And now for something completely different

I will get to Marian. I WILL. And "Elsa". But OUAT's Facebook page was cross promoting this trailer today.

"ABC will use Sundays to launch Galavant ...when Once Upon A Time ... [completes its] initial fall run. “Galavant” is an hour-long musical comedy..." (http://variety.com/2014/tv/news/abc-to-add-new-marvel-series-set-greys-scandal-earlier-on-thursday-1201179313/)

If I'm reading the writing on the internet wall correctly, this will air in OUAT's Sunday timeslot during their midseason break. So Decemberish through March? When it will be competing with awards shows and the Superbowl.

This is...why this is? First off, the timeslot is a death sentence. The schedule itself is setting up any chance the show MIGHT have for failure. Second, with ALL due respect to Alan Menken - this trailer is reminiscent of many musical failures and it appears to be a pale, cynical imitation of any beloved fantasy franchise and "Entertainment President Paul Lee referred to the series in his upfront presentation as 'literally Spamalot meets Princess Bride,'" (http://www.broadway.com/buzz/175917/knights-kings-tunes-get-a-first-look-at-alan-menkens-new-musical-comedy-series-galavant/)  Figuratively. The word you meant to use was figuratively.

It is ENTIRELY possible I am being premature. This could be the next big thing. This could be Game of Thrones meets OUAT meets a resurgence of Musical Theatre on Primetime Television as an art form that is Wholesome Family Fun Good Times Yay!!! But this sure smells like entertainment by committee. This has the vaguely suspicious and wholly artificial stench of what you get when you throw focus groups and demographers and studio execs at a scheduling vacancy.

I can just see this being pitched using words like "gritty" and "edgy" and "...but with heart!".  I don't doubt that many good people did good work in bringing this project to bear, and I don't want to disparage any of them. I hope this is just a ghastly trailer, and the show really DOES have a campy charm and that it finds it's audience. (Sooner than a show like Pushing Daisies did.) I don't WANT to see things fail. But I have major doubts, AND I think this show makes it far more likely that our new Big Bad Snow Queen Storyline will showcase a musical number. The silver lining being that a rousing Storybrooke dance number will help Ginnifer Goodwin shed any remaining baby weight. And Josh Dallas  too, cause let's be real, that doublet was looking a li'l tight on Sunday.

Also, really? His name is GALAVANT? Gallant. Valiant. I think a proper hero deserves a better name than a lazy portmanteau.