Sarah Hughes show on 2-nite [Archive]

Alexeiskate

12-26-2002, 12:54 PM

The home movie segment of the familty was so bad that it was funny. I wish I could have seen more of Emily skating. I thought Sarah handled the interview portion of the special very well. She was mature and articulate. The skating segments, however, left a lot to be desired. The choreography was nondescript and did not show Sarah very well at all. I groaned during the "Dancing in the Street" segment where Sarah skated over to the section of people on the ice that were cheering for her. Who thought of that cheesefest?

Toepoint

12-26-2002, 03:21 PM

I have to agree that dancing in the street number was pathetic. I could only laugh. Why did they have her family acting? They are not Actors. I have seen many segments of Sarah with her family doing normal things in the house. I too would have liked to see more of Emily. That part was interesting. I wonder if they are training together now? I have to say I am a little disappointed. The show just had no direction. One thing I did notice, Sarah looked an awful lot like Dorothy Hamil to me.:(

sk8rzmom

12-26-2002, 04:26 PM

So what was the purpose of this show? There was nothing in it that was remotely informative, her family came off as a bunch of clowns, the skating was a series of excerpts from tours, and the interviews did not show Sarah to be the intelligent girl she supposedly is.
And did anyone esle notice who the 2nd producer was? Robin Wagner herself!

LadyNit

12-26-2002, 04:47 PM

Originally posted by sk8rzmom
So what was the purpose of this show? There was nothing in it that was remotely informative, her family came off as a bunch of clowns, the skating was a series of excerpts from tours, and the interviews did not show Sarah to be the intelligent girl she supposedly is.
And did anyone esle notice who the 2nd producer was? Robin Wagner herself!

In agreement. I was disappointed with the interviews...Sarah didn't seem very articulate in most of the remarks she made...just a typical teen.

The choreo was beyond DULL. How many spirals can be packed into each program? To me, there was a stark contrast between these performances and the polished package that Sarah presented at the Olys. It kind of tarnishes the Gold...wait. STOP. Did I say that? I really think that NOTHING can tarnish Sarah's golden moment. It was a very special moment.

Regardless, what this "special" showed me is that at this point in her skating development, Sarah has some more work to do to bring up her performance level.

Sarah is very young. She has plenty of opportunity to polish and shine for us in the future.

But it is hard to cut RobinW any slack for this production.

[edited to add] I decided that this show was aimed at the 7-10 year old age group. As I haven't been 7 years old in a loooong time, I'm not sure whether I would have loved it or thought is was lame when I was a kid.

purplecat

12-26-2002, 04:52 PM

I think Sarah deserved to have a better special than this one. It was very disappointing. I did like the Meditation number though and would like to see her turn it into an exhibition number perhaps.

jazzpants

12-26-2002, 06:48 PM

Originally posted by Toepoint
One thing I did notice, Sarah looked an awful lot like Dorothy Hamil to me.:(

Funny that you said that. I was thinking the same when I watched the skating clip. (And I did (vaguely) remember Dorothy around that time too...) Especially the last number and on the layback segments...

bcskater

12-26-2002, 11:31 PM

one of the cheesiest things ive seen in a long time :roll:

donnamarie

12-27-2002, 06:32 AM

I must be in the minority, because I loved this show. The only part I thought was too cheesy was when she signed an autograph for the kid in a wheelchair - that seemed a bit like a politician kissing babies. Condescending maybe ...

Otherwise, what a wholesome show. I thought the Home with the Hughes part was darling, and also hilarious. Much more wholesome than the Osbornes ... It was great to include her whole family ... I envy her such a close-knit family!

Overall it showed what a balanced life Sarah has. All the things that are important to her were included. I also enjoyed all the skating programs.

Remember the skating special that Tara did after her Olympic gold? I thought this was far better. They are two different people, with different priorities, and this showed that.

Sarah is a role model to young girls ... and this show was a depiction of her life and her priorities. It was similar to Elvis Stojko's "Incognito" in many ways, for those who have seen that.

