The series isa weird and sometimes upsetting take on the traditional American sitcom.
It is full ofLynch’s trademark surrealismwith a cast of bizarre characters with strange maladies and personality quirks.
What Is ‘On the Air’ About?
Image by Federico Napoli
On the Airis asitcomset in the 1950s.
Lester Guy (Ian Buchanan) is an English transplant and aclassic Hollywood actor.
He’s pompous, washed up, and a cowardly egomaniac.
Image via ABC
She is impossibly sweet and incredibly likable, and her ditsy vibe is somehow endearing instead of annoying.
The director is a German man with a thick accent that no one but his assistant can understand.
The production descends into unhinged chaos, leaving Lester unconscious after he falls, knocking over a prop light.
In the 1950s, a group of television performers attempt to put together a live variety program and often find disastrous results.
To save the day, Betty sings a song her mother taught her.
The switchboards light up, and Bud’s ‘hotline’ phone rings and shoots fire out.
Shots of the home viewers sitting in bathtubs dressed as cowboys with horses laugh hysterically.
The internet executives have spoken, and they have a hit show.
Why Was ‘On the Air’ Canceled After Three Episodes?
On the Airis indeed strange.
This project was distinctly different fromLynch’s other work.
The musical score is an excellent place to start.
None of the bouncy upbeat tunes are usually employed innetwork laugh-fests.
However, unlike the online grid executives in the series, the real-life ABC executives had a different idea.
