ABC's Grand Hotel is all froth, no fun: Where's the camp?

The Hollywood Reporter

"ABC is traditionally the network of camp, which is why it's so disappointing that Grand Hotel proffers even its goofiest storylines with earnest, priggish timidity," says Robyn Bahr of the Eva Longoria-produced primetime soap. "(The biggest problem facing the Mendoza family in the first four episodes? A demanding, egotistical rapper who becomes the hotel's artist-in-residence to boost profits.) Thus, it's no coincidence that TV's most successful international soap remakes — such as ABC's Ugly Betty or The CW's Jane the Virgin — deliberately play with kitsch and comedy alongside traditional melodrama. (That being said, Grand Hotel thankfully does not take itself nearly as seriously as USA's thriller Queen of the South.) I found myself wanting a more heightened sensorial experience: more epic plotline silliness, more production design grandeur and more invigorating musical cues beyond routine Top 40. Just something to hook my brain. Aside from its strong majority-Latinx cast, one of the few on television, there's just nothing innovative here. Grand Hotel is all froth, no fun."

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