Robin Wagner did a great job of showing the well-rounded life of Sarah - and only inserted herself at the end, in a way that was quite appropriate and moving.

sk8rzmom

12-28-2002, 02:12 PM

Robin Wagner did a great job of showing the well-rounded life of Sarah - and only inserted herself at the end, in a way that was quite appropriate and moving.

Only at the end? The special I watched had Robin in almost every scene, except the actual tour performances and the family segments. My husband's comment was this was really the RW special, hoping to attract some new students once Sarah goes to college.

Thinking about it though, wouldn't that be the smart thing to do? If Sarah went to Cornell or Harvard, she would never be percieved as negatively as Tara who turned pro as soon as she was off the Olympic podium, and she'd never have to really defend her title, because Harvard being the tough school it is, no one would expect her to carry a full schedule and maintain her skating skills. And what coach would she choose in Boston? No one will could ever take Robin's place in Sarah's life, so school would become the focus, with all the positive publicity that would bring Sarah and Harvard. And that nice Jimmy Fund show would have their very own Olympic star right on campus. A win-win situation for all. ;)

Blade1

12-28-2002, 06:06 PM

ITA with Donnamarie - personally I didn't see anything wrong with this special. I sometimes wonder if people just "attack" such a special like this just because there are a few fans out there are still bitter about MK not getting the "gold"

proam

12-28-2002, 06:49 PM

It was so predicable that certain fans (please note the words “certain fans”) couldn’t wait for Sarah’s Special to air just to tear it apart. There is a whole group of certain fans on the Internet that is all about agendas. After being on-line since 1998 their names stand out like sore thumbs-it was expected.

Let face it Sarah’s Special could have been produced by Steven Spielberg (sp.?) directed by George Lucas and hosted by Tom Hanks and it still would be panned because it was Sarah. Sarah did the unthinkable by winning the Olympic Gold and that can never be forgiven, just ask Tara. :roll:

My view about the Special- over all rating good to fair, so not bad for an inexperienced seventeen year old skater thrust into the limelight for a Prime Time TV Special.
I think to the average viewer Sarah came across as a sweet caring person. :)

CMc

12-28-2002, 07:48 PM

Originally posted by sk8rzmom
Only at the end? The special I watched had Robin in almost every scene, except the actual tour performances and the family segments. My husband's comment was this was really the RW special, hoping to attract some new students once Sarah goes to college.

Maybe you're thinking of the "Story Of Gold" special that was on ABC hosted by Jim McKay?? I mean that wasn't the same kind of special, but it was a nice exclusive half-hour devoted to Sarah, and Robin was featured quite a bit in it.
But Robin only did the "Triple-Triple" skit at the end of Life In Balance. The other part was at the beginning when she's crying talking about the Olympics.

I liked the show for what it was, and I don't think it was meant to be this huge spectacular emmy-winning show, I believe they wanted to try several different ideas all at once. Maybe a few too many ideas made it seem a bit schizophrenic, but I was cool with it.
Sarah was great--She just spoke like she always does--Very sweetly and eloquently. Her skating was as nice as it's even been (Of the routines, I think most people were enthralled with "Meditiation" more than anything else. "Dancing in the Streets" was the number that was the least favorite, but I liked it--It kind of reminded me of "Mony Mony" from a few years back)

And as for the St Jude Hospital segment, BRAVO! This is Sarah indeed, and nobody can (or should) ever be critical of her kindness and generosity towards those that are ill and in need of help (I loved when she told the volunteers at the hospital "You guys are the real heroes! All I did was skate"). And donnamarie, why did you have a problem with Sarah signing an autograph for the girl in the wheelchair? She does that for everybody!

"Home With The Hughes" and "Triple-Triple" were supposed to look very cheesily acted, and I think that made it funnier than if they were going to do an attempt at comedy without the aid of actual comedic actors and writers (which may be why this was done in the first place). If they had done this on Saturday Night Live, they would have had a lot of good help to do it like a skit, but possibly the writers of this show knew they were working with people that were not comedy performers by trade, so what they ended up with makes sense.

