"Hart of Dixie" Review: Welcome Back, Rachel Bilson!
There are very few shows that I talk as nostalgically about as my beloved “The O.C.”
So, the thought of Rachel Bilson, who played Summer, reuniting with “O.C.” creator and executive producer Josh Schwartz totally had me psyched. And after seeing the premiere of “Hart of Dixie,” I’m still psyched. It may not be to the level of “The O.C.” but it does have some serious potential. And that’s good enough for me…
Bilson is Zoe Hart, an ambitious NYC doctor whose rise to the top is stopped because of her lack of bedside manner. To get back on track, she moves to Bluebell, Alabama, to accept the job offer a kindly older gentleman has been offering her for the past four years. But when she arrives, she discovers a whole new world she’s not quite prepared for.
The show wisely doesn’t traffic in small-town Southern stereotypes. Instead, Zoe is more of the stereotype as the ambitious New Yorker who can’t survive without her lattes and cabs. She becomes friends with Bluebell mayor, Lavon (Cress Williams) and attracts the attention of local hottie lawyer George (Scott Porter), but she quickly runs afoul of Southern belle Lemon (Jaime King) and her father Brick (Tim Matheson), with whom Zoe shares her Bluebell practice. Lemon does come off a little cookie cutter, but the hour hints that there is much more to her than meets the eye…
There are several twists in the premiere that many other sites, including The CW’s own press site, have given away. But I’m not going to risk ruining things for you. However, I don’t think I’m giving anything away by saying that as the hour progresses, Zoe does start to find her bedside manner after all and the cynical New Yorker starts to fade away to reveal a more sensitive, caring person. Fortunately, Zoe is played by Bilson, who does witchy to caring better than most.
This show falls squarely on Bilson’s shoulders and she is more than capable of carrying it. I don’t think I realized just how much TV has missed her until I watched this. I’m hoping that Schwartz and his cohorts will take as good of care of her as they did when she was on “The O.C.” You know, until that hideous second season…
If you’re looking for charming, romantic, interesting drama with just a dab of real emotion, I think this is the one for you. But I’m not afraid to admit I could be a little overly influenced by a heavy dose of nostalgia…
“We’ve been on the run, looking out for fun…” Okay, I’m done now…
“Hart of Dixie” premieres Monday, September 26th at 9 p.m. on The CW…
Photo Credit: Michael Tackett/The CW
