Buy, Buy Baby
Encyclopedia
"Buy, Buy Baby" is the eighteenth episode of the American television series Will & Grace
eighth season. It was written by Kirk J. Rudell and directed by series producer James Burrows
. The episode originally aired on the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) in the United States on March 30, 2006. Guest stars in "Buy, Buy Baby" include Britney Spears
, Wanda Sykes
, and George Takei
.
In the episode, Jack's (Sean Hayes
) talk show Jack Talk is completely revamped, after right-wing conservatives take over the gay
network, OutTV. The new owners hire the ultra-conservative Amber-Louise (Spears) as Jack Talk's new co-host, infuriating Jack. While Jack is deciding whether or not he will stand up to his new bosses, Karen (Megan Mullally
) desires a baby of her own. After seeing Grace
(Debra Messing
) so happy about her pregnancy, Karen decides she wants a baby and offers to pay a surrogate
(Sykes) to carry one for her.
Before the airing of "Buy, Buy Baby", a press release from NBC revealed that the episode would include a scene in which Spears hosted a Christian
cooking segment called "Cruci-fixins". The name of the segment was met with protest from Christian groups, who accused it of mocking Jesus
' crucifixion. The network canceled the segment after criticism from the American Family Association
. "Buy, Buy Baby" received generally mixed reviews and, according to Nielsen ratings
, was watched by 3.7 million households during its original broadcast.
(Sean Hayes
) learns that OutTV, the gay television network where he is employed, has been bought by a "large corporation" and that his talk show Jack Talk will have a co-host "to widen the audience." Not in favor of the idea, Jack agrees and meets his co-host, Amber-Louise (Britney Spears
). During an episode of Jack Talk, Jack is stunned to realize that OutTV, which has been bought by right-wing conservatives, have made changes to the show, including it being renamed Talk Time USA. Not thrilled at the idea, Jack is told to compromise; Amber-Louise admits to Jack that she is a lesbian
, and is merely pretending to be an ultra-conservative Christian to get by in the TV world. She asks him to go along with it, so that he can keep his job. Jack gets on board and informs his guest, actor George Takei
, that the network asked that he not reveal he is gay on the show. Will
tells Jack not to be let himself be pushed around, and to stand up for who he is. Jack takes Will's advice and does not compromise, which ultimately costs him his job.
Grace
's (Debra Messing
) pregnancy prompts Karen (Megan Mullally
) to have a baby of her own. She pays a surrogate, Cricket (Wanda Sykes
), to carry her child. Grace, who is bewildered at the idea of Karen having a baby, suspects that the only reason is that she is having one. Karen, however, dismisses the idea. Meanwhile, Cricket begins to have second thoughts on becoming Karen's surrogate, following Karen's strange behavior towards her and Karen's admission on how she and her husband, Stanley, will raise the child. This prompts Cricket to quit and Karen revealing to Grace that the only reason she wanted a baby was to help her marriage. She also admits that she has thought about leaving her husband.
"Buy, Buy Baby" was written by Kirk J. Rudell and directed by series producer James Burrows
. In February 2006, it was confirmed that singer Britney Spears
would guest star on the show. She rehearsed with the cast on February 11, 2006, and recorded her lines in front of a live audience on February 13 and February 15, 2006. Spears' appearance on Will & Grace was her first acting performance on prime-time television, and her first television appearance since giving birth to a child in September 2005. The show's creators, David Kohan
and Max Mutchnick
, thought she did a "surprisingly good job". On March 28, 2006, the Human Rights Campaign
announced that actor George Takei
would also appear in the episode, in support of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender
(GLBT) issues since coming out
as gay. In addition, actress Wanda Sykes
appears as Cricket.
