Before Billy Bob Thorton was directing John Ritter in quirky movies, he was part of a terrific cast with John Ritter in "Hearts Afire." This must have looked like a sure fire hit with the excellent John Ritter, equally talented (and gorgeous) Markie Post, Ed Asner (one of the great TV stars of all time), and an A-list of support players including George Gaynes, Beth Broderick, Conchata Ferrell, and Wendy Jo Sperber. Billy Bob (playing the part of "Billy Bob") was an attempt to mimic the Clinton staff good-ol-boys but as time would tell he was much too nice and much too honest for the part. The chemistry between Ritter and Post ranged from good to hot. Ritter was never so sophisticated and Post was never more animated or sexy. Perhaps this series was too much like other series before, and perhaps the writer's take on Washington was not very accurate. A series like this should know it's topic very well (as do some current White House series) so we can really believe these people are where they say they are. Shows like Murphy Brown, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, WKRP, and the old Dick Van Dyke Show knew their subjects because the writers were familiar with newsrooms, radio stations, and comedy shows. With Clinton's affair (no pun intended) with Hollywood, more Hollywood producers are in tune to the Washington scene today than they were at the beginning of his administration and at the conception of this show. The show would have worked better with an Evening Shade type of setting, a small regular town perhaps. In any case, Markie Post and John Ritter had some of the sexiest scenes for a situation comedy. The Washington scene is a place for sex and hookers, but not a place for sexy.
