Fox has passed on the American Ab Fab after viewing the pilot episode. Why can't we Americans seem to get this right? Alison Waldman of TV Squad has a theory:
The fact is that even with Jennifer Saunders on board to work on the American version, Absolutely Fabulous was an essentially British show. It was also a show of its time, the '90s. Eddy and Patsy's antics were outrageously topical, including all the arcane British references to pop culture, drugs, booze, fashion, PR and cosmetic surgery.
Have to respectfully disagree. British references can easily become American references - think British Office/American Office - and '90's references can easily be updated. Plus, "pop culture, drugs, booze, fashion, PR and cosmetic surgery" - that's all still around, last time we checked. It's probably more prevalent, too. No, it seems the biggest problem to solve, besides the need to get really good writers, is that Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley were so damn good.
Still, we can think of 3 American comediennes who'd be great in an American Ab Fab...
1. Amy Poehler - much better fit than Parks and Recreation.
2. Margaret Cho - at long last, turned loose on TV.
3. Chelsea Handler - She's already practically doing it an American version of Ab Fab on her show, and with books like Are You there, vodka? It's me, Chelsea.
And there are others, like Jane Krakowski, maybe Elizabeth Perkins, even Julia Louis-Dreyfus if we could get over the Seinfeld thing. So maybe this shouldn't be such a Rubix Cube for us over here in the States. We should be able to figure this out. Still, perhaps a great show is best left alone.
PREVIOUSLY:
American "Ab Fab": Is This Going To Work?
Kristen Johnson May Join The New, American "Absolutely Fabulous"
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