The Boston Globe from Boston, Massachusetts • 34

D2 Weekend The Boston Globe FRIDAY, JULY 13, 2007 Lifetime serves a double dose of women in distress I'm" -i By Matthew Gilbert GLOBE STAFF I have a feeling Lifetime may have two more summer hits on its hands, along with "Army Wives -n -3 K2 i i Marisa Coughlan as best friends; "State of Mind" centers on Lili from left) Diana-Maria Riva and volves a woman who has three husbands "No one can love all of you, and I want all of me to be loved," the overweight woman says on her own behalf. It's like David E. Kelley at his worst ridiculous, gimmicky, and cheaply symbolic. Jenny also starts a telephone affair with a wrong number, and his disembodied voice soothes her with the likes of "Maybe the universe doesn't approve of your plan. It's OK to veer off the path once in a while." Sounds like mystery man is taking cues from Jack Handy, late of "Saturday Night Live." The profound connection between Jenny and phone guy is meant to be oh-so-magical, but it just feels forced.

The same kind of willful absurdity mars "State of Mind," pii.iIIMipipw.pi "Side Order of Life" stars (seated, sa Coughlan, who comes across like a young Faith Ford, she is in full-on bridezilla mode when she learns that her best friend, Vivy (Diana-Maria Riva), has brain cancer. The news, and Vivy's insistence that Jenny take life by the horns, force Jenny into a major life reassessment. Is kind-of love enough, even when the man she kind-of loves is played by Jason Priestley? Could she push herself into Pulitzer-level work at the magazine? Jenny's situation is mildly engaging, as she takes Vivy's news to heart. And Coughlan smartly underplays Jenny's reaction to the thought of losing her friend. But Nagle and her writers plug a farcical charge into the show that is quickly annoying.

For, example, Jenny's magazine assignment in The Singing Bee On: NBC, Channel 7 Time: Tuesday, p.m. Don't Forget the Lyrics! On: Fox, Channel 25 Time: Wednesday, p.m. Thursday, p.m. Joey Fatone, sporting well-coiffed eyebrows, is the good-humored host of "The Singing Bee," which debuted Tuesday. The former Sync singer and "Dancing With the Stars" runner-up appears somewhat stolid, as the contestants and the show's format move around him in double time.

The half-hour seems to fly past him as a half-dozen dancing karaoke singers are winnowed to one, and as a small troupe of leggy dancers usher us in and out of commercial breaks. There's not an ounce of empty air on this show. iiii.iiii.ii ui i l. i.iiiiii. Tmwm Mo-TiWfe rvi I Side Order of Life Starring: Marisa Coughlan, Jason Priestley, Diana-Maria Riva, Christopher Gartin On: Lifetime Time: Sunday night, 8-9 State of Mind Starring: Lili Taylor, Devon Gum-mersall, Derek Riddell, Theresa Ran-dle, Mido Hamada, Kevin Chamberlin On: Lifetime Time: Sunday night, 9-10 which stars Lili Taylor as New Haven family therapist Ann Bel-lowes.

Television dramas rarely get therapy right, and "State of Mind" only adds to that reputation. Early in the premiere, Ann shows up for her own couples counseling session to find her husband and their therapist in fla seemed slightly awed by her esprit, and at one point he grabbed an audience member and did backup dancing for her. "Are you ready to sing?" he asked her, and her answer came in the very next beat: "I'm always ready to sing." Mosher, both little-girl cutesy and wildly extroverted at the same time, made Brady's job easy. She also made watching "Don't Forget" easier than watching "The Singing Bee," since she was on stage long enough for us to root for her or against her. On "The Singing Bee," it's impossible to rally for or against the many folks who hurry on and off stage, and rallying is a critical part of the fun of these mindless game shows.

The reality TV wars are such that we now have a number of shows about wife swapping, nannies, and modeling. In this case, the duplication came after NBC Television which has become the channel's Reviews highest rated se- ries ever. Not because "Side Order of Life" and "State of Mind" are so very good; they're not. Both of these new dramas are middling "Ally McBeal" wannabes, as stressed heroines deal with work-love tensions amid hallucinations and quirky supporting characters. They're average shows built on old bromides about the emotional growth of women who are living life instead ofwatchingitonTV.

And yet the creators of these series clearly know Lifetime's target audience's taste. They know the channel is all about women at a crossroads, making hard, courageous choices. (Men, apparently, are more drawn to traction and metal, if you judge by Spike and Speed TV.) "Side Order of Life" and "State of Mind," which premiere Sunday night at 8 and 9 respectively, dive straight into two women's challenging emotional journeys, and shamelessly so. They play like serialized versions of so many Lifetime movies, where pain inevitably leads to gain. "Side Order of Life," created by Margaret Nagle (who wrote HBO's FDR movie "Warm revolves around the awakening of Jenny, a magazine photographer about to marry a nice guy whom she kind-of loves.

Played by Mari- Reality of TV karaoke contests: less is more By Matthew Gilbert, GLOBE STAFF Where do they come up with these contestants? Were they recruited from some kind of Red T-i Bull summer Television camp? Are tney Review downing piles of jumping beans before the show? Watching the hyperactive players on TVs two new karaoke contests, NBC's "The Singing Bee" and Fox's "Don't Forget the is mesmerizing. These jubilant Jacks and Jills just don't stop moving. They're so ecstatic, so totally jazzed to be in front of a live audience and millions of TV viewers, that they seem on the verge of spontaneous combustion. Perhaps they're missing the shy gene. Or maybe, like so many Americans, they're used to public appearances on their video blogs or on their audition tapes for "Big Brother 38." In any case, without these raging extroverts, both series would be nothing.

