Parenthood (2010 TV series)

Parenthood
Parenthood intertitle
Genre	Comedy-drama
Created by	Jason Katims
Starring	Peter Krause Lauren Graham Dax Shepard Monica Potter Erika Christensen Sam Jaeger Savannah Paige Rae Sarah Ramos Max Burkholder Joy Bryant Miles Heizer Mae Whitman with Bonnie Bedelia, Craig T. Nelson and Tyree Brown
Opening theme	"Forever Young" by Bob Dylan
Composer	Jon Ehrlich
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No. of seasons	1
No. of episodes	26 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers	Ron Howard Brian Grazer Jason Katims Thomas Schlamme
Producer	Dylan Massin
Production location	Los Angeles
Running time	43 minutes
Production companies	Imagine Television Universal Media Studios
Original release
Network	NBC
Release	March 2, 2010 (2010-03-02) – present

Parenthood is an American comedy-drama television series based on the 1989 film of the same title. It is also the second television series based on the film to air, the first airing during the 1990–91 television season.

Series background and premiere

The series premiered on March 2, 2010, at 10:00 p.m. on NBC, following The Biggest Loser. It was originally scheduled to premiere on NBC on September 23, 2009. However, on July 10, 2009, it was announced that Parenthood would be pushed back to midseason, because of actress Maura Tierney's breast cancer. The show was replaced by Mercy, a medical drama, on the fall 2009 schedule.

Subsequently, on September 10, 2009, a spokesperson for Tierney announced that she was leaving the show due to conflicts with her treatment schedule. On October 9, 2009, it was announced that Lauren Graham would replace Tierney in the upcoming series.

Parenthood was expected to premiere March 1, 2010, and air on Monday nights at 9:00 p.m. However, after the cancellation of The Jay Leno Show, NBC moved the premiere to March 2, 2010, at 10:00 p.m.

The series premiere of Parenthood was dedicated to the memory of Nora O'Brien, a Vice President at NBC, who died on the set of Parenthood in April 2009 in Berkeley, California.

Parenthood's pilot episode was filmed in Northern California, using local crews, while the rest of the series will be filmed in Los Angeles.

On April 20, 2010 Parenthood was renewed for a second season by NBC, as reported by Variety.

Cast

The show revolves around the Braverman family which has expanded to three generations, featuring the patriarch Zeek Braverman, and the matriarch Camille Braverman, their oldest son Adam and his wife, daughter and son, their daughter Sarah and her two kids, their second son Crosby, his ex-girlfriend Jasmine and their young son Jabbar, and finally their daughter Julia Braverman-Graham and her stay-at-home husband and young daughter.

The Parents

• Zeek Braverman (Craig T. Nelson), is the patriarch of the Braverman family, the father of Adam, Sarah, Crosby, and Julia. He has dabbled in various careers, including being a soldier in Vietnam, an activist hippie, an aspiring actor, and a shrewd entrepreneur, but none lasted more than few years.
• Camille Braverman (Bonnie Bedelia), is the matriarch of the family, and Zeek's wife. She is very capable domestically and strives to keep her family happy and peaceful.

Adam Braverman and his family

• Adam Braverman (Peter Krause), at 40 years old, is the father of Max and Haddie, and the husband of Kristina. He is the firstborn Braverman child and all of his siblings and parents consult him in times of crisis. Adam is affable and dependable, but is also high-strung and resolved to have a normal, happy family. He works in a corporate environment, where he contends with cold-blooded colleagues and ambitious underlings.
• Kristina Braverman (Monica Potter), is Adam's wife, and a source of stability and support for anyone who needs it. Official material from NBC characterizes her as a "wise, and quietly forceful woman who loves her husband and children deeply and with incredible strength."
• Haddie Braverman (Sarah Ramos), is the 15-year-old daughter of Adam and Kristina. For years she felt the need to be the quintessential "good girl" to compensate "for all the weirdness" surrounding her brother, however as she gets older, she has begun to assert her independence with her recent interactions with boys and drugs.
• Max Braverman (Max Burkholder), is Adam and Kristina's eight-year-old son, who is diagnosed with Asperger syndrome at the outset of the show. His struggles and triumphs with this syndrome disproportionately affect much of what happens in his family.

Sarah Braverman and her family

• Sarah Braverman (Lauren Graham), at 38 years old, is the second child and oldest daughter. She has two children (Amber and Drew), and together they move back into her parent's house in the pilot episode because of her financial situation. This move is the catalyst that starts the television program. At the show's beginning, it is established that she has previously bartended for over ten years and worked as a graphic artist for local bands. She is divorced from her rocker husband Seth, who appears to have been a very poor father figure to her children. After she fails to obtain a job with a design company due to her lack of a college degree, Sarah once again takes a bartending job.
• Amber Holt (Mae Whitman) is Sarah's daughter and is a 16-year-old at the show's start. She is quickly shown to be rebellious, willful, and unstudious. She resents her move from Fresno, particularly after her mother thwarts her efforts to stay, which she tried to do by moving in with her boyfriend in Fresno. Even so, she has qualities that demonstrate that she has potential to do better.
• Drew Holt (Miles Heizer), is Sarah's 14-year-old son. He is characterized as sensitive, and longs for a male role model. Brief glimpses of Seth (Drew's absentee father) and statements by the character Sarah indicate that Drew has suffered much letdown at the hands of his father, and, as a result, has become sullen and withdrawn.

