Before Viva Laughlin (one of the worst shows to premiere on television in the past five years) debuted, no one would have believed a show like Cop Rock ever existed. Cops and crooks suddenly breaking into song and/or dance about robberies, shootings, drug deals, and murder? Sure, why not!
It came from Steven Bochco and ran on ABC in 1990. Check out the video after the jump. It's the classic scene you saw on Hill Street Blues all the time, the cops getting their morning rundown on what's going on. Then the captain suddenly starts singing "Let's Be Careful Out There." There's a cameo by another Bochco star at the end. I'm still wondering why the cops don't look at the guy singing and say "um, shouldn't we call the police psychologist?"
TV Squad giveaways reminder: Upright Citizens Brigade and Angel
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The TV Squad cancellation trifecta game: We have our first winner!
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
1. OMG WOW TV Squad, Where did you find this Crown Jewel of the Internet! I've never seen someone so excited about fighting crime.
"187 at the Seven Eleven" Priceless.
Posted at 3:27PM on Oct 27th 2007 by Chris
2. Say whatever you want about "Cop Rock", at least the songs were original and sung by the actors. In "Viva Laughlin" I always had the sense that the actors were barely contributing their voices at best to songs done by other artists. The music in "Viva Laughlin" was badly done Karaoke; "Cop Rock" was a true, original, musical.
Posted at 3:32PM on Oct 27th 2007 by Brent McKee
3. Viva Laughlin had terrible music, singing, and dancing?! They should have showed it on The Disnet Channel! People there love High School Musical so why not another badly done musical?
Posted at 4:14PM on Oct 27th 2007 by Oreo
4. Before my time, so maybe I just don't "get it", but it boggles the mind that both ABC and Steven Bochco thought this was going to be a hit. I mean, I can see pushing the envelope and such and such, but it's far fetched to see this becoming huge and sinking millions into it.
Also, this clip was the most amazing thing ever. I'm so gonna find the rest of the episodes now.
Posted at 9:46PM on Oct 27th 2007 by Drew
5. The problem with Viva.. Was that the songs werent orginalt songs.. im not saying that the show would have survived with that, but at least it would have had a chance with its "orginall" and "edgy" ways
Posted at 10:43PM on Oct 27th 2007 by BartmanDK
6. I must have lost my mind, because I thought that was kind of cool. Of course, most of that cool went away when the podium piano came out of nowhere.
Posted at 12:12AM on Oct 28th 2007 by Joey Geraci
7. It wasn't as horrible as people make it out to be. Bochco's Fish Police cartoon was much much worse.
Thing is, the seargent has already finished with the rundown THEN he starts to sing, what is another rundown. It's redundant so it doesn't move the story along. It stalls it. In a music, the music should gently push the story along. But someone was beholden to opening with the words, "Lets be careful out there" and that is the END of the sarge's speech, so that's where they put it.
The whole scene is surreal and a bit awkward, but I imagine had they thought of things like this a little more carefully it might have had a better shot.
Posted at 12:32AM on Oct 28th 2007 by Allen
8. Maybe Fish Police wasn't Steve's. I thought it was. Still horrible, though.
Posted at 12:38AM on Oct 28th 2007 by Allen