Drew Live II

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"Drew Live II"
Gerry Cohen
Written byBrian Scully
Production code226360
Original air dateNovember 8, 2000 (2000-11-08)
Guest appearances
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"Drew Live II" is the fifth episode of the

Oswald Lee Harvey (Diedrich Bader
).

The episode was written by

Whose Line Is It Anyway? cast members and talk show host Jay Leno
.

"Drew Live II" was seen by an estimated 15.2 million viewers, finishing just outside the Top 20 in the ratings for the week of November 6–12, 2000. It was the sixth highest-rated show on ABC that week. Production mixer Klaus Landsberg was recognised for his work on the episode with a

Primetime Emmy Award
nomination.

Plot

Mr. Wick (Craig Ferguson) about his rejected unemployment claim. Wick tells him that he should not have quit his job, but Drew argues that he was fired. Mr. Wick tells him to take it up with the assistant director of personnel, which was Drew's former job. They go back and forth, until Drew gives up and Wick declares to the other employees that the show is over. Drew's co-worker, Eugene (Colin Mochrie
) does not join in with the applause and tells Wick that he thinks what he did to Drew was cruel, so Wick fires him. Drew vows to help Eugene find a new job, before deciding to open his own employment agency.

Drew's friends

Kate O'Brien (Christa Miller) suggests they go to Shenanigans to see who is better at the job. Both Lewis and Oswald are terrible, so Drew tells them they can work for him. Oswald realises that he went into the wrong office when he quit his job and returns to work. Lewis and Drew visit Lewis' boss (Jay Leno
) at DrugCo to ask him to give Lewis his job back.

Production

Wayne Brady appears with other Whose Line Is It Anyway? cast members in the improvisational segments.

Following the first

sweeps ratings period.[1] The producers also wanted to "push the envelope even further" than before, so they decided to keep many elements of the episode a secret from the cast.[1] Improvisational segments were added to the basic plot, allowing the producers to throw the cast "a few curve balls".[2] Executive producer Bruce Helford stated, "The actors don't know what's coming at them. They don't know what's behind every door."[1]

Helford planned to bring in guest stars during the recordings,[1] as well having the studio audiences come up with suggestions on how the episode should end, leaving the cast with little time to prepare before they act it out.[2] Neil Conrad, the channel's Broadcast and Standard Practices editor, admitted that he was scared about the episode, especially after the first live broadcast, in which a guest cast member was caught with a handwritten message to his mother on his buttocks.[2] Helford joked that Conrad had a right to be worried,[2] but he also said that if the cast were to mess up, then it just adds to the fun.[1]

As with the first live episode, the cast and crew performed "Drew Live II" three times for the

Whose Line Is It Anyway? made guest appearances in the episode. Colin Mochrie once again reprised his role as Eugene, while Wayne Brady, Brad Sherwood, Charles Esten, Greg Proops, Kathy Greenwood and Laura Hall appeared in the various improv segments.[2] Talk show host Jay Leno also makes a cameo appearance.[3][4] To coincide with the episode, ABC planned to air live promos featuring actors coming by The Drew Carey Show studio to promote their ABC shows.[1]

To prove to the viewers that the episode was live, some of the actors were seen watching and improvising the dialogue for that night's broadcast of Felicity, which aired in the same time slot on The WB.[5] Helford had originally chosen an episode of The West Wing, but the show's producers rejected the idea and Felicity was chosen instead, as long as the actors did not make any jokes about Keri Russell's hairstyle.[5] Felicity creator J. J. Abrams praised the segment, saying "The idea of characters on a live show tuning in to another network to see what's on was brilliant. My only hope is that it reminded people: 'What the hell am I doing not watching The WB?'"[5]

Reception

In its original broadcast, "Drew Live II" was watched by 15.2 million viewers, finishing in 22nd place in the ratings for the week of November 6–12, 2000. It was the sixth highest-rated show on ABC that week, following episodes of

NFL Monday Night Football, The Practice, NFL Monday Showcase, and ABC's coverage of the presidential election.[6]

A writer for

The Orlando Sentinel included the episode in the newspaper's "Prime Picks" feature, and commented that it was "a dangerously unpredictable episode."[8]

Sandra P. Angulo from Entertainment Weekly included "Drew Live II" in her feature on "the splashier sweeps events" for the week, commenting "In what's becoming an annual event, Drew and company – including the improv aces from Whose Line Is It Anyway? – perform live for each of the three time zones. Basically, they have three chances to get it right."[9] James Joyce, writing for the Newcastle Herald, noted that Carey had "always been willing to toy with the conventions of the sitcom format", and dubbed Oswald and Lewis his "dimwit buddies".[10]

The Washington Post's Lisa de Moraes was not a fan of the live format, stating "Apparently no one at ABC watched last season's live, partially improvised Drew Carey train wreck, so they're allowing the producers to do it again."[11] Allan Johnson for Chicago Tribune gave the episode a mention in his round up of the special episodes airing during November sweeps.[12]

Production mixer Klaus Landsberg earned a

Primetime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Multi-Camera Sound Mixing for a Series or a Special for his work on the episode.[13]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f De Witt, Barbara (November 1, 2000). "Live from L.A., it's Drew". Los Angeles Daily News. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g "Drew Carey & Cast Kept In The Dark For Live Episode". Warner Bros. November 3, 2000. Retrieved September 2, 2017.
  3. ^ "Drew Live II". On TV Tonight. Retrieved September 4, 2017.
  4. ^ Zaleski, Annie (September 14, 2015). "The Drew Carey Show's musical guests were as absurd as the sitcom's plots". The A.V. Club. Retrieved September 12, 2017.
  5. ^ a b c Cunneff, Tom (November 27, 2000). "Insider". People. Retrieved 15 March 2018.
  6. Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  7. ^ Brown, Joel (November 8, 2000). "TV Tonight". The Spokesman-Review. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
  8. Newspapers.com.Free access icon
  9. ^ Angulo, Sandra P. (November 2, 2000). "Boy bands, Barbra, and the return of 'The X-Files' top the TV sweeps". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
  10. ^ Joyce, James (March 20, 2001). "Channel Surf". Newcastle Herald. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
  11. ^ de Moraes, Lisa (November 2, 2000). "Trying to Sweep Up With O.J. and Jackie". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 18, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2017.(subscription required)
  12. ^ Johnson, Allan (November 1, 2000). "Sweeps inspiration: Juggling generates ratings and confusion". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on November 19, 2018. Retrieved August 23, 2017.(subscription required)
  13. ^ "Emmy 2001 nomination list". Variety. July 12, 2001. Retrieved September 26, 2017.

External links

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