REVIEW- SPEECHLESS

A review of the TV show Speechless- ABC Wednesdays 8:30 EST

** (out of four)

I really wanted to like Speechless. Finally, a show about a young man with a disability and his family. A comedy, no less, not a sappy, maudlin , teary-eyed show about what it"s like yo live life in a wheelchair. I had high expectations for Speechless.It could be funny and smart at the same time. The best writing is now in TV.

Micah Fowler is good as J.J. the 16-year-old with cerebral palsy. He can"t walk and can"t speak, using a computer to communicate in rapid fashion. He apparently has had a lot of practice using the device because the words fly off his translator board. Minnie Driver is ok as the driven, dedicated mother whos mission is in life to make the world a better place for J.J. and her family. The rest of the cast, including Cedric Yardbough as the former school custodian now J.J."s full-time aide, is ok too.

Give the show credit for attempting to tackle sensitive issues in a humorous way. Kudos for raising awareness about topics such as inaccessibility (J.J. entering his school for the first time via the ramp where the garage is taken out) and others staring at J.J  ( he defiantly gives the finger back to them).

Speechless is cute but not funny. I suppose it"s hard for a show centering around someone with a disability to be wacky and yet maintain good taste. I found the characters not to be believable, too over-the top, like the manic school principal and J.J.'s homeroom teacher.

I could relate to places without ramps, going inside via the kitchen at a restaurant, those sorts of situations. It"s true, I"ve been escorted to the front of the line at baseball games, and people don"t seem to mind. I actually feel worse then they do-just because I"m sitting down,I can cut in the line?

So, in that way, making others aware of everyday situations-an able-bodied person parked in a handicapped parking space- done with humor, is a good thing. Maybe next time before that able-bodied person parks in the handicapped spot, they will remember Speechless and think twice.

The show Life Goes On was a drama series years ago focusing on a family with a young man with Downs syndrome . That was pretty unique back in 1989. Life Goes On also was an hour long show, so it had time to tackle more issues in depth.

Speechless is what is- light-hearted fun, good, clean family entertainment,good discussion fodder for families and in schools.

But,as I mentioned, some of the situations seem far-fetched. J.J. getting free tickets to a Dodgers game just because he smiles and intentional plays on his special privledges ability; other fans buying him free food at the ballpark; J.J. suddenly being asked to throw out the first ball on the field, because he happens to be in a wheelchair, his face on the scoreboard  (I don"t think I"ve ever seen someone who is disabled, sitting in a special section of the stadium, who was shown on the scoreboard), and finally, J.J.'s aide singing Take Me Out To The Baseball by himself to 40,000 fans.

J.J.'s family moves into a new home where the bathroom doors aren't wide enough for his wheelchair, so the family needs to renovate to make the bathroom accessible. Why wait til after they move in?

J.J is elected to run for class president of his school at the school carnival? His mom driving around their town, swerving to avoid traffic to get the kids to school on time, avoiding accidents and the police sitting in their cars, drinking coffee and saying "Oh, that"s only Mrs. DiMeo,,we don"t wanna mess with her"

I get it-it"s a comedy and a little laughter and zaniness makes the other stuff, the life lessons and disability awareness easier to swallow.

So, I give Speechless two stars out of four for having it"s heart in the right place, despite the show not being very funny and kinda stupid.