The episode first aired on NBC in the United States on March 30, 2006. According to a press release for "Buy, Buy Baby" released by NBC in February 2006, the episode was to air on April 13, 2006 (Maundy Thursday
), the day before Good Friday
and the crucifixion
of Jesus
. In the press release, NBC said the episode would include a scene in which Spears hosted a Christian cooking segment called "Cruci-fixins". The name of the segment was met with controversy from Christian groups, who called it a "mockery" of Jesus' crucifixion. According to the American Family Association
(AFA), pressure from themselves and NBC's affiliates, caused NBC to cancel the segment and move the episode's air date. NBC, however, stated that the "Cruci-fixins" segment was "erroneous information" mistakenly included in the press release and that it was an idea for another episode that had yet to be written. An NBC spokesperson stated: "The reference to 'Cruci-fixins' will not be in the show and the storyline will not contain a Christian characterization at all. We value our viewers and sincerely regret if this misinformation has offended them." AFA responded by claiming that the network was "lying" in its claim that the segment had never been a part of the episode. A statement on AFA's website read:
. The episode achieved a 11% in the key 18–49 demographics among adults. It was the eighth highest-rated show on the NBC network that week. Since airing, the episode has received mixed reviews from television critics. R.D. Heldenfels of the Akron Beacon Journal
said Spears' appearance on the show was "uninspired". Lenny Ann Low of The Sydney Morning Herald
commented that Spears as a right-wing co-host was a miss. "It proves she can talk and avoid the furniture but her flitting, one-dimensional character feels like a stunt." In Low's opinion, the only thing that saved the episode from a "thumbs down", was "its message about finding the courage to be yourself in a sea of conservatism, saccharine though that sounds." Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune
thought Spears "bombed" in the episode, and Jeff Hidek of Star-News
disliked the Southern accent
she used in her performance. The Plain Dealer' s Mark Dawidziak commented: "Granted, the episode wasn't very well written, but Spears seemed more out of place on the show than Megan Mullally's Karen at a sensitivity seminar."
A Herald Sun
reviewer, however, thought she gave the final season of Will & Grace the "send-off it deserved." Rachel Browne of the The Sun Herald
said the problem with Spears' performance is that "it's impossible to accept her in any role other than her own headline-hugging self." Browne, however, thought her appearance was "fun to watch". The Sunday Mail
was also positive about Spears' performance, commenting that she "does well, especially when you remember the dismal Crossroads
." Trent Vanegas of Pink is the New Blog
said that doing the show was a "great move" for Spears. Television researcher Tim Brooks
, the co-author of the 1979 book The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows
, commented that Spears' role was a "very good way to get her chops into comedy", in part because it is "very out of type. She's not just playing herself as a celebrity."
Will & Grace
Will & Grace was an American television sitcom that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 21, 1998 to May 18, 2006 for a total of eight seasons. Will & Grace remains the most successful television series with gay principal characters...
eighth season. It was written by Kirk J. Rudell and directed by series producer James Burrows
James Burrows
James Edward Burrows is an American television director who has been working in television since the 1970s.-Biography:...
. The episode originally aired on the National Broadcasting Company (NBC) in the United States on March 30, 2006. Guest stars in "Buy, Buy Baby" include Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
, Wanda Sykes
Wanda Sykes
Wanda Sykes is an American writer, stand-up comedian, actress, and voice artist. She earned the 1999 Emmy Award for her writing on The Chris Rock Show. In 2004 Entertainment Weekly named Sykes as one of the 25 funniest people in America...
, and George Takei
George Takei
George Hosato Takei Altman is an American actor, author, social activist and former civil politician. He is best known for his role in the television series Star Trek and its film spinoffs, in which he played Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the...
.
In the episode, Jack's (Sean Hayes
Sean Hayes (actor)
Sean Patrick Hayes is an American actor and comedian. He is widely known for his role as Jack McFarland in the NBC sitcom Will & Grace, for which he won an Emmy Award, four SAG Awards, one American Comedy Award, and six Golden Globes nominations.He also portrayed comedian Jerry Lewis in the...
) talk show Jack Talk is completely revamped, after right-wing conservatives take over the gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
network, OutTV. The new owners hire the ultra-conservative Amber-Louise (Spears) as Jack Talk
Megan Mullally
Megan Mullally is an American actress and singer.After working in the theatre in Chicago, Mullally moved to Los Angeles in 1985 and began to appear in supporting roles in film and television productions. She made her Broadway debut in Grease in 1994 and she has since appeared in several Broadway...
) desires a baby of her own. After seeing Grace
Grace Adler
Grace Elizabeth Adler-Markus is a fictional character on the American sitcom Will & Grace, portrayed by Debra Messing. She is a Jewish interior designer , living in New York City with her gay best friend Will Truman...
