This spring, Amazon will introduce five new pilots, and as usual, your customer feedback will determine which ones become a full Amazon series. All pilot season openers will premiere on March 17 on Amazon Video, and a few of them definitely sound worth watching.
The Legend of Master Legend
This is a dark half-hour comedy about a DIY superhero named Frank Lafount, otherwise known as Master Legend. His mission is simple: protect the people of Las Vegas. Unfortunately, he must balance this daunting task with dealing with his disapproving and skeptical family. It sounds a little bit like Kickass meets any dysfunctional family drama. Executive producers include Youree Henley (20th Century Women), Joshuah Bearman (Argo), and Transparent writers Micah Fitzerman-Blue and Noah Harpster.
Budding Prospects
Set in the early 1980s, this half-hour comedy is the story of three clueless city boys who move out of San Francisco to start growing marijuana at “The Summer Camp.” Far from the idyllic stoner paradise they imagine, the place is “a miserably run-down shanty out in the middle of nowhere, where they are bedeviled by rats, snakes, mosquitoes, and harsh, unfriendly growing conditions, noisy neighbors, dangerous locals, and menacing law enforcement.” Are they sure it’s a comedy, or is it more Breaking Bad? Guess we’ll find out. Executive producers include Terry Zwigoff (Bad Santa) and Vincent Landay (Her).
The New VIPS
This will be Amazon’s first adult animated comedy show. Apparently, the half-hour show “follows a group of low level employees who seize control of a major corporation after accidentally murdering their boss.” The show will star Ben Schwartz (Parks & Rec) and Missi Pyle (Gone Girl). This is probably this group’s wild card.
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
This hourlong show from Gilmore Girls creator Amy Sherman-Palladino follows the story of an 1958 Upper West Side housewife as she makes the unlikely transition to stand-up comedian. It will star Rachel Brosnahan (House of Cards), Tony Shalhoub (Monk) and Michael Zegen (Boardwalk Empire). Because this show will be associated with the Sherman-Palladino empire, it’s safe to say it’ll get some hype.
Oasis
We’ll definitely watch this one because it stars Richard Madden, a.k.a. Robb Stark of Game of Thrones fame. He plays a chaplain who is sent into space to help colonize a planet, and needless to say, plans do not go as expected. There are some heavy-hitters associated with this hourlong show, besides Madden. It is produced by Andy Harries (The Crown), Anil Kapoor (Slumdog Millionaire) and Rob Bullock (The Night Manager), and stars Maureen Sebastian (American Gothic), Haley Joel Osment (The Sixth Sense) and more. If we were going to put our money on one of these pilots to succeed, it would be this one.
“Pilots continue to be the best way to take risks, find voices and evolve the art form of television,” said Joe Lewis, Amazon Studios’ Head of Comedy, Drama & VR. “We’re excited about these new worlds, characters and filmmakers. We’re looking forward to another Amazon Pilot Season and more great customer feedback.”
Amazon’s fall 2016 pilot season included three comedies, all three of which were ordered to series: I Love Dick, Jean-Claude Van Johnson and The Tick. All five spring 2017 pilots will be available here starting March 17 in the U.S., U.K., Germany, Austria and Japan.