The Mindy Project Is So Good

June 2, 2013

The Mindy Project promo picFinishing up TV week (or really, kind of extending it into TV week and a half) –

I went a panel, put on by The Writer’s Guild Foundation, featuring the writers from The Mindy Project.

Before I talk about the panel, let me say, I think The Mindy Project is so good.

I didn’t totally know what to think before it came out. (How could I, really? It wasn’t out yet.)

I knew I liked The Office a lot, but didn’t know how much of that was Mindy’s voice and how much was other people in the room. I didn’t really know her as an actor other than annoying Kelly Kapor on The Office.

Obviously, actors have range and I needed to give her the benefit of the doubt to see what else she had. But, it wasn’t like I’d seen a lot of her work and had a good idea what was coming my way.

I was pretty excited when I heard she got a sitcom, and stoked to see what the sitcom would bring. Of course, then I heard it was going to be named The Mindy Project, and thought that sounded like the working title of the show and wondered, “Were they too lazy to even come up with a title besides the working title?”

My hopes for the show dwindled a bit. But when I saw it, I immediately knew I was oh so wrong about any of my doubts. The show is funny, and has a great unique voice. I also find that it has an incredibly real feel to it.

I feel like of all the shows I watch (even though I do find others real-feeling, and even when I don’t, I’m willing to suspend my disbelief and enter whatever world shows are bringing us into), this one feels the most like you could just take this right out of your TV and put it in your real-life without changing a word.

Danny and Mindy sitting on the floor eating cakeNone of the men seem too good to be true. (Jim Halpert, much? Incredibly fun to watch. But who was the last Jim you knew?) Flaws are loved and played up. Conversations seem like they actually happened and were just written on paper.

And what I find to be the best thing about The Mindy Project – Even things that in other shows could lead to crazy misunderstandings, are usually stopped at the beginning of that possibility. (What I’m trying to say in that sentence is that the characters are sharp, see through things, and put together 2 and 2 easier than some people do in some other shows.)

So, the show is fabulous. And when I heard there was going to be a panel about it, I felt that I had to attend.

And that’s what we’ll talk about tomorrow.

I'd love to hear from you! So whaddya say?