Anybody like the part when she was playing lacrosse with the students at Cornell??:lol:

And lo and behold, our wonderful creator of the Unofficial Sarah Hughes Web Page (http://dianesrink.com/sarah) Diane Olson was given a segment on the program!! Way to go, Diane!!

BTW, proam, very well put!!:D

nits

12-28-2002, 10:59 PM

Originally posted by Blade1
ITA with Donnamarie - personally I didn't see anything wrong with this special. I sometimes wonder if people just "attack" such a special like this just because there are a few fans out there are still bitter about MK not getting the "gold"

Oh please! That's a ridiculous statement! Have you checked out the responses on other boards as well? It's not only MK fans that didn't think Sarah's special was anything spectacular. (BTW, There are lots of Kwan fans that also like Sarah)
As for me, a Kwan fan, I missed Sarah's special. It wasn't intentional. It wasn't advertised well in my area. However, I am the first to admit that most skating shows are cheesy, and I have never sat through an entire "show" when they've aired...including MK's. (and can admit when they're cheesy):lol

donnamarie

12-29-2002, 09:03 AM

CMc - I have no problem with Sarah signing autographs for anyone, but this was a staged event, and these people were brought out onto the ice as props for the Dancing in the Street number. As such, I agree that it was rather cheesy ... better if they had inserted real shots of Sarah signing autographs for real people, rather than staging it, as there's no way to do it without seeming cheesy. In Elvis' similar show, Incognito, there was a similar cheesy segment when fans in the audience were cheering and moaning for Elvis, but because it was staged, they were really overdoing it, so it didn't seem genuine. I understand there was a tongue-in-cheek feel to the entire show, and it all worked for me except for that scene. Since other people also mentioned it, I wasn't the only one who thought that scene was too "cheesy". Other than that, I also enjoyed the Dancing in the Streets number, it was upbeat and fun. I enjoyed the whole show a lot, and it was really cool to see Diane getting recognized. She does a great webpage and it was gratifying for her to be honored in such a way.

Blade1

12-29-2002, 10:21 AM

Originally posted by nits
Oh please! That's a ridiculous statement! Have you checked out the responses on other boards as well? It's not only MK fans that didn't think Sarah's special was anything spectacular. (BTW, There are lots of Kwan fans that also like Sarah)
As for me, a Kwan fan, I missed Sarah's special. It wasn't intentional. It wasn't advertised well in my area. However, I am the first to admit that most skating shows are cheesy, and I have never sat through an entire "show" when they've aired...including MK's. (and can admit when they're cheesy):lol

Ridiculous statement - "maybe" but it just my opinion !!! Also yes I have read other boards as well and I got the impression that alot of Sarah fans "raved" about the special and very much enjoyed it !!

Mokah

12-29-2002, 01:25 PM

Look after that hip-hop special of Tara's and watching Michelle and friends being sliced and diced by terrible camera angles in the Disney production I find Sarah's show an improvement. Of course it is hokey but aren't all figure skating specials a tad hokey sometimes? What I saw was a young lady with a good family and goals in skating and far beyond skating. Kudo's to Sarah and Robin.

ps...I think Tenley Albright is a wonderful role model for Sarah.

CMc

12-29-2002, 04:54 PM

Whatever you want to call it, A Life in Balance was a nice little Christmas present from Sarah to the fans and anybody else that didn't feel like watching Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer for the 8,000,000th time!;)

Badams

12-29-2002, 05:05 PM

Hannahclear

12-29-2002, 05:23 PM

It does appear that this special got pretty bad reviews from all sorts of fans, not just Michelle ones.

momslovelove

12-29-2002, 07:20 PM

Seems like the old saying people hear what they want to hear, could be changed to fans read only what they want to read. Read all the boards and opinions. They werent good on most boards. I didnt watch so I have no opinion. I just read all the boards. So if I read 100 posts and 75 are not good I assume something is amiss.

