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Tuesday, September 30, 2008
The Cool Crowd: End of September 08
Lots of TV the past few weeks and lots of totally unimportant thoughts on my end, but I'm still going to write about them. Finally.
FRINGE and EUREKA
Not sure why I didn't make this connection off the bat, but FRINGE is very very very similar to Eureka - except that they're worlds apart. Both delve into the art (and darkness) of science. The core of the expansion of science is urged on by the creation of weapons. Fringe has "Massive Dynamic" - a super corporation that is developing weapons and using fringe science to be a step ahead of the game. Plus, there's obviously the interwoven relationship with the government. Eureka has "Global Dynamics", a Department of Defense funded experimental facility again developing various technologies including weapons. Each cake on layers of scientific jargon, that for my simple mind, can only take for what its worth and hope they're saying something legitimate.
And they're entirely different products.
Eureka is obviously a dramedy - a show built on its characters and quirks with science as a plot pusher. I love Eureka. Now that it has arrived at the midseason finale, I still love it. The formula of the show can get tiring: new scientist, various red herrings, Jack using simplicity in the face of complex science, more red herrings, someone facing death until Jack and Henry figure something out, and BAM - resolution. Yes, it's formulaic, but I still love the show because its entertaining, light, funny, dedicated to its characters, and deep enough to discuss if there were more people I knew that watched it. (As of now - just one other person. Maybe I should buy the dvds and pass them along.)
Fringe, on the other hand, is not Eureka. And, I'm not sure what I think of it yet. Well, I do, actually. I want to like it and I'm hoping that it'll get better. As of now, there are interesting moments but also many moments when I feel disconnected (and somewhat bored). I still haven't warmed to the lead. I still see Pacey. I'm slowly understanding Walter a bit more (I think they're intentionally lessening the density of his lines). It's super dark. It's pretty graphic. It's scored beautifully (the fears that the composer would produce Lost 2.0 aka Alias 3.0 should be diminished. The music is different.)
There was a moment in episode 2 that I greatly appreciated. When Walter admonished "Pacey" for not believing that the Iris Slideshow could happen, he asked him when he stopped imagining or having faith. It's interesting because, in the other Bad Robot show, LOST, Locke and Jack represent faith and science as opposing forces. In Fringe - particularly with Walter - science is the venue where faith gets to play and be expanded. Earlier in the episode, Walter referred to Jules Verne. I think that was a nod to original science fiction when technology really was theoretical and the concepts of hard science fed the fluffiness of imagination. So, I appreciated that moment and what I THINK they want this show to be: and old school science fiction jaunt masked in very very heavy drama.
Episode 3 didn't hit on any underlying theme like this, so maybe I'm totally wrong.
Heroes: Villains
The two-hour season premiere was exciting and interesting. I thought the first hour worked much better than the second. In fact, I don't remember much of the second hour. The third hour of the season was also very action packed.
Now, does that make the show good? I guess it's up to you.
I have always had problems with Heroes and its drastically HUGE ensemble cast and ultimately its difficulty in producing solid character movement for each character per episode. The first half of season one was super messy and lacked direction (and was super slow). The second half, for whatever reason, was damn good.
Anyway. Enough about the history.
My initial thought after the 2nd hour was: "I've seen this before. It's 'X3: XMen United'" - and I really didn't like that installment of the X movies. Oh no.
As I was watching episode 3 last night, I was engaged with all the characters. I like Tracy Strauss much more than I ever did Niki/Jessica Sanders. I thought Clare's desire for vindication/vengeance was exposed well. I thought Sylar and Noah as partners was interesting. So, on a superficial level, the plot is moving along and gaining traction. Hour 3 was about self-exploration - and it worked as an episode - but I thought the identity exploration of their selves and their powers already happened.
At the same time, I laughed a few times in the episode for the absurdity of what was happening (I think mostly regarding Sylar). Look, people with powers is absurd. I know that. I'm talking about how the characters were evolving.. or devolving.. or just generally being tweaked.
Although I thought it was cute how the Hiro and Ando story was interplaying with the old movies and music, the goofiness of it had me thinking "Charlie Chan". And, as most Asian American Studiers would feel, that wasn't a welcome feeling. Hiro's been goofy, yes. But he's established himself with a high level of passion, ingenuity, and heroism in the past. Tiptoeing around a movie theatre? Not so much. In fact, I'm worried that they actually deliberately attached the Charlie Chan caricature to Hiro in the episode (see old movie.. see old music). That would be very disappointing.
With Parkman's story: I'm not sure what's going on. But, the caricature I couldn't help but see was Rafiki in Lion King. Parkman was in Africa. He was following, blindly, someone who apparently knew his history and destiny. And, when Parkman followed the man to the boulders, the man started to paint - just like Rafiki did. All of this.. with the actor (not sure if he's African or not because Rafiki was voiced by an American) speaking in an African accent and in cryptic phrases. Um. Am I the only one?
Finally, the Sylar comedy was interesting to see, but it's SYLAR. He's been serial killing "special" people due to an envious hunger. Seriously! And, then, all of a sudden, he found a personality?
Overall, I'll keep watching as long as the story is interesting, but I'm generally disappointed that certain details/fundamentals of the show's cannon aren't handled more cleanly. Some powers have been interesting. Most are excessively over done. Did we need another super fast being playing ultimate pickpocketer in Daphne (see Bart in Smallville)? Do we need more fire throwers? More telepaths? In fact, the young lady that Mama Petrelli fed to Sylar at the beginning of the episode had a similar power to the tv version of Black Canary on Birds of Prey. Why did certain people get their powers? Why are a bunch of the powers seemingly arbitrary to the character harboring them and created to advance the plot and or the "cool" factor? Fantasy is a delicate device to manage on TV. On Smallville, the earlier seasons, the "meteor freaks" received powers but they were metaphors to their youthful angst.
