been that  the show has a lame, unoriginal premise.  Applegate plays Samantha, who wakes up with amnesia after a brutal car crash.  After going back and figuring things out about her pre-amnesiac self, Samantha realizes that she was an awful person.  Amnesia stories have become a cliché in TV comedy, a crutch of a plot point that’s been beaten to death and made fun of for the last fifty years.  However, improbably, Samantha Who? survives the weak premise and provides audiences with a surprisingly funny half-hour of comedy.

Applegate is a proven comic presence, a former stand out on Married with Children, Friends, and opposite Will Ferrel in Anchorman.  The character of Samantha is a perfect one for her: manic, confused, trying to put the pieces of her life back together.  Samantha wakes up in the hospital to begin the pilot, her parents (Kevin Dunn and Jean Smart) there to help her back into the world.  The tone of the show is set early, with Sam’s parents unable to grasp the whole concept of amnesia.  From there, Sam’s best friend (Jennifer Esposito) steals Sam from her parents house, claiming that she hates them.  Over the next few days, Sam meets her boyfriend (Barry Watson), with whom Sam had broken up with right before the crash.  Sam learns she’d been cheating on him, and that her best friend is just as awful as Sam used to be.  An old sycophantic friend (Melissa McCarthy) shows up on the scene, pretending to be one of Sam’s good friend, but it turns out that they haven’t spoken in years. 

Samantha Who? is a harmless comedy that succeeds thanks to clever writing, solid characters and the comic charm of Christina Applegate.  With a lead-in like Dancing with the Stars, Samantha Who? might very well become the biggest new comedy of the season.  Aside from the high-concept, Samantha Who? is a safe comedy with a broad appeal.  The supporting cast is terrific, Jean Smart and Jennifer Esposito leading the way.  Samantha Who? isn’t anything new or raucously funny, but it’s worth checking out if you’re not a Heroes type of person.

-Oscar Dahl, BuddyTV Senior Writer
(Image Courtesy of ABC)