NBC's live musicals can be pretty hit or miss. They range from pretty boring to pretty bad to pretty amazing. So you never know what you're going to get when you tune in. Luckily, they've gotten better as time went on. Here is my list of the NBC live musicals, from worst to best.
#4- Peter Pan Live (
2.4 A18-49/9.21 milllion viewers)
Oh, boy. NBC's second go-round of the live musical was a bust. It just was not very good. Nothing really drew me to it, I kind of just watched it because I enjoyed the idea of a live musical, and hoped it would improve upon the Sound of Music. It did not. This one felt uncomfortable, and the casting wasn't right. But Christopher Walken as Captain Hook was hysterical. But I'm not sure that's what they were going for. If you want a better live take on Peter Pan, watch SNL's parody. It was much better.
Score: 6/10
Grade: C-
#3- The Sound of Music Live (
4.6 A18-49/18.62 million viewers)
This one had everything going for it. It was adapted from a great stage show/movie. It had a good star. It had a pretty good soundtrack. So it should have worked wonderfully. But it didn't. It was a snooze fest. Honestly, I don't understand how it turned out that way. But it did. Carrie Underwood was not the right choice for the role of Maria. And the whole cast was kinda boring. This one fell flat, but was a solid and formidable effort.
Score: 6.5/10
Grade: C
#2- The Wiz Live (
3.4 A18-49/11.5 million viewers)
After losing hope in NBC musicals, I skipped the Wiz Live. I watched it about two weeks later, when I was bored and had nothing else to watch. And I was so impressed. It was such a drastic improvement over the first two that I couldn't believe it. The reason this worked and the other two really didn't was simple. It was actually fun. The actors looked like they were enjoying themselves. The set was really nice and authentic.
Score: 9/10
Grade: A-
#1- Hairspray Live (
2.3 A18-49/9.05 million viewers)
Going in to Hairspray, I was excited. The Wiz was great, and I wanted Hairspray to stay at that level of fun and quality. And it exceeded it. It was more fun that The Wiz. It was more fun that Grease Live on Fox. The cast was great. The songs were fun. It was a great choice for a live production. And like the Wiz, the set felt pretty authentic for a live musical, like we really were is Baltimore (too bad it was light out when it was supposed to be dark, though. This was the first live musical that I actually watched the day it aired, and that was a smart move. And based on The Wiz and Hairspray, NBC should make unknown talents their stars more often. It works for them. And the message of this musical is great, too. All around, this one easily is the best.
Score: 10/10
Grade: A+
So there you have it. My personal ranking of the NBC live musicals, from worst to best. What's your ranking? Let me know in the comments below.
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