The Foibles and Fumbles of “Fashion Police” – Ed Martin

The increasingly sad story of Eamp8217s deteriorating franchise amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 has become a case study in what not to do when producing a television program Itamp8217s a horrid mess rather than a hot one and everyone involved has made remarkably poor choices along the way Itamp8217s hard to connect what amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 has become to what it long had been One of the most entertaining programs on television before the tragic loss of its host and essential reason for being the late great Joan RiversRivers might have denied this but from where I sat amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 was first and foremost a showcase for the talents of one of the great comedians of our time She had definitive taste in clothing and accessories a fine working knowledge of contemporary popular culture an attribute that sadly escapes many comics of a certain age and a cutting and clever wit that had been honed over six decades of performing in virtually every medium from radio to digital The show was built around her it grew around her and it thrived around her I do not for a minute believe that anyone who watched on Friday nights tuned in only to enjoy the relatively tepid commentary of her costars Giuliana Rancic Kelly Osbourne or George Kotsiopoulos They were all fine in partnership with Rivers trading jokes challenging each other and defending their points of view but at the end of the day the show was all about its leading lady Remember amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 fans werenamp8217t referred to as Giuliana Rangers or Kelly Rangers or George Rangers amp8230 or even Fashion RangersJoanamp8217s Rangers are still in mourning Friday nights simply havenamp8217t been the same since she passed Certainly amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 hasnamp8217t been the same either How could it be And how could anyone involved expect it to be Osbourne Rivers Kotsiopoulos and Rancic along with actor Adam Pally are pictured below in happier timesWhen I first heard that Riversamp8217 daughter Melissa the executive producer of the show and various executives at E and its parent company NBCU Cable thought it best to keep the show going without its dazzling comic center my response was that this would be the biggest TV mistake since Murphy Brownamp8217s baby and before that Rhoda Morgensternamp8217s divorce Better to let it rest with its great memories intact But that wasnamp8217t to be the case Onward and downward as they sayFirst came the news that Kotsiopoulos was leaving the show I have no knowledge of the details concerning his departure but assuming it was his decision that would make him the smartest person on the amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 teamThen came the decision to install another funny woman with a biting wit as the ostensible star of the show There is nobody out there who can replace Joan Rivers in that capacity not even Kathy Griffin who gamely agreed to give it a go Anyone would have suffered in comparison Griffin surely did whether she cares to admit it or not She left the show last Friday claiming that she had certain issues with it which invites questions as to whether or not she had ever watched it before agreeing to become its starWith Twitter fueling the fun amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 really messed the bed two weeks ago right after the Academy Awards when Rancic pictured below reportedly reading jokes off a cue card that had been written by someone else mocked the dreadlock extensions worn on the Oscar red carpet by young singer and actress Zendaya suggesting that her hairstyle might have made her smell like amp8220patchouli oilamp8221 or amp8220weedamp8221Zendaya amp8211 who has previously appeared as a guest judge on the show took to social media with cries of racism Rancic amp8211 who isnamp8217t a comedian and should probably stop trying to tell jokes anyway offered an urgent apology Osbourne for whatever reason up and left the showIt was all such nonsense Not for one second could anyone believe that Rancicamp8217s joke which wasnamp8217t even her own and wasnamp8217t especially funny was racially charged in content or delivery It may have been tasteless but havenamp8217t most of the jokes on this show since its start been rude sometimes shockingly so to some extent I know little about Zendaya but her response suggested that she needs to toughen up a bit if she is to continue to survive and thrive in so high profile a career Rancic the older and more experienced person in this situation should have been less anxious in her response to the agitation of Zendaya making clear to miffed Millennials everywhere that sometimes people in this world are going to say things that they consider unkind and of more importance that context is everythingOne can only imagine what Rivers would have said about all of this I think her kindest words might have been amp8220Oh grow upamp8221 As a staunch defender of comediansamp8217 rights to say just about anything in a humorous way amp8211 especially on a comedy program known for its sometimes harsh humor I donamp8217t think she would have kept quiet about the dustup Of course it likely wouldnamp8217t have happened in the first place because I also think Rivers would have rejected the offending amp8220jokeamp8221 as not funny enough or not up to her standards and she would have been right Plus there39s the thing about Rancic not being an actual comedian but whateverIf nothing else Rivers would not have tolerated an attack on the Fashion Police by the PC PoliceAnyway it has been reported that E still refuses to end amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 and will revive it yet again in September this time with Rancic and Brad Goreski amp8211 the fashion stylist who took over for Kotsiopoulos amp8211 as cohosts of the show If nothing else thatamp8217s a giant win for Goreski pictured above Could it be that amp8220Fashion Policeamp8221 will tone down the humor stop trying to be amp8220The Spirit of Joan Rivers Comedy Houramp8221 and instead transform itself into a newsy lighthearted less snarky look at celebrity fashion I can actually imagine that working at least in the E of Things Like I said above context is everythingEd Martin is the Editor of Planet Ed and MediaBizBloggers and the television and video critic for MyersBizNet Follow him on Twitter at PlanetEdCheck us out on Facebook at MediaBizBloggerscomFollow our Twitter updates at MediaBizBloggerThe opinions and points of view expressed in this commentary are exclusively the views of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaBizBloggerscom management or associated bloggers MediaBizBloggers is an open thought leadership platform and readers may share their comments and opinions in response to all commentaries

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The Foibles and Fumbles of “Fashion Police” – Ed Martin

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