(Debra Messing
Debra Messing
Debra Lynn Messing is an American actress, voice artist, and comedienne. She is perhaps best known for her role as Grace Adler in the NBC sitcom Will & Grace and as Molly Kagan in the mini-series The Starter Wife....
) so happy about her pregnancy, Karen decides she wants a baby and offers to pay a surrogate
Surrogacy
Surrogacy is an arrangement in which a woman carries and delivers a child for another couple or person. This woman may be the child's genetic mother , or she may carry the pregnancy to delivery after having an embryo, to which she has no genetic relationship whatsoever, transferred to her uterus...
(Sykes) to carry one for her.
Before the airing of "Buy, Buy Baby", a press release from NBC revealed that the episode would include a scene in which Spears hosted a Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
cooking segment called "Cruci-fixins". The name of the segment was met with protest from Christian groups, who accused it of mocking Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
' crucifixion. The network canceled the segment after criticism from the American Family Association
American Family Association
The American Family Association is a 501 non-profit organization that promotes conservative Christian values, such as opposition to same-sex marriage, pornography, and abortion, as well as other public policy goals such as deregulation of the oil industry and lobbying against the Employee Free...
. "Buy, Buy Baby" received generally mixed reviews and, according to Nielsen ratings
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
, was watched by 3.7 million households during its original broadcast.
Plot
JackJack McFarland
John Philip "Jack" McFarland was a fictional character on the American television sitcom Will & Grace, played by Sean Hayes.-Character personality:...
(Sean Hayes
Sean Hayes (actor)
Sean Patrick Hayes is an American actor and comedian. He is widely known for his role as Jack McFarland in the NBC sitcom Will & Grace, for which he won an Emmy Award, four SAG Awards, one American Comedy Award, and six Golden Globes nominations.He also portrayed comedian Jerry Lewis in the...
) learns that OutTV, the gay television network where he is employed, has been bought by a "large corporation" and that his talk show Jack Talk will have a co-host "to widen the audience." Not in favor of the idea, Jack agrees and meets his co-host, Amber-Louise (Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
). During an episode of Jack Talk, Jack is stunned to realize that OutTV, which has been bought by right-wing conservatives, have made changes to the show, including it being renamed Talk Time USA. Not thrilled at the idea, Jack is told to compromise; Amber-Louise admits to Jack that she is a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
, and is merely pretending to be an ultra-conservative Christian to get by in the TV world. She asks him to go along with it, so that he can keep his job. Jack gets on board and informs his guest, actor George Takei
George Takei
George Hosato Takei Altman is an American actor, author, social activist and former civil politician. He is best known for his role in the television series Star Trek and its film spinoffs, in which he played Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the...
, that the network asked that he not reveal he is gay on the show. Will
Will Truman
William Pierce "Will" Truman is a fictional character on the American sitcom Will & Grace, portrayed by Eric McCormack. He is a gay lawyer who lives in the Upper West Side of New York City with his best friend, Grace Adler.-Fictional character history:...
tells Jack not to be let himself be pushed around, and to stand up for who he is. Jack takes Will's advice and does not compromise, which ultimately costs him his job.
Grace
Grace Adler
Grace Elizabeth Adler-Markus is a fictional character on the American sitcom Will & Grace, portrayed by Debra Messing. She is a Jewish interior designer , living in New York City with her gay best friend Will Truman...
's (Debra Messing
Debra Messing
Debra Lynn Messing is an American actress, voice artist, and comedienne. She is perhaps best known for her role as Grace Adler in the NBC sitcom Will & Grace and as Molly Kagan in the mini-series The Starter Wife....
) pregnancy prompts Karen (Megan Mullally
Megan Mullally
Megan Mullally is an American actress and singer.After working in the theatre in Chicago, Mullally moved to Los Angeles in 1985 and began to appear in supporting roles in film and television productions. She made her Broadway debut in Grease in 1994 and she has since appeared in several Broadway...
) to have a baby of her own. She pays a surrogate, Cricket (Wanda Sykes
Wanda Sykes
Wanda Sykes is an American writer, stand-up comedian, actress, and voice artist. She earned the 1999 Emmy Award for her writing on The Chris Rock Show. In 2004 Entertainment Weekly named Sykes as one of the 25 funniest people in America...
