"Old Christine" Re-invents Julia Louis-Dreyfus

All too often, we see TV actors and actresses gain international notoriety through one of their critically-acclaimed roles, then slip into typecast obscurity. For instance, it's nearly impossible to say William Shatner without saying Captain Kirk. For the great actors and actresses that refuse to give up and refuse to accept that their acting career died with one character, bigger and better things await. And, with the launch of The New Adventures of Old Christine, Julia Louis-Dreyfus is leaving her Seinfeld character, Elaine, in the past, and moving into new and better things.

Louis-Dreyfus plays the title character, Christine Campbell, a recently divorced mother of an 8 year old child, Ritchie (Trevor Gagnon), juggling his adolescent life with her own life of running a fast-track, 30-minute workout center. While Christine is enjoying the successes of owning her rather-profitable gym, Ritchie is still adapting. He's headed into his first day of third grade, and is switching schools, going from a public school to a private one. To compound her life (and add plotlines), she does keep in touch with her ex-husband, Richard (Clark Gregg) and luckily enough, gets to meet his new girlfriend, whose name is, luckily enough, Christine! (Emily Rutherford) Joanna Topor of Screen Talk says it best as she proclaims, "This new turn of events throws Christine into a tail spin as she realizes that her security blanket has moved on and she hasn't had sex in over three years. Blind dates and Brazilian waxes follow, not to mention some pretty funny one-liners."

The first thing to notice about this series, is that it plays to Louis-Dreyfus' strengths. Se does take from her pervious experience of Seinfeld's Elaine, but also adds a fresh edge to the character, reflected in her more mature, more positive look. This show is a welcome departure from Louis-Dreyfus' time on Watching Ellie, NBC's "real-time" series. And, while she is breathing in the breath of fresh air this show provides, it's also providing that for others. Writer/Creator Kari Lizer is witty, comedic and identifiable in her writings, now that she has departed the scene of Will & Grace. Not that she wasn't before, but it does seem that Lizer is finding a niche here, writing a character that we can all get on the level with.

To kick start this series, a number of Guest stars have been lined up for the first few episodes. Andy Richter appears in the first couple episodes, being the target of Christine's "affection", or perhaps desire is a better word. Wanda Sykes will pop in for an appearance in the third installment of the show, bringing a tart and smart edge to the new series.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus will try to top the heights of Seinfeld with this show, but already has other guest spots to highlight her career, including appearances on Arrested Development, Saturday Night Live (1982-1985) and Animal Farm on the TV screen, and Father's Day, Jack the Bear, Hannah and Her Sisters and A Bug's Life on the big screen. As for her current role as Christine, she is joined by Clark Gregg (Magnolia), Hamish Linklater (Fantastic Four), Trevor Gagnon (Big Fish), Emily Rutherford (Elizabethtown), Tricia O'Kelly (Malcolm in the Middle) and Alex Kapp Horner (Maggie Winters).

The New Adventures of Old Christine will debut tonight, March 13th, at 8:30pm and 9:30pm (9:30pm will be its regular time) on CBS. It will compete against the likes of Fox's 24 and NBC's The Apprentice.

Additional Sources: ScreenTalk