It’s been more than 17 years since “Friends,” the series for which Courteney Cox is best known, aired its season finale. And, fair or not, it is a fact that for actors whose signature roles are as iconic as Cox’s portrayal of Monica Geller, those roles will continue, perhaps forever, to remain those actors’ signature roles. Viewers will always be inclined to compare the present and the future to the past.
So, let’s get this out of the way: Cox, as Pat Phelps, a one-time party girl and the bestselling author of a book about her wild-child days, is not playing an organization- and cleanliness-obsessed chef on Starz’s new series “Shining Vale.” In fact, Pat neither cleans nor cooks for her family. And the rest of her life is a mess; her family has fled its Brooklyn apartment for a big, Gothic, maybe-haunted mansion in Connecticut, all because Pat had an affair with a handyman, and getting far away from the scene of the crime is the only way she and her husband, Terry (Greg Kinnear), can think of to try and save their marriage.
Not enough drama? Pat’s also been coasting on the success of her first book for 17 years, and her publisher is threatening to demand the return of the advance for her follow-up book if she doesn’t turn in a chapter soon, she’s certain she is being haunted by her house’s previous resident, Rosemary (Mira Sorvino), and all of this threatens the sobriety she’s maintained for the last 17 years. Oh, and she’s worried she may be fated to end up like her overly critical mother, Joan (Judith Light), who has a long history of mental illness, including a stint in an institution and treatment with lithium.
Which brings us to what Cox’s performance in “Shining Vale” does have in common with her performance in “Friends”: It’s fantastic. Her Pat is a strong, nuanced portrayal that could have easily slipped into a one-note characterization. Pat has a lot on her plate – most of it incredibly stressful – and while juggling it all, Cox manages to keep the audience guessing what’s really going on in the Phelps homestead. Is Rosemary really a mal-intentioned ghost out to use Pat’s body to finally get herself some of the satisfaction she was denied as a repressed ‘50s housewife? Or, the theory Pat’s therapist pushes and Pat briefly embraces, has Pat summoned Rosemary as her muse to help her finally get that second novel finished?
After watching the first seven episodes of the season that Starz provided for review, I’m still guessing, though I think it’s also very possible the season ends without us getting a definitive answer, and I’m totally fine with that as long as we get a second season. Though Cox is the lead star and an executive producer, she and Pat have a deep bench of equally talented co-stars who have plenty of storylines of their own to keep things interesting in Shining Vale, Connecticut, for quite a while.
Kinnear’s Terry is another craftily played character. His wife has made his life, his marriage, his family and his career challenging in an increasing number of ways, and Terry doesn’t fail to share his frustrations with their current station. But Kinnear imbues Terry with an optimism and sweet goofiness that makes his continuing affection for Pat believable, even when everyone from his boss to Joan are tossing shade Pat’s way. But the many lingering questions about Pat’s state of mind (and body) tease that Terry may not be able to maintain his patience forever.
The younger Phelpses add to the fun and horror of “Shining Vale,” too. Irreverent teen daughter Gaynor (Gus Birney) is more like her mother than she would ever admit, but a weekend with Grandma Joan sheds light on her mother’s childhood and opens the door ever so slightly for Gaynor to have some empathy for Pat. And then there’s videogame-obsessed Jake (Dylan Gage), an awkward teen who’s main social interactions are with the characters he sees in his VR headset … and one of those may be a ghost who’s trying to lead him to his death.
And, of course, as she reliably does, Light steals most moments she’s in the action, entering the scene as a pushy, competitive mother who jabs her daughter about her affair in front of Terry and her grandchildren, but then showing her vulnerability as she tells Gaynor about her mental illness and how it impacted Pat.
Maybe “Shining Vale” will finally bring Light, and Cox, the Emmy recognition they both have so richly deserved for years.
“Shining Vale” premieres March 6 on Starz.
