The new TV show Trust Me takes place in a present-day Chicago advertising agency. Since it has one of those three things in common with Mad Men, every single review has mentioned the connection.
One review said that Mad Men is not about advertising, but Trust Me is. And that was cool. Mad Men isn’t about advertising. But I am impressed, after two episodes, by how very much Trust Me is. As Dilbert is to cubeville, Trust Me is to the specific business of advertising. It’s about creative directors and copy writers, and competition among advertising groups and name-dropping and winning a Cleo. It’s suffused in the specific world of advertising.
Which could be dull. But Trust Me is one of those rapid-fire glibfests that you either love or feel irritated by. I tend towards the love, but I could see how you might not. It’s on the self-conscious side. It works in part because it’s advertising, because we know these as glib people, but you could easily get sick of them. The writers here are afraid to let anyone breathe.
Eric McCormack and Tom Cavanagh in the leads are excellent. In a major supporting role, I find Monica Potter irritating. And while we’re on the subject of cast, isn’t Chicago like one of the most diverse cities in the U.S.? Because everyone on that show is white. There are no people of color working for the ad agency depicted (or indeed, since the third episode including an advertising awards ceremony, are there any non-whites working in advertising in Chicago at all). Geoffrey Arend plays a minor character named Hector who appears to be not exactly white, but otherwise it’s a white boy’s club with a sprinkling of white girls. Which is funny (in a tragic way) given how some Basketcases have suggested that Mad Men should show black professionals in 1962. Apparently, it’s hard to get them shown in 2009.
So, worth checking out, but I make no promises.
9 Responses to “Review: Trust Me”
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I work in advertising in Chicago. It pretty much IS that white.
Trust Me is closer to 30 Something than to Mad Men. While MM and TM both deal with advertising, the similarity ends there. However the inter-personal and inter-office dynamics on TM remind me very much of 30 Something. The tension between the design and copy sides of a creative partnership, what happens when 1 member of the team is promoted and the other isnt' for example.
I like Tom Cavanagh (even his cameo on SportsNight!) so I'm still trying to like this show. But I'm not having much luck so far.
As for Monica Potter being irritating, I cannot think of a non-irritating Potter role offhand.
"I work in advertising in Chicago. It pretty much IS that white."
Yeah, even in general, Chicago is very diverse but also very segregated.
I only watched a few minutes here and there. I found it to irritating, but I may tune in some more to make sure, as I dig the advertising inside stuff. Or not.
Cavanagh's character was just hard to like, and I wasn't interested in spending time with him. Interesting, right, considering our discussions of likability in Mad Men characters? But this is different. The glib, the banter, the sarcasm, are all supposed to be the dressings that help me overcome his, shall we say, deep lack of character. (And I know I am judging way too fast, having just watched a few scenes.) I dunno. On dating sites, so many guys list 'sarcastic' like it's a good thing. It's become some kind of status, but to me it's just meanness loosely disguised as humor.
(And yes, this from one of the most sarcastic women in the world. But I don't list it on my dating profile!)
"And while we’re on the subject of cast, isn’t Chicago like one of the most diverse cities in the U.S.? Because everyone on that show is white. There are no people of color working for the ad agency depicted (or indeed, since the third episode including an advertising awards ceremony, are there any non-whites working in advertising in Chicago at all). Geoffrey Arend plays a minor character named Hector who appears to be not exactly white, but otherwise it’s a white boy’s club with a sprinkling of white girls. Which is funny (in a tragic way) given how some Basketcases have suggested that Mad Men should show black professionals in 1962. Apparently, it’s hard to get them shown in 2009."
Which is precisely why the idea of "post-racial America" is a myth. Sigh. We've reached the point where we could elect a Black man as president, but we still can't show people of color on TV in roles other than thug, servant, or background wallpaper. And I'm tired of being the one (not on this blog per se, but just in general) who always has to point this out to people. So thank you Deborah for that observation. I wonder what world these people inhabit that there's no one who looks different from them? It must be quite a luxury to not have to deal with any of the residue that comes with living in a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural, multi-anything society.
That said, I think the show has promise, despite its homogeneity and glibness. I like the idea of getting an inside look into the world of advertising. I'm willing to give it a couple more viewings.
Plus those boys are cute.
I'm really trying to like this series. I'm a writer in the biz, so I've been watching to see how closely this show mirrors the real thing. So far, the answer is: not much.
Sure, some of the characters can easily be found in the ad world…but there are some serious liberties being taken by the show's creators (which is odd, because they're two former ad guys).
I'll spare you my running list of quibbles, but I do have some comments about Conner. How does this guy still have a job? He shows up late…takes three hour lunches…leaves early….and spends any actual time in the office doing everything but writing. He's lazy…overbearing…and a thief (Do thumb thing).
In the real world, this douche would be out the door after a week. I know it's only a TV show, but come on.
The lack of diversity in the ad industry has been a noted issue for about a year. Agencies claim it is because no persons of color apply for jobs and aren't steered toward it as a career option in college. Check out AdAge.com's Big Tent columns, or google "diversity in ad agencies" for more articles.