As on "Deal or No Deal," the simplistic formula of the contest is quite secondary to the rivetingly peppy kooks who make the hosts look so very sane. kvaw i tiKPAiirA iixi i nnA TuSnt S-llpm 7-13 Negroni Trio 7-14 Teresa Ines Group 7-17 Ryles Artist Showcase 7-19 Jean-Marie Cowls 7-19 BenSharoni 7-20 Chick Corea Tribute Band 7-21 Lance Martin Band TUE NocheLatlna THU Temporada Latins FRI Viernea Vacilon SAT 4 on the Floor SUN Salaa Sunday nmfety 7izz fmntk 7-1S Harvey Flnateln IBB I. fevV 1 (: TRACY grante delicto. D'oh! Later on, in her therapist chair, Ann dresses down a married couple in a manner that borders on cruel and unethical. The session, in which she calls them "morons," becomes all about Ann's marital problems.

Is it time to call the Narcissism Police? "State of Mind," created by author-therapist Amy Bloom, is more of an ensemble vehicle than "Side Order of Life." Ann bonds and argues with the other professionals in her Victorian office building, including her psychologist friend Cordelia (Theresa Ran-dle); a noble child psychologist with a Scottish accent named James (Derek Riddell); and newcomer Barry the lawyer (played sweetly by Devon Gummersall from "My So-Called The character of James, in particular, announced "The Singing Bee" for the fall, and then Fox scheduled a karaoke knockoff for the summer. In retaliation, NBC rushed its show on the air the night before Fox's premiere. Oddly, Fox's less insanely frenetic show looks and feels more like an NBC show. The sustained rapport between the host and the contestant is reminiscent of "Deal or No Deal." And the NBC show moves more like a Fox show, with its relentless flash and its rush to jump among contestants and overwhelm us with fast cuts. The moral of the story: One danger of unnecessary competition is that it can turn you into your competitor.

Matthew Gilbert can be reached at gilbert globe, com. For more on TV, visit boston.comaetvblog. JJi ill rafm' Bio flux." A MAAVELOUS PARTYI iClie Boston (Plobt rP 1 SPEEDLIFETIME (LEFT); PETER STONELIFETIME Taylor as a therapist. becomes unintentionally irritating by the end of the first hour, after he engages in the same kind of therapist self-righteousness as Ann when dealing with an adoptive family. He pontificates his way right out of our good graces.

Taylor was extremely effective on "Sue Feet Under," as the insecure and passive-aggressive Lisa. And she has stolen hearts in her comic roles, notably as the songwriter in "Say Anything" never be me, that'll never be me Here, she's less successful, playing frazzled, tough, and preachy. We can only hope that as the series progresses, Dr. Bellowes will learn to mellow. Matthew Gilbert can be reached at gilbertglobe.com.

For more on TV, visit boston.comaetvbJog. DearMargo Still in love with his ex DearMargo: I'm in love with my ex-wife, even though it's been 10 years since we divorced. I got remarried and have a wonderful son, and she's remarried with a son, also. We e-mail to keep in touch, because we were high school sweethearts and lived together for a long time before we married. I tried to remain just friends, but I had to tell her how I felt.

She did not respond. My wife now knows that I still love my ex. I wish I could love my current wife the way I do my ex, but I don't think I could ever love anyone as much. DEPRESSED ABOUT IT ALL You need to remind yourself why it was that you and your ex-wife divorced. You also have to accept that you can't glue the teapot back together again.

(Notice the nonresponse you got when you wrote of your lingering feelings.) How perfectly awful for your current wife to live with the knowledge that you're torching for your ex. Whether you do it with a counselor or on your own, you must let go of a possibly idealized romance and dedicate yourself to the life you have. I strongly suspect that if you can't turn things around, you may well be looking for a third wife. And cut off the e-mails and forget about "being friends." You have proof now that this is not possible. DearMargo: My mother has always been the person who wants to be her children's "friend." Luckily, when my parents divorced, my father remarried a lovely woman who has been more of the mother to me.

I am starting my senior year in college, and my mom has become' a cling-on. I go to school several hours away, and my mom wants to talk to me at least every day, sometimes several times, and she tries to monopolize all of my time when I am home. If I try to spend time with my dad and stepmom, she tries to make me feel guilty. I don't feel like I should have to be my mother's best friend. COLLEGE GIRL You have to "retrain" your mother.

You must lay it out for her that you are not able to have daily conversations with her due to your new independent life at school and the constraints of time. If she catches you on the phone and really has nothing to say, tell her, "Gotta go." And when you do go home for the holidays, you set your schedule. Her neurotic wishes can only prevail if you let them. Send your letters to dearmargo creators.com. PAUL DRINKWATERNBC VIA AP (ABOVE LEFT); GREG GAYNEFOX BROADCASTING CO.

VIA AP Joey Fatone (above left with the Honey Bees) hosts NBC's "The Singing Bee" while Wayne Brady (performing with contestant Katie Mosher) is the host of "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" on Fox. "The Singing Bee" challenge is for each contestant to fill in the lyrics to songs such as "Venus" and "Joy to the World" when the music stops. Every word counts, so "Well, I'm your Venus" is wrong; it's simply "I'm your Venus." The challenge on "Don't Forget the just as nitpicky, but the format of the show is quite different, and better. It moves at a slower pace, though not a slow pace, as the half-hour zeroes in on one player at a time. This week, a contestant named Katie Mosher took center stage like an old pro.

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