Sk8tinglady2001

12-29-2002, 09:28 PM

I real loved da damn Sarah special, uh course. And ah' of course loved da damn comdey secshun and seein' Sarah wid ha' wonderful family. Slap mah fro! ah' love all skaters.

Blade1

12-29-2002, 11:03 PM

Originally posted by Badams
:roll: please. because michelle fans are responsible for all that is said, all that is wrong, all that will be said, ad all the will be wrong with figure skating? sounds to me like some fans of other skaters are still bitter because michelle is still popular. just my opinion.
Hmmmm that's funny, never did say I wasn't a Michelle Kwan fan !!! Just I find that "some fans" out there take any chance they can get to "jump" at Sarah ever since she won the "gold" medal. Again just my opinion just like you have your own opinion!

jazzpants

12-29-2002, 11:08 PM

My review on this show:

Short:Where's the macaroni to go with all that CHEESE??? :P

Long:
Peter Pan segment where Sarah was flying with sparkles on her blades was probably one of the most cheesiest moments of the special!!! :(

The Dancing in the Street segment where she came over to the "fans" to sign autographs was also the cheesiest. This segment was also the one I fast forward the fastest!!! EWWWW!!! Way over done!!!

I like the Home with the Hughes segment! That was funny! I like almost all the visit to Cornell EXCEPT the part where this old guy was preaching something about "if you want to go for the Gold in terms of education, you HAVE to go to an Ivy League school." That insulted the majority of viewers who did not go to Ivy League schools. Very demeaning!!! The Tenley Albright comment was touching...but I have a funny feeling that Harvard is not where she's gonna end up... at least not 'til 2006 Olympic is over... :P

I want to see more of Sarah's training - i.e. exercise, ballet (if she is taking ballet), practicing edges, jumps... I thought the segment with Sarah and Emily skating together was too short!!!

The last program was nice except for 1) the applause track and 2) the camera shots... the shots of Sarah's face was a bit too longer. (HINT: we want to see the SKATING!!!)

The "triple-triple" sundae got a chuckle out of me... yeah it was cheesy, but thankfully short... :)

Disclaimer: I *AM* a Sarah fan... but mainly b/c she spins in my direction!!! :P (Yes, I'm also a Todd fan too!!!)

nits

12-29-2002, 11:38 PM

Originally posted by Blade1
Hmmmm that's funny, never did say I wasn't a Michelle Kwan fan !!! Just I find that "some fans" out there take any chance they can get to "jump" at Sarah ever since she won the "gold" medal. Again just my opinion just like you have your own opinion!

This was a skating special, not a gold medal performance at the Olympics. Why get so defensive about what anyone thought of it? IIRC, many SKATING fans thought it was cheesy, not any one particular skaters fans. Why get so upset and defensive just because some didn't think it was the greatest skater show on earth?
:roll:

jazzpants

12-30-2002, 12:57 AM

Originally posted by nits
This was a skating special, not a gold medal performance at the Olympics. Why get so defensive about what anyone thought of it? IIRC, many SKATING fans thought it was cheesy, not any one particular skaters fans. Why get so upset and defensive just because some didn't think it was the greatest skater show on earth?
:roll:

Yeap! I think I just learn lesson one in watching skating performance.

Skating specials = Cheesefest!!! :P :lol:

CMc

12-30-2002, 08:15 AM

jazzpants--Funny!:lol:

OK, I think even Sarah would admit to the cheese factor, but that's because it was intended (At least in the comedy bits).
I wasn't expecting this show to be something that would blow me away, so as a result of that, I wasn't necessarily disappointed by it either. I really didn't know what to expect from "I'm Flying" in particular, because the press reports made it sound far worse than it looked (Something very vaguely described as Sarah flying through the magic of television). It turned out that her flying was done on a harness, and the SFX was just CGI'd magic dust. It was a cute number.;)

JDC1

12-30-2002, 09:54 AM

I like your idea of showing Sarah's training I'd love it if in Michelle's next special they showed her training regimen. All of these skating specials have a "cheesey" quality. My favorite was Michelle's Mulan special, I hope her next special will be Mulan II, her second one I didn't even watch all of because of the stupid camera work (and cheesy interviews) but I loved seeing Kat and Dorothy with Michelle. I would love to know what they do in training etc.!!!

