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I tend to judge pilot episodes of new TV shows very harshly, often giving up on the prospects of a series before it’s even had 22 (or 45) minutes to impress me. That means that I will ignore a great show like Modern Family until well into its third season, when I am finally willing to give it a second chance and realize how much better the series gets after its first episode.

In an effort to rid myself of this bad habit I am starting a new TV-oriented column, “Crashing Pilots.” Each new series that I review will get two reviews: one will focus on the pilot, while the next will follow-up five episodes in, to see if my opinion of the show has changed. Most shows get better over time (Modern Family and Big Bang Theory), some fall off and lose steam after their pilot (The New Girl and Are You There, Chelsea?) and some show how brilliant they are right off the bat and prove it every episode (I miss you, Community!).

As you can tell by the examples I listed above, I don’t watch much on TV besides sitcoms, but for the inauguration of this column I decided to start with something a little bit different. If there is one thing I love more than TV comedy it’s musical theater, which is why I viewed the commercials for NBC’s new show “Smash” with a mix of intrigue and trepidation. Still, thanks mostly to my trust in creator Theresa Rebeck (who wrote the delightful off-broadway play poking fun at Broadway, The Understudy) I was willing to give it a chance, at least for five episodes.

The pilot, at least, is worth watching, even if some of its flaws are cringe worthy. There are so many opportunities for both comedy and drama in the world of the theater, and it is easy to dip into absurdity and surrealism, as Rebeck’s The Understudy proved. But Rebeck is trying something different here, something more grounded and realistic, which I think is why the show is having trouble finding its footing.

The main plot that the pilot is developing is the rivalry between aspiring stars Karen Cartwright (Katherine McPhee) and Ivy Lynn (Megan Hilty), both of whom are up for the part of Marilyn Monroe in a new musical about her life. We see both of them in their regular lives - Cartwright waiting tables, Lynn in the chorus of a Broadway show, both fruitlessly auditioning - and getting the chance to prove their chops in front of the creative team behind the Marilyn musical. We do not, however, see them directly interact, which is a choice that I like; their relationship can go in a million different directions, and the potential they have is one of the most intriguing aspects of the show.

There’s just one problem: Cartwright is no Marilyn, and the slack-jawed stares that she gets during her audition, when she belts Christina Aguilera’s “You are Beautiful” seem false. In addition to having limited theatrical experience (she doesn’t realize that the criticism “you’re light” is referring to her resume), she doesn’t seem talented enough to star on Broadway. Every time she sings her arms twitch as if she is being controlled by an amateur puppeteer. Her voice is fantastic, but that is not enough for any Broadway producer to take a chance on an unknown by having her star in the musical that they so desperately need to be a hit.

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