7th Heaven: How Bad Can it Get?

Though not proudly, I've watched 7th Heaven for many years. I've seen every episode. It was, after all, a unique idea for a show. The concept that the family of a minister can have its own drama, not so different from that of most families, was interesting to many of us. While the audience is predominantly youthful, the show has been one that families can watch together. That's what has made it special, being something both parents and kids enjoy.

7th Heaven, for those who have never watched, is about the family of minister Eric Camden. His family is wife Annie and seven children: Matt, Mary, Lucy, Simon, Ruthie, and twins Sam and David.
In its early life, the show was great. With all these characters there was never a dull moment, and it has always tackled the so-called "tough" issues. The Camden children weren't perfect, neither were the parents, and that made it a show that "normal" families could relate to. The writers of the show were able to provide this without compromising its innocence, something found in very few shows on television.

But as with every great show, a threshold is crossed, a point at which it's time to put to rest that which can no longer fulfill its purpose. That is the merciful thing to do. I believe that the show's creators waited too long to do this in the first place, before it finally got the long-deserved ax from the WB earlier this year. By the time that happened, it had gotten bad enough, then wrapped up a now ridiculous series with an even more ridiculous finale. In this final episode, we saw all three of the oldest Camden kids expecting twins at the same time. At least that train wreck has been cleared up, now we can move on and pretend we didn't see it, right? Not quite. Because with the birth of a new network, the WB and UPN merged, 7th Heaven got a reprieve and the writers had to then scramble to find a way out of the silly corner they'd painted themselves into.

So with a surprise 11th season airing on the new CW network, viewers are getting the worst the show has ever offered: replacement of almost the entire cast, terrible acting, uninteresting and odd storylines, poorly unfolded plots and even more of the "cheesiness" the show has always been guilty of. When Lucy broke into song in the middle of the most recent episode, it was the last straw. And it did not make me want to go out and buy Beverly Mitchell's CD!
I won't even address how clueless the writers are about Christianity. They could have at least had someone who knows something about it on standby for consultation. After all, medical dramas consult medical professionals to ensure that their content is accurate.

It seems in the last 5 years or so, the "acting" has been no more than people reading essay excerpts to each other. No one talks like this! And when I mentioned poorly unfolded plots, what I meant was this: In each episode, the way characters connect the dots to uncover what they don't yet know is completely unbelievable.
Example: Eric learns bad news about his health, but doesn't tell anyone. On the same day he gives his jacket to a homeless guy. Lucy and Kevin begin to speculate, It's strange that he gave his jacket to that homeless guy (even though he's a minister). Do you suppose it could be because he learned something bad about his health and isn't telling us? It's this kind of lameness repeated in every situation. What also contributes to the poor quality are the weak attempts to tie up loose ends in the storylines. When we would otherwise ask, "How would he have known about that?" They very lazily prepare for it by throwing in a very scripted explanation from the character before continuing the rest of the forced script-reading.

And if all this is not bad enough, the writers have repeatedly turned episodes into hour-long public service announcements. In these episodes, they insult the intelligence of the audience and shamelessly promote their own non-objective political opinions. People are watching the show for entertainment and drama, not for an editorial.

If you haven't watched 7th Heaven since before the kids all grew up and started moving out, then at least you quit while the show was ahead, since the execs of the show did not have the good sense to do the same. And apparently, neither did I!