there's stupid and then there's stupid

Sigh. Not weighty matters of state here, but I just have to talk about this for a second:

I'm not one to begrudge anyone their bubblegum, but not having seen a second of this show, this advertisement has been in the subway for the past few weeks, it just oozes stupid.

First, there's the concept -- forensic investigation is just too boring inside the beltway, let's put in in California with bikinis and because, uh, they have Navy bases there? I think?

The original NCIS (starring Peter Griffin favorite Mark Harmon) is already the idiot's CSI -- which is itself the illiterate man's Sherlock Holmes -- so we've got a derivative product of a derivative product, which, frankly, does not promise great things.

But it's the poster image itself that gets me inexplicably perturbed.

(1) Is this a buddy cop movie or a police procedural?

In the glare of their bronzed perfect skin I'm getting less of a nail the bad guys vibe and much more nail something else a la Porky's XVII (no I've never seen those).

(2) Why is the viewer looking up at them?

Is this a cheap way to add to their stature or something? Looks more like HookerVision, if you ask me -- is this a two-fer? Is that why they look so smug -- a great deal on hummers? (And good luck getting that image out of your heads, kids!)

(3) Why does Robin have a gun on Deacon's shoulder?

I've never worked in law enforcement nor do I have relatives or friends in law enforcement. I've never even fired a gun. But my complete ignorance notwithstanding, I'm pretty sure no one who does those things would ever, ever pose for a picture with a pistol next to someone else's ear. And if that looks stupid to me, I can't imagine how stupid that looks to someone who, you know, has to carry a gun for a living. (I doubt they're the target demo.)

What is the story here, anyway, other than the fact that they're really happy to be in LA? Where they chasing a perp but then stopped to take a picture? Are we the perp, about to go to jail haunted by the memory of their smug, smug faces?

I just ... I don't know why this poster bugs me so much. Probably the assumption behind the poster: that the viewing public will devour pretty much anything provided it has guns, boobs, and beer commercials.

So it'll be the runaway hit of the season.