Review of the Series Premire of "Hot in Cleveland."

Although it has found a home on the rather unexceptional TV Land, the new series Hot in Cleveland, starring Jane Leeves, Wendie Malick, Valerie Bertinelli, and the fantastic Betty White, is a sizzling comedy that just may be the rebirth (or at least a daring daughter of) that revolutionary 1980s sitcom The Golden Girls. It manages to combine a bit of razor-sharp comedy with a strong story and likeable characters and in doing so creates what will hopefully be one TV Land's more succsesful series.

In essence, the series follows three successful women from Los Angeles as they attempt to cope with the vicissitudes of reaching middle age. In the process, they manage to get stranded in Cleveland, where they see a glimmer of hope that they may be able to remake their lives. They even go so far as to lease a house, which comes with its own feisty care-taker, ably portrayed by Betty White.

The acting is well-done, by all four of the major actresses, although of course Betty White manages to steal the show, which is perhaps inevitable. Although it may have taken the producers of the show a little bit of persuading to get White to star in the show, but all of their efforts paid off, and I predict that White will be pivotal to the star's success. Even though she's approaching 90, this venerable actress manages to bring a vivacity and a power to the screen that simply cannot be matched. Surprisingly, she can be quite vulgar and pulls no punches when it comes to the jokes, which is part of what makes her such a pleasure to watch on the screen. She manages to shoot out the verbal barbs without missing a beat, which is no small feat.

That being said, the four women together manage to create a chemistry that rarely happens in a television series these days. These are women who have grown used to the glitz and glamor, and the sickness and darkness that lives just beneath the surface of the High Life. Now, they've got a chance to remake their lives and get in touch with the part of the country that is, in the logic of the series at least, more "legitimate" or "authentic."

All in all, Hot in Cleveland looks like it's going to be a lively and entertaining addition to the line-up of television shows living on the network. What is most surprising is that it's on TV Land, which has become rather infamous for the tacky reality shows that have become emblematic of its new brand. With this series, however, the network may just have struck gold, and with Betty White's star in the ascendance (although she has never left the limelight, she's experienced something of a renaissance,) it's chances are pretty good. Let's just hope that the American viewing public (which is notoriously fickle and sometimes unlikely to like even the best of shows,) decides that this show is worth keeping on the network. They'd be fools not to.