Crosby Braverman and his family

• Crosby Braverman (Dax Shepard), is 32 years old and unmarried. He is the third oldest of the Braverman brood. His longtime girlfriend, Katie, is pressuring him to settle down and start a family, an idea he is resistant to. Unexpectedly, his former lover, Jasmine, introduces Crosby to his five-year-old son, Jabbar, in the pilot episode. This event is the primary device on the show used to drive the development of this character.
• Jasmine Trussell (Joy Bryant), is a dancer and Crosby's ex-flame, who did not tell Crosby about her son until recently.
• Jabbar Trussell-Braverman (Tyree Brown), is Jasmine & Crosby's son; he is five years old during the show's first season.

Julia Braverman-Graham and her family

• Julia Braverman-Graham (Erika Christensen) is the mother of Sydney, the wife of Joel and the last of the four Braverman children. She is part of the central Braverman family. She's a lawyer at a top corporate firm while her husband, Joel, supports her ambitions as a stay-at-home dad to their daughter. Julia is sometimes competitive and it is difficult for her to let go and relax. Julia's go-getting personality and by-the-book approach is the opposite of her sister Sarah's, but they turn to one another for support.
• Joel Graham (Sam Jaeger), is Julia's husband and Sydney's father. He is a stay-at-home father, and is popular among the stay-at-home mothers in their social circle at Sydney's school, a fact which sometimes puts strains on his marriage. He is shown to be very capable domestically and hosts a regular playdate that is very popular. Though he's 100% committed to the job of raising his daughter, he sometimes finds himself starved for adult interaction.
• Sydney Graham (Savannah Paige Rae), is Julia and Joel's 5-year-old daughter. With Joel at home with her full time, Sydney has become a "daddy's girl," which causes Julia to put more pressure on herself to carve out significant bonding time with her little girl. She has been identified as being gifted.

Recurring cast

• Racquel (Erinn Hayes), an attractive supermom whose comfortable relationship with Joel and Sydney rubs Julia the wrong way. Racquel had attempted to kiss Joel in the past, but Joel turned her down. She has one daughter, Harmony, who is best friends with Joel and Julia's daughter, Sydney. In order for both of their daughters to continue their close relationship, Joel overlooks the situation and pretends as if the kiss never happened.
• Katie (Marguerite Moreau), Crosby's girlfriend, who is putting pressure on Crosby to settle down and start a family. She was unaware of Jasmine and Jabbar until the fifth episode. She has ended her relationship with Crosby ever since he revealed his secret about having a son. Although she is upset that he has been secretly spending time with Jabbar for a month and a half, she is more hurt that he did not introduce Jabbar to her when they met at the recording studio. Katie has not returned since their fight.
• Dr. Pelikan (Tom Amandes), the doctor that diagnosed Max Braverman and is giving the family guidance on coping with his condition. Kristina recommends Julia to see Dr. Pelikan when Julia thinks her daughter may also have Asperger's Syndrome. However, Dr. Pelikan tells Julia that Sydney is gifted and acts up because she is simply bored.
• Mark Cyr (Jason Ritter), Amber's English teacher, who has a brief relationship with Sarah. Sarah ends her relationship with him because she wants to focus on her family. In addition, Amber's crush on him also contributes to the breakup. Mark helps Amber study for the SAT after school hours.
• Gaby (Minka Kelly), Max's behavioural aide. Kristina is initially threatened by Gaby's ability to get through to Max. However, Kristina eventually confides in Gaby after having a breakdown. Adam finds Gaby partying at a Mexican restaurant and taking shot after shot of tequila. He is amazed that Gaby shows up to work the next day without a hair out of place.
• Steve (Asher Book), Haddie's boyfriend, whose affections for Amber later cause tensions between Amber, Haddie, and other members of the family. His dad has MS, and he confides in Amber for the first time about his father's condition. He reveals to Amber's mother and uncle about his love for Amber after she runs away.

Reception

Parenthood itself got mostly positive to mixed reviews, scoring a 61 out of 100 on Metacritic. Newark Star Ledger's Alan Sepinwall wrote that "Like the movie that inspired it, Parenthood isn’t an instant classic, but it’s smart and warm and knowing, and it casts its net so wide that at least part of it should connect with you." While Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly wrote, "Parenthood isn't better than Modern Family, but it's different—it's its own creation, thanks to the deft touch and careful characterizations developed by executive producer Jason Katims and his writers".

Episodes

Main article: List of Parenthood episodes

Season	Episodes	Timeslot (EST)	Original Airing			Rank (viewers)	Viewers (in millions)	18-49 Ratings	18-49 Ratings Rank
			Season Premiere	Season Finale	TV Season
1st	13	Tuesday 10:00 PM	March 2, 2010 (2010-03-02)	May 25, 2010	2010	#71	6.39	3.3/8	#36
2nd	TBA	Tuesday 10:00 PM	September 14, 2010	Spring 2011	2010–11	TBA	TBA	TBA	TBA

External links

• Official website
• Fox España Página oficial de Parenthood (en español).
• Parenthood at IMDb
• Template:Tv.com show