Neil Patrick Harris' new variety show, Best Time Ever, is a throwback to the variety show format of old, when theatrics and dance numbers played a bigger role in TV entertainment. On Tuesday's show, he continued that theme with a modern twist as Reba McEntire performed a country-western cover of Taylor Swift's "I Knew You Were Trouble," during an old-timey saloon brawl sketch.
The song was once Swift's big departure from country into the world of pop music, but McEntire brings it back to the banjo and washboard days of country. The gimmicky cover is a far cry from the pop country that made Swift popular, and really only works in this unique setting of Harris' oddball variety show.
Nicole Scherzinger led the opening dance number set to a twangy banjo before calling McEntire onto the stage. Harris enters the saloon and the punches start flying after the outlaw becomes overly popular with the saloon girls and the other cowboys in the room get a bit jealous. Bottles break, whips and lassos are drawn and Harris beats up on some of the regular patrons before a little boy and girl distract him long enough with their banana pistols for McEntire to land a punch and toss him out of the bar.
The show typically ends in these sorts of outlandish numbers but it hasn't done much to help its numbers. Media Post reports that the show is drawing about 4.5 million viewers mid-way through its season, which isn't doing much to impress the executives at NBC. The show's premiere drew 6.6 million viewers.
However, ratings aren't everything. What are the critics saying? The news isn't good there either. Entertainment Weekly gave the premiere show a D rating and Rotten Tomatoes hasn't been much kinder with a 26 percent.
The live show was always billed as an ambitious experimental show, but right now its future is very unclear, as audiences seem unattached to its old style and good clean fun format.
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