Other stuff
I'm still watching 90210. Not sure why. It hasn't been anything special, but I still am.
I'm sad that Serena's turning into old Serena, but it makes sense to see. I hope it last just for a mini-arc because, as they are now, there are absolutely NO upper-eastsiders that act upon their integrity. Chuck Bass is still my favorite character on the show (still trying to wish that they never wrote in that possible date-rape scene in the pilot). Dan's an idiot.
I was wholly underwhelmed with last night's burger "How I met your mother" episode. I thought we already saw Marshall have to sell out and work with Barney. Oh, that's right. We did! I do want a damn hamburger now, though.
I thought most of the Anna Faris SNL episode was much better than the prior two episodes. Again.. I've supported Keenan since Good Burger.. but if they're going to tokenize a black comedian, there's definitely more out there that would be a better asset than Keenan is. Seriously.
What else.. what else..
Oh. I was underwhelmed with the Smallville Season Premiere. I was almost disappointed with the second episode due to the "dude, this was done in season 3" until the twist at the end. I'm liking Tess Mercer.
Supernatural's still a tour de force. I literally dropped my jaw in the season premiere when Sam.. well.. Sam did something.
Okay. I heart my DVR.
Friday, September 05, 2008
The Cool Crowd: Premiere Week 1!
It's that time of the year again, baby!
By the way, the new season started with Eureka.
Anyway, so here comes the network shows.
Gossip Girl
Gossip Girl came out blasting - primarily with Dan, the good boy, going player with two girls at the same reading, no less, and with Nate going Cougar hunting.
It's weird how they flipped the season finale with Blair getting her heart broken by a flippant Chuck Bass that found his badside - and came back with an ultra-weak, sappy, and vulnerable Chuck. "I was scared you'd see me" - or whatever he said - felt really out of character. It's something they could've saved at least until later in the season. Unless, as it seems, they're going to build a vindictive courtship done only the way Chuck Bass, that sappiness completely missed. But, now as I think of it, seeing how the two ultra-petty and weak-inside-so-they're-ultra-mean-outside kiddos go about romance in their ways will be pretty damn fun.
Serena and Dan getting back together? It was sweet, but sure seemed a bit dubious.
Overall, we know where most of the kids are and they've set the table for the first part of the season. As it seemed to me last year, they set up the soap run, Topic A, B, C, and D. So, we don't know what E is yet, but it should be fun.
By the way, the show was much more tame than their hype-machine made it out to be..
and with that said..
90210
BJ in the car within the first 20 minutes? Really?
That seemed a bit much.
Then again, Chuck almost date-raped Jenny in the GG series premiere, and that's way worse.
So, did 90210 live up to the hype? I'm not too sure exactly. I never really watched the original with regularity so I don't know how it was made and how this new rendition would play off of it. The small shoutouts and tongue-in-cheek moments were nice for those who recognized them. They were definitely expecting the late 20s and early 30s crowd that grew up on the original to show up and test the waters.
What I liked:
- the humor - here's to hoping that the show wont' take itself too seriously (like the OC).
- Hmm. Is that it?
What I wasn't so hot for:
- Although Lori Loughlin's pretty damn hot at her age, she nor Rob Estes look like legitimate parents of two high school kids (one who's adopted, no less). Seriously.
- two of the 3 main girls are WAAAY skinny - like unhealthy looking arms skinny. Yes, Leighton Meester's slim, but she's had a "normal" hollywood body for a young lady since I first saw her in Surface. I'm not saying they have eating problems, but c'mon.
- the mean "blogger" thing is topical, yes, but also done in Veronica Mars.
- I liked the first hour better than the second, but they did throw a lot in for each character and it was sort of too everywhere... I'm sure they're just feeling out their way, but why not just focus on the family and run hard with the family til the surrounding community finds its role?
Will it survive? I think so. It has pretty people, it has drama, it has all the "hopes" of the CW riding on it, and because of that can throw on some crazy stuff to keep people interested.
But, does it really bring anything different to the teen drama world? I think the fish out of water story that was essential in the original, in The OC, and in Gossip Girl is covered obviously in Gossip Girl. The sexual mystique? Yes, Gossip Girl. It's glitzier than Gossip Girl. But, in the end, the writing and character building will tell the truth from the hype.
Bones
What can I say? It was classic 2-hours worth of Bones: humor, forensic science, Booth and Bones chemistry and romantic teasing, and humor!
I thought that the aloofness of the drama during the investigations was a bit looser than normal, but I guess they wanted to clean up some stories to open up the room for future developments.
My favorite moment in the 2 hours was when Hodgins started the fight with Angela's "ex"-husband and Sweets, while longing for belonging as he might self-assess, tried to jump in. Before he could, he was tripped by Angela. Perfect "Bones" moment.
My second favorite moment came at the end. Throughout the episode, Clark, who we first saw as Zack's "replacement" in the Season 3 premiere who subsequently got booted when Zack came back later in the episode, felt uncomfortable with all the aloof personal life infusion at the research lab. Clark, who returned in Season 4's premeiere because of Zack's "involvement" with the gormogon, didn't seem like he was going to make it through a second season premiere. And, I was right! But, instead of how he was abruptly booted in last season's premiere, this year he took control of his own situation and resigned from his position at the lab because he was just a scientist and couldn't hang with all the drama at the lab. Beautiful. Beautiful retribution for Clark and beautiful laughing at oneself as the show did with that statement.
The episode also felt like it was being written for a new audience. Makes sense. If FOX is giving it a 2-hour premiere, then I guess we can expect FOX to push it forward as one of its flagship dramas.
Good return. I love this show!
