TV Review: Katy Keene Is CW’s Gem of Hope
Color me SHOOKETH! Katy Keene is so exuberantly happy and hopeful that Riverdale’s Jughead would struggle writing a piece about it. The Riverdale adjacent series, also based on the Archie Comics, is the opposite of its CW neighbor; it is colorful, optimistic, and aims straight for youthful joy. In this world, you might, actually, have a happy day without finding out your dad is a serial killer in a black hood.
Sometimes, I think the appeal of Riverdale comes in its ability to be vivid and soapy in a dark world, which not all of us can be even though, technically, we are in a dark world. We can’t be as dramatic as we want to be nor as good-looking while doing it. Sure, Katy Keene has the latter down with a stunning cast led by Lucy Hale, but it still has its characters trying thrive in the most competitive, twisty place on earth: New York. Yes, who needs a Speakeasy in their basement or kingpin for a dad, when you have New York’s nightlife to survive and a job market to apply. Thus, the fun of Katy Keene is that she is tenacious, starry-eyed, and believes she is an undiscovered star and, frankly, so do you.
Katy Keene | Official Extended Trailer | The CW
Lucy Hale is so bright as Katy. She sparkles on the screen and definitely gives off some “Carrie Bradshaw” vibes with her style and determination to make a mark on NYC’s fashion scene. Ashleigh Murray is equally determined to do the same in the music scene, and also carries Katy’s joyous sense of strength and good luck. Who goes to Washington Square Park, after just arriving to New York, and gets a record label offer by a handsome billionaire after one song? NO ONE! Yet, Katy Keene, as a show, lives off classic rom-coms and blissful dramas where everything good can happen to you and every misadventure figures itself out for your benefit.
Katy Keene | Welcome To New York | Season Trailer | The CW
As I watched Katy Keene I had to smile at how surreal it was in giving its characters a wonderful, privileged life as they tried to make their dreams come true. It felt ridiculously fresh and good, even it is an old trope, because, in comparison, not a lot of television shows aim for hope anymore or the beauty of life working out for YOU. It is why This Is Us is a phenomena and The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt has such a cult following. In a world filled with shadow figures, on and off screen, we do want, at least, a few shows that gives us the old fantasy of “it gets better” and characters who rise in the face of adversity like Jon Beauchamp as Ginger Lopez.. KATY KEENE DELIVERS, which means you should watch on February 6 at 8.