), to carry her child. Grace, who is bewildered at the idea of Karen having a baby, suspects that the only reason is that she is having one. Karen, however, dismisses the idea. Meanwhile, Cricket begins to have second thoughts on becoming Karen's surrogate, following Karen's strange behavior towards her and Karen's admission on how she and her husband, Stanley, will raise the child. This prompts Cricket to quit and Karen revealing to Grace that the only reason she wanted a baby was to help her marriage. She also admits that she has thought about leaving her husband.
Production
James Burrows
James Edward Burrows is an American television director who has been working in television since the 1970s.-Biography:...
. In February 2006, it was confirmed that singer Britney Spears
Britney Spears
Britney Jean Spears is an American recording artist and entertainer. Born in McComb, Mississippi, and raised in Kentwood, Louisiana, Spears began performing as a child, landing acting roles in stage productions and television shows. She signed with Jive Records in 1997 and released her debut album...
would guest star on the show. She rehearsed with the cast on February 11, 2006, and recorded her lines in front of a live audience on February 13 and February 15, 2006. Spears' appearance on Will & Grace was her first acting performance on prime-time television, and her first television appearance since giving birth to a child in September 2005. The show's creators, David Kohan
David Kohan
David Sanford Kohan is an American television producer. After writing for The Wonder Years and The Dennis Miller Show, Kohan co-created and produced Will & Grace, Good Morning, Miami, Twins and Four Kings with Max Mutchnick. Kohan has won an Emmy and a People's Choice Award. He has been nominated...
and Max Mutchnick
Max Mutchnick
Jason Nidorf Mutchnick is an American television producer. He has received an Emmy Award, a People's Choice Award, and several Golden Globe Award nominations....
, thought she did a "surprisingly good job". On March 28, 2006, the Human Rights Campaign
Human Rights Campaign
The Human Rights Campaign is the United States' largest LGBT advocacy group and lobbying organization; according to the HRC, it has more than one million members and supporters...
announced that actor George Takei
George Takei
George Hosato Takei Altman is an American actor, author, social activist and former civil politician. He is best known for his role in the television series Star Trek and its film spinoffs, in which he played Hikaru Sulu, helmsman of the...
would also appear in the episode, in support of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender
LGBT
LGBT is an initialism that collectively refers to "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender" people. In use since the 1990s, the term "LGBT" is an adaptation of the initialism "LGB", which itself started replacing the phrase "gay community" beginning in the mid-to-late 1980s, which many within the...
(GLBT) issues since coming out
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
as gay. In addition, actress Wanda Sykes
Wanda Sykes
Wanda Sykes is an American writer, stand-up comedian, actress, and voice artist. She earned the 1999 Emmy Award for her writing on The Chris Rock Show. In 2004 Entertainment Weekly named Sykes as one of the 25 funniest people in America...
appears as Cricket.
The episode first aired on NBC in the United States on March 30, 2006. According to a press release for "Buy, Buy Baby" released by NBC in February 2006, the episode was to air on April 13, 2006 (Maundy Thursday
Maundy Thursday
Maundy Thursday, also known as Holy Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Great & Holy Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries, is the Christian feast or holy day falling on the Thursday before Easter that commemorates the Last Supper of Jesus Christ with the Apostles as described in the Canonical gospels...
), the day before Good Friday
Good Friday
Good Friday , is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of...
and the crucifixion
Crucifixion
Crucifixion is an ancient method of painful execution in which the condemned person is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross and left to hang until dead...
of Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
. In the press release, NBC said the episode would include a scene in which Spears hosted a Christian cooking segment called "Cruci-fixins". The name of the segment was met with controversy from Christian groups, who called it a "mockery" of Jesus' crucifixion. According to the American Family Association
American Family Association
The American Family Association is a 501 non-profit organization that promotes conservative Christian values, such as opposition to same-sex marriage, pornography, and abortion, as well as other public policy goals such as deregulation of the oil industry and lobbying against the Employee Free...
