By NYDailyNews.com
THERE’S NOTHING particularly wrong with Kirstie Alley’s new reality show, except that the weight issues of famous people are like the Chinese food of celebrity gossip. An hour later, you’re hungry for something with a little more substance.
But this new A&E show seems convinced that watching Alley try to slim down – again – is a drama that America is waiting for.
Fortunately, Alley finds humor in the drama, and that’s a smart move for a woman who is still regarded as a topline comic actress.
Alas, today’s TV watchers won’t know that unless they happen to catch “Cheers” reruns.
She’s made more news over the last few years for her off-camera life, including her religion and her weight.
The show makes it clear she doesn’t much care for the media that has fed on those stories, though she has discussed her weight battles in public forums.
It’s also safe to assume she wouldn’t have landed this gig if there hadn’t been some public interest.
Her wrath seems mostly directed toward the paparazzi whose big score is the unflattering pictures they can snap.
She calls that crowd the “Spawn of Satan,” and she physically shoos at least one away from the other side of her iron fence.
Still, she admits she has some complicity – “I made myself fat again” – and seems to accept that this is how the system works: “Fat pictures sell magazines.”
What’s more interesting is how prominent a role the tabloid media plays in her life, and the lives of her two teenage children.
“They don’t rag on Rosie O’Donnell like they do on you,” her son says. “And she’s way more of a b-.”
Tonight’s premiere, which features two episodes back to back, is devoted largely to establishing the cast and painting Alley in a recognizable situation.
She wants to lose weight. But it feels like there’s such a long way to go, and that first step seems so insignificant that she’s having trouble taking it.
Her plan, finally, is to partner up with her handyman, Jim, who is also plus-size, and convince him they should diet and exercise together because it’s always easier in pairs.
Fair enough. But that’s about the level of the drama here. Though Alley and her posse seem generally pleasant, not much happens.
Moreover, while a slow and methodical weight loss may be medically sound, it doesn’t necessarily make riveting television.
“Big Life,” at least at the beginning, seems aimed at people who can’t get enough of Kirstie Alley.
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