cheek by jowl

‘Samantha Who?’ vs. Dr. Dre: What Is ABC’s Marketing Department Trying to Say?

Last night we came across a teaser for ABC’s much-renamed Christina Applegate vehicle Samantha Who?, in which an amnesia victim living a Sex and the City–like life must discover her true identity, atone for past mistakes, etc. Like the Bourne movies, but for chicks. The teaser’s background music features the horn line from the Dr. Dre song “What’s the Difference,” a Chronic 2001 track with guest verses from Xzibit and Eminem. (It’s actually a sample from “Parce Que Tu Crois” by Charles Aznavour, but most viewers, like us, are more likely to be familiar with Dre’s version.) Is this the kind of song with which you want your jaunty romantic comedy associated? After the jump, the two works of art compared. –Ben Mathis-Lilley

 
Samantha Who?

"What's the Difference"
Uses of a specific slang term for African-Americans “banned” earlier this year by the New York City Council Zero. Seven.
Do characters "give a fuck"? It appears so. No (made clear several times).
Representative dialogue Samantha: “I thought you said I looked nice!”
Samantha’s sassy mother: “You do … for a hooker!”
Eminem: “I don't know if I ever told you this, but I love you, dawg. I got your motherfuckin’ back, just know this shit.”
Dre: “Slim, I don't know if you noticed it, but I've had your back from day one. Nigga, let's blow this bitch.”
Best line N/A Xzibit: “What’s the difference between me and you?/About five bank accounts, three ounces,* and two vehicles.”
*of marijuana
Contains reference to beating unnamed individual in a hot tub with the discarded barrel of a sawed-off shotgun until he coughs up snot, then shooting him, creating bubbles of “mucus and hot water”? Not in the teaser, anyway. Yes.
Contains jokes about breasts being fondled? Yes. Surprisingly, no.

Samantha Who? Teaser [ABC.com]
“What’s the Difference” Lyrics [OHHLA.com]
Earlier: ABC’s ‘Sam I Am’: Mean Girl, Awake!
Christina Applegate Has to Order New Stationery Again

Photos: Getty Images (Dre); courtesy of ABC (Applegate)

‘Samantha Who?’ vs. Dr. Dre