There's no accounting for taste

As I mentioned a few days ago, I thought the play PERFECTLY NORMEL PEOPLE was putrid cheez whiz, but my friend Valerie, the reviewer for Time Out New York, thought it was cute - and that is reflected in her review. It got four stars.

I begged her to mention how irritating the narrator device was, and she swore she did, but they cut it down to just "less engaging." This is why I could never be a critic. I couldn't take the blandification that happens in so many media outlets. Although at least in the case of Time Out New York, they don't let friends review friends' plays - Valerie was explicitly forbidden from reviewing another Fringe show because she knew somebody in the cast. I thought integrity was a thing of the past in online review venues, so I was glad to hear it.

However, Valerie's review will only encourage them to write more just like it - but I can't just blame Valerie. From the authors' blog:

We were grateful to receive a favorable review in NYTheatre.com and were chosen as one of Fringe’s Top Ten picks by TheaterMania.com. 

Kill me now. Or better yet, just forget about FringeNYC. It's strictly amateur night at the VFW now.