Syfy’s output of scripted originals has slowed of late, but the cable net is still putting out a few shows a year which includes the new supernatural dramedy Astrid & Lilly Save the World. That one premiered on January 26th with hit series Resident Alien as its lead-in, and certainly Syfy was hoping the freshman entry would draw over some of the audience of the more popular show and perhaps become an unexpected hit. The early numbers do not support that, but I will discuss that in more detail further below.
The series focuses on the two high school girls of the show’s title who are not exactly among the popular crowd and who have a tendency to semi-stalk other kids from their school in order to find out what it would take to improve their social status. After a disastrous intrusion into a party hosted by one of the most popular kids on campus, Astrid and Lilly vent their frustrations by burning tokens they had from other kids and they accidentally cast a spell that opens a portal to another dimension (yeah, that part stretched suspension of disbelief a bit). A man named Brutus (who happens to have a horn) informs them that they must collect ten body parts from the monsters they unleashed in order to close the portal again. They are dubious at first, but eventually accept their fate and set off to monster hunting (you can read a more complete recap of the premiere at this link).
The show obviously channels Buffy, the Vampire Slayer (even referencing that by Brutus referring to himself as the Giles to Astrid and Lilly), though its leads are not as perfectly pretty (which is pretty much the point). It also throws in a bit of Scooby Doo for good measure and I expect a Scooby Gang to form at some point (the first episode has already hinted at who the members would be). The dialogue falls short of the wit and snap you might expect from a show like this, but it also avoids copy-and-paste which is an accomplishment these days. The lead characters are appealing enough as the geeky outsiders who just want to be accepted, and they manage to rise above pure stereotype, though more development is certainly welcome.
I have only seen the first episode at this point, and I can’t say I was hooked, but I do see the potential of this one picking up the Buffy torch and becoming the next genre cult-favorite and I will almost certainly catch at least a few more eps. However, the fact that it airs on Syfy will work against it. The premiere numbers were low (I mean really low), with the show losing almost 80% of its lead-in audience from Resident Alien. Neither Syfy nor its parent company NBCUniversal have an ownership stake in Astrid & Lilly, so the network only makes money from the advertising. And not many sponsors will be lining up to run ads on this show based on the early ratings.
I am guessing that this show will attract some attention and those fans should do everything they can to get the word out about it. Syfy did very little to promote Astrid & Lilly prior to its premiere beyond internal spots on the network. But if fans can spread the word about this one, perhaps it could catch on. Or they could lay the foundation for getting it moved to another venue (the horror-focused Shudder would be a good location) in the case that Syfy cancells it. A Call to Action is certainly needed for this show, otherwise it could very well turn into yet another one-and-done causality from the network.
How would you rate Astrid & Lilly Save the World? Give your score at this link.
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