Holiday! Celebrate! I feel the fairies!

Of the nine people that 90 Days in Hollywood follows, many of them fall into this ego trip. Like any reality show, the participants fulfill their perspective stereotypes and become something that can easily be categorized. Daz is the toned, affable Brit with an apparent lack of serious acting chops (although he would be great as a secondary villain). Rowena is another Brit who has a modicum of talent, but whose personality is so off-putting that you almost want to see her fail. You can even watch as she tries to negotiate her contract for Joss Whedon's Firefly, before she's even received the part. Later, you learn that she was trying out for the part of Inara - during which she complains about the way that the casting did go (with Morena Baccarin).

The crazy train doesn't stop there, though. There's Holiday, a somewhat talented singer-songwriter who's simultaneously trying to get a record deal, as well as get her hands on acting roles. I'm entirely convinced that Holiday has serious mental illness - she believes that she's a "reincarnated fairy" and that as she was reading a book on fairies, that she "felt fairies dancing on her fingertips." After this, she knew what she believed was true. Oooh boy. In a sad, but somewhat funny exchange, we watch as Holiday meets with a creative executive from Fox Music, who had given her his business card at a club. Of course, she never hears from him again. My guess is that he was just trying to get laid. I don't think I'm going out on a limb there.

Rowena - you aren't that talented.

Not all is lost however - there are a few people that you can root for (and perhaps not incidentally, they're actually talented) including Elisa and Edwin. Elisa is an awfully typecast young actress who's struggling to increase her opportunities, while Edwin is an uber-talented young actor working hard for pilot season. Sure, they have some of the same validation issues that the other actors do, but for some reason, it's more tolerable when you see it with people that deserve it. In quick, half-hour episodes, 90 Days in Hollywood follows their every move as they work their magic and network. We also see interviews with Hollywood casting directors, who give their honest assessment on the people involved as well as seasoned vets (the very cool Brian Cox).

90 Days in Hollywood is perhaps a little too perfunctory to be a great television series, but it is a fascinating look into the drama and terror that is being a struggling actor in Los Angeles.

TV Grade: B

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