Blade1

12-30-2002, 10:57 AM

Originally posted by nits
This was a skating special, not a gold medal performance at the Olympics. Why get so defensive about what anyone thought of it? IIRC, many SKATING fans thought it was cheesy, not any one particular skaters fans. Why get so upset and defensive just because some didn't think it was the greatest skater show on earth?
:roll:

*lol* Who said I was getting all "defensive" I'm just basically voicing my own opinion! Sorry you disagree ! But hey that's your opinion!

missmarysgarden

12-30-2002, 11:02 AM

Just as fans have different taste in skaters and skating, they also have different tastes in entertainment. I don't think anyone needs to "win" this opinion report debate.

I thought is was an embarassingly unprofessional, poorly produced and directed "special event". I agree that it had the "RW" touch - heavy on the cheese sauce, short on meat.

Sarah is a lovely person, an extremely talented skater, and an admirable athlete. She deserved much better than this. I thought it was terribly hokey, and the staged autograph signing in very poor taste.

As a diversion for Sarah fans, apparently some were obviously delighted to see her and her family, and enjoyed itvery much. Some fans were disappointed because they believe she deserved to be presented in a better vehicle. I don't think specials like this do anything to change a fan base, but if RW hoped this would be good hype for Sarah with Nationals coming up - I think it failed in that respect.

I don't know when this was taped, but Sarah seemed to have gotten pretty rus. Or maybe it was the lack of competitive intensity that helps her "get up" for a serious performance - not likely in a rather flimsy "piece" like this, IMO. Either way, those who liked it, liked it; those who didn't, didn't. I'm sure that if Sarah wants to go to Nationals, the "drive" will be coming back soon.

speedy

12-30-2002, 11:11 AM

I couldn't believe the professor's comment about the "Ivy League" education either...as if those schools were the only ones to produce well-rounded, productive adults. :roll: Did we really need to hear his sales pitch? I think the snobby Ivy League attitude-thing was a popular topic on another board when it was announced Sarah had been accepted to Harvard. I think they may rescind the invitation if they happened to watch this show. The ubiquitous Robin Wagner just can't leave well enough alone I guess. I cannot for the life of me remember any other skater's coach playing such a prominent role on and off-camera for their respective TV specials.

CanAmSk8ter

12-30-2002, 09:13 PM

This was the first of these type of specials I have ever watched, although I think I watched about ten minutes of Tara Lipinski's. It will be the last one I watch for any reason other than a good laugh. Easily the stupidest skating-related thing I have ever seen on TV.

Before anyone makes any comments about Michelle fans/Sarah fans/whatever, I thought I'd mention that I don't actually follow ladies' skating. I'm an ice dancer, I follow dance, and am fairly interested in pairs. Other than Alexei and Brian Joubert, singles just tends to bore me more often than not.

memememe76

12-30-2002, 11:40 PM

Easily the stupidest skating-related thing I have ever seen on TV.

Then you didn't see those Fox skating scandals specials and the Nancy/Tonya reunion. Sarah's special doesn't even come close.

Mazurka Girl

12-31-2002, 07:45 AM

The thing that bothers me about these shows is that they could produce a well written show where they have thoroughly thought out the concept for the same amount of money as it takes to produce these embarrassing extravaganzas. Instead, they put these bad shows out there time & time again just to make a buck, or because it's been written into somebody's contract to have a show. It's not only Sarah's show, but like the previous poster said, many of them. I really dislike the lack of quality.

CMc

12-31-2002, 09:17 AM

Originally posted by jazzpants
The "triple-triple" sundae got a chuckle out of me... yeah it was cheesy, but thankfully short... :)

And I definitely believe that leaving the outtake of Sarah cracking-up tagged onto the end of that piece was their way of saying "We know this is silly, we're just going with it!";)
They weren't taking it any more seriously than the audience.

sk8rzmom

12-31-2002, 12:37 PM

The ubiquitous Robin Wagner just can't leave well enough alone I guess. I cannot for the life of me remember any other skater's coach playing such a prominent role on and off-camera for their respective TV specials.

