Let me apologize in advance if the beginning of this story sounds like a bunch of incoherent thoughts. You will have to excuse me for a minute while I recover from the shock. I just spoke with Chandler Bing y’all. Chandler! My all-time favorite sitcom character! I mean, I just spoke with the talented, smart and super funny Matthew Perry. About his new, brilliant comedy ‘Go On’ that airs on Tuesdays at 9 pm on NBC. But hey, when I hear that voice, I just think “Chandler Bing!”. And my inner ‘Friends’ fangirl takes over.
Not to worry, I prepare everything in advance, so I did ask what mattered about his charming ‘Go On’ character Ryan King and future developments for him on the show. I also thanked Mr. Perry for having my TV husband Michael Vartan appear on his show. He’s been so MIA from TV ever since ‘HawthoRNe’ ended, that I felt like it was a mirage when I saw him. Which it almost was, seen as it was a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance. But hey, he played hockey and had a line. That’s all that matters. Ah, Agent Vaughn. Nobody brandishes that club quite like you do. (Non-Alias fans? Disregard, please. Ahem.)
As usual, here comes my warning: SPOILERS AHEAD! If you don’t want to have any idea how the season of ‘Go On’ may shape up, why Mr. Perry’s friend Lauren Graham will show up, and how Ryan King and his friends will ‘Go On’, stop reading at once. And miss out on all the fun, of course. You have been warned!
Alessandra: “It’s such a pleasure to speak with you. Thank you for giving me five seconds of Michael Vartan playing hockey, by the way. And for Huey Lewis and the News. I very much appreciated that. [What, I LOVE Huey Lewis.] Now, onto the show. It seems to have a ‘serialized’ element, so to speak, despite being a comedy, because of what Ryan is going through. And you mentioned Lauren Graham appearing and sparks flying between her character and yours. So, are we going to see Ryan go through the various phases of his grief and maybe eventually get a new love interest, or will the show just stick with the limbo he’s in now, and keep making fun of the many grotesque situations he finds himself in, due to his loss and his new group of friends?”
Matthew Perry: “The interesting thing about this show is, we couldn’t pursue any potential romances for a while because of the situation he’s in, [so we had to wait] but just like any person he’s going to grow, and move forward and do some dating and some ‘getting himself out there’ stuff. We’re talking about it right now, about a story where he’s really going to throw himself out there in the single scene, and the result of it is pretty funny. And Lauren Graham is part of that process, because she comes in and there are sparks flying, so this will show Ryan starting to move on. So yes, we will see him evolve and move on and progress throughout the show, like any person would.”
Ok, the betting pool can now start on WHO is going to be his first new love interest (other than Lauren Graham, that is). I don’t have a clue, all I know is I wouldn’t like to be her if Monica Geller ever finds out. What, it will always be Chandler and Monica for me!
Mr. Perry shared that his friend Lauren Graham will play a character from Ryan’s past, and that she will be the one with whom sparks will fly for the first time in a long time.
Matthew Perry: “Yes, my friend Lauren Graham agreed to come on the show, she plays a character named Amy who is an old college buddy of mine… there will be some sparks there, which will be the first time that Ryan has had any kind of feeling like that in a long, long time.”
Oooh. Sound juicy enough for you? Because it sure does for me. And seeing Ryan’s character evolve and then dive into the single scene is something I am looking forward to seeing, as the fun is guaranteed to abound the moment he decides he’s ready to make that step. And if that isn’t enough for you, here’s one major sports name that Mr. Perry hopes to see as a guest star on ‘Go On’. And yes, I’ve seen this guy play at Wimbledon during his last year of activity. Reminder that yours truly is a sports reporter. Though I sure as hell wasn’t when I saw this major star… I was way too young to be a journalist already! Want to know who he is? Let Mr. Perry tell you.
Matthew Perry: “My hope is that we have Jimmy Connors to come back and work with me.”
Connors and Ryan King? Hell, yeah! Though selfish me would love to see… Marat Safin? Please? And not simply for how naturally great he is at comedy and shenanigans (ever seen one of his tennis matches?), if you catch my drift. Well, there’s nothing wrong with a little eye candy here and there, especially on TV!
Something that made my undying ‘Friends’ love go on was hearing how special Mr. Perry thinks it was, and how Chandler Bing and Ryan King are his two favorite characters.
Matthew Perry: “Friends was a magical thing, no one’s gonna have anything like that ever again. Studio 60, everyone thought it was amazing, and I thought it was pretty good but it didn’t do well. Mr. Sunshine worked to a certain degree creatively, but audiences didn’t connect. And then, I realized that there was someone who could write things for me. And that’s how Go On happened.”
“If I had to pick the two characters I played that are my favorites, I’d have to say Chandler and Ryan King.
It’s ‘wearing his heart on his sleeve’ kind of people… people connect to that journey, maybe not to that openness about it. I like to say things that people normally wouldn’t say, and I think both Chandler and Ryan King do that.”
And like every good thing, the chat with Mr. Perry thus comes to an end. I will never manage to instantly connect that voice to anyone other than Chandler Bing, but I have to say I am really warming up to Ryan King, and I like him and his bizarre group of damaged friends a lot. Think you’ve heard enough to be impatient about the next episode of ‘Go On’? Then don’t forget to tune in tomorrow night, like every Tuesday, at 9 p.m. on NBC!
I’ll be back with more goodies soon, I promise. Maybe next time it will be something much more mysterious and sci-fi-esque… and that’s all I’ll say for now. Dun, dun, dun! Till next time, lovelies!
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That is some great inside information there; it’s nice to see Matthew working on something he enjoys and that is successful. I like the support group and how these quirky characters are being revealed with their own stories, which allow for hilarity to ensue. My DISH coworker and I have been watching the show since the beginning when I discovered it on my list of PrimeTime Anytime recordings. I never have to worry about forgetting to set a timer since it records for me automatically, which is a life saver when you have meddling kids, like I do.
I’m so glad you liked the interview, Jimmy. The show is indeed a great humorous look into what life throws at people, and Matthew Perry was very insightful in his comments, so thanks to him we got to have some nice inside information to share with all of you! Hope your kids don’t get in the way of you watching “Go On” in the future
I love the show, too. My favorite comedy of the new season together with “The New Normal”. Thanks again for reading, and I hope we’ll be able to bring you more in the future!