(AFA), pressure from themselves and NBC's affiliates, caused NBC to cancel the segment and move the episode's air date. NBC, however, stated that the "Cruci-fixins" segment was "erroneous information" mistakenly included in the press release and that it was an idea for another episode that had yet to be written. An NBC spokesperson stated: "The reference to 'Cruci-fixins' will not be in the show and the storyline will not contain a Christian characterization at all. We value our viewers and sincerely regret if this misinformation has offended them." AFA responded by claiming that the network was "lying" in its claim that the segment had never been a part of the episode. A statement on AFA's website read:
Reception
In its original American broadcast, "Buy, Buy Baby" was watched by approximately 3.7 million households, according to Nielsen ratingsNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
. The episode achieved a 11% in the key 18–49 demographics among adults. It was the eighth highest-rated show on the NBC network that week. Since airing, the episode has received mixed reviews from television critics. R.D. Heldenfels of the Akron Beacon Journal
Akron Beacon Journal
The Akron Beacon Journal is a four-time Pulitzer Prize-winning morning newspaper in Akron, Ohio, United States, and published by Black Press Ltd.. It is the sole daily newspaper in Akron and is distributed throughout Northeast Ohio. The paper places a strong emphasis on local news and business...
said Spears' appearance on the show was "uninspired". Lenny Ann Low of The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...
commented that Spears as a right-wing co-host was a miss. "It proves she can talk and avoid the furniture but her flitting, one-dimensional character feels like a stunt." In Low's opinion, the only thing that saved the episode from a "thumbs down", was "its message about finding the courage to be yourself in a sea of conservatism, saccharine though that sounds." Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
thought Spears "bombed" in the episode, and Jeff Hidek of Star-News
Star-News
Star-News is the daily newspaper for Wilmington, North Carolina, and its surrounding area . It is owned by The New York Times Company....
disliked the Southern accent
Southern American English
Southern American English is a group of dialects of the English language spoken throughout the Southern region of the United States, from Southern and Eastern Maryland, West Virginia and Kentucky to the Gulf Coast, and from the Atlantic coast to most of Texas and Oklahoma.The Southern dialects make...
she used in her performance. The Plain Dealer
A Herald Sun
Herald Sun
The Herald Sun is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia. It is published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Limited, itself a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is available for purchase throughout Melbourne, Regional Victoria, Tasmania, the Australian Capital...
reviewer, however, thought she gave the final season of Will & Grace the "send-off it deserved." Rachel Browne of the The Sun Herald
The Sun Herald
The Sun Herald is a U.S. newspaper based in Biloxi, Mississippi, that serves readers along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It is owned by The McClatchy Company, one of the largest newspaper publishers in the United States....
said the problem with Spears' performance is that "it's impossible to accept her in any role other than her own headline-hugging self." Browne, however, thought her appearance was "fun to watch". The Sunday Mail
The Sunday Mail (Brisbane)
The Sunday Mail is Brisbane's only Sunday newspaper. The Sunday Mail is published in tabloid format, comprising several sections that can be extracted and read separately.-Publishing:...
was also positive about Spears' performance, commenting that she "does well, especially when you remember the dismal Crossroads
Crossroads (2002 film)
Crossroads is a 2002 comedy-drama road film directed by Tamra Davis and starring American recording artist Britney Spears, Zoe Saldana and Taryn Manning...
." Trent Vanegas of Pink is the New Blog
Pink is the New Blog
Trent Vanegas is a writer and former teacher, who once worked at Grosse Pointe Wood's University Liggett School, from Detroit best known for his website, Pink is the New Blog , on which he documents celebrity gossip and offers commentary...
said that doing the show was a "great move" for Spears. Television researcher Tim Brooks
Tim Brooks (television historian)
Tim Brooks is an American television and radio historian, author and retired television executive. He is credited with having helped launch the Sci Fi Channel in 1992 as well as other USA Network projects and channels....
, the co-author of the 1979 book The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows
The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows
The Complete Directory to Prime Time Network and Cable TV Shows, 1946-Present is a trade paperback reference work by the American television researchers Tim Brooks and Earle Marsh, first published by Ballantine Books in 1979. The ninth edition came out in 2007...
, commented that Spears' role was a "very good way to get her chops into comedy", in part because it is "very out of type. She's not just playing herself as a celebrity."
External links
- "Buy, Buy Baby" at TV.comTV.comTV.com is a website owned by CBS Interactive. The site covers television and focuses on English-language shows made or broadcast in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Japan...