This is what I meant when I wrote that RW was in the majority of the shots. Okay, riding in the parade with Sarah was appropriate, as they are both natives of the North Shore of Long Island and everyone knows who she is there. But to attend the welcome back at Greak Neck North HIgh School!? Any other teen would have cringed at that and would have discouraged the coaches attendence. RW is not the sole factor in Sarha's success, and I think a lot more should have been done to show the support her parents have given both her and her siblings, instead of making their family life appear like something from Ozzie & Harriet.
Sarah's the star, RW is a supporting character only.

missmarysgarden

12-31-2002, 12:48 PM

I think it is highly inappropriate for a girls' coach to be her "best friend" - and I think Sarah's parents should have set some boundaries for her. No matter how grateful they may be to Robin for dedicating her entire life to Sarah (I wonder how much you have to pay a coach not to have any other competitive skaters?), including driving her to and from practice every day, Robin is an employee. It's not a good situation to set up. Makes it hard if you have to cut bait some day for valid reasons. When I was coaching, I had very clear boundaries with my athletes. If I had exhibited that sort of enmeshed relationship, or suggested that one of my athletes was my "best friend", I would have been reprimanded by USAG.

That aside. I think Robin acts like a "doofus".

Badams

12-31-2002, 07:21 PM

while i agree that sarah and robin have a relationship that could be seen as iffy...i think it's harmless. and i doubt they are really "best friends", in the way that they sit around and talk about boys and stuff. maybe robin is like sarah's mentor. someone to look up to and want to be like. and i think that it's nice. a lot of kids would benefit from such a relationship. but i agree...robin acted like a doofus at the olympics in my opinion.

CMc

12-31-2002, 09:17 PM

Well I still say Robin is human, and if I were in her shoes I'd be just as excited and emotional for Sarah's moment as she was.

missmarysgarden--You really don't have any idea what these two have gone through together, do you? Robin was there for Sarah not only when she had problems getting back on the ice when she was injured 2 years ago, she was a huge help for her when her mother was being treated with chemo--That was a long time without a mom, and this was when Sarah was 12. If your dad was working with his hands full (And I'm sure he was extremely devoted nonetheless to the kids during this time), and the only person in your life that you could turn to at that point in time is your coach, you mean to tell me you wouldn't do that?

HSF

12-31-2002, 09:30 PM

Wow, RW was a “doofus” at the Olympics?

I thought one of the most touching moments of the competition was when RW told Sarah to turn around and look at the enthusiastic response of the crowd as they were leaving the K&C area after the free program. She obviously wanted Sarah to walk away with a feeling of a job well done . . . she had the crowd on their feet.

My guess is that they were sitting in the back room waiting for the competition to be over with their fingers crossed hoping Sarah would medal. I doubt they had any hopes of her winning. I think the emotional reaction to the news that Sarah had won by both RW and Sarah was a combination of shock, surprise, and excitement.

I still get tears in my eyes when I think of RW telling Sarah to turn around and look at the crowd . . .

HSF

CMc

12-31-2002, 09:34 PM

Originally posted by HSF
Wow, RW was a “doofus” at the Olympics?

I thought one of the most touching moments of the competition was when RW told Sarah to turn around and look at the enthusiastic response of the crowd as they were leaving the K&C area after the free program. She obviously wanted Sarah to walk away with a feeling of a job well done . . . she had the crowd on their feet.

My guess is that they were sitting in the back room waiting for the competition to be over with their fingers crossed hoping Sarah would medal. I doubt they had any hopes of her winning. I think the emotional reaction to the news that Sarah had won by both RW and Sarah was a combination of shock, surprise, and excitement.

I still get tears in my eyes when I think of RW telling Sarah to turn around and look at the crowd . . .

HSF
WELL put, HSF!! Thank you! I wish I could have said the same!