missed opportunities

David E. Kelley’s New Drama Avalon Is, Rudely, Not a Roxy Music Adaptation

Photo: Left: Roxy Music/YouTube, Right: Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images

In what should have been an industry announcement that celebrates the upcoming 40th anniversary of one of the greatest albums of all time, we are instead bummed to report that David E. Kelley, the maestro behind small-screen dramas such as Boston Legal and Big Sky, is adapting a new series called Avalon that has nothing to do with Roxy Music’s 1982 sonic opus. The Hollywood Reporter confirms that ABC won a competitive bidding war for the show, which is based on a short story by Michael Connelly and set in the small tourist community of California’s Catalina Island. A female sheriff, who does not have the last name Ferry or Manzanera, is “pulled into a career-defining mystery that will challenge everything she knows about herself and the island,” which may prove much more difficult than expected, as “the island sees hundreds of potential stories arrive by ferry each day.” (Okay, at least we got a lowercase “ferry.”) It’s slated to debut during ABC’s 2022–23 lineup. Can the sheriff at least wear a medieval helmet and hold a falcon while gazing at her hazy island in the opening credits?

David E. Kelley’s New Drama Avalon Is Not About Roxy Music