10 posts tagged “jericho”
Did I fall into a parallel universe last night? One where Lost sucks and Jericho is actually good?
The really weird thing about it is, the reason Lost was so bad last night is the complaint I've had so much about Jericho I've thought about calling it "the Jericho Effect." Namely, that they spend so much time telling us about an uninteresting story (how Jack got his tattoo), and only hinting at one that's a lot more compelling (the Dharma Initiative's purpose). Jericho, on the other hand, gave us a "before the bombs" prequel that, with a little reworking, would have made a much better pilot than the actual one.
I haven't been doing the stream of consciousness TV blogging because I've fallen behind in many of the shows I watch, and so wouldn't be able to get the posts up in a timely fashion.
Heroes has been consistently good; they've done a good job at keeping everyone in the mix, and even adding new characters (D.L. and the radioactive guy). The main annoyance so far is how they treat female characters. Claire is indestructible, but she's the one who needs saving because she's a little girl; Niki got turned into Jessica the femme fatale. The waitress in Midland got killed off almost instantly to provide more story for Hiro (I suspect he won't be able to save her without creating a rift in time). Why can't there be any women characters who are straightforward heroes the way Hiro, Peter Petrelli, Matt Parkman, etc. are?
The last couple of episodes of Jericho were surprisingly good; Turteltaub and company seem to be getting their act together and focusing more on interesting plotlines like Mr. Hawkins and Ravenwood and less on the "human interest". There are still anvilicious moments, like the pregnancy and wedding subplots, but they're not dominating the story any more. Though it'd be nice if the writers would let the women do something interesting for once, instead of caring for sick men (compare April with the doctor from Rogue River) or angsting about their boyfriends/husbands.
Lost is on hiatus; I have the last episode recorded but haven't watched it yet. The Others stuff has been interesting, but I can't really tell where it's going yet. A lot of it feels like mystery for mystery's sake. The original island hasn't fared so well; they haven't got much screen time, and their plots (the black smoke, Desmond seeing the future) haven't been developed well. The episode coming up is supposed to be big, though.
Doctor Who is consistently good. The throwaway episodes are the best of any series out there (though "The Idiot's Lantern" was much weaker than "The Girl in the Fireplace"), and the Cybermen two-parter finally figured out Micky. I'm not sure how they'll bring them back later in the season, though.
I've been catching Smallville occasionally, mostly the Green Arrow episodes. It's interesting for what they do with DC canon, and I'll probably go back and start catching earlier seasons. I'm still finishing up prior seasons of Veronica Mars and Supernatural, so not much to report there.
Looking forward to The Dresden Files and The Lost Room on SciFi (but where's Wild Cards?), as well as new Masters of Horror.
Previously: there was an explosion, and the writers would like you to think there's a mystery too. There's a post-apocalyptic cowboy gang.
Blowtorch. It's a way to show they're badass without having much actual violence.
It's Halloween apparently.
Given the status of the food supply, isn't it wasteful to use pumpkins for jack-o-lanterns?
Bail? How do they think the justice system works now?
And their word is good until the armed coup come sweeps, if the show makes it that long.
God, they try very hard to make her annoying. And it just winds up unrealistic.
More bickering. I don't *care* about these people.
Antibiotics? I thought he had the flu. Or the radiation poisoning "flu". Either way, they won't help.
Ooh, that's supposed to be a big reveal, isn't it?
Where's spy guy?
Maybe the armed coup is this episode, actually.
Yeah, FEMA's good. Because they did so much last time.
Exposition time.
Why would they hit Lawrence, Kansas? To take out those bad-ass Winchesters, of course.
So they weren't launched missiles, they were smuggled and detonated bombs. So the question is who? We're supposed to think Islamic terrorists, but I'm guessing it's Spy Guy's organization.
If I wanted politics I don't care about, I'd go back to playing Final Fantasy XII.
The jewelry box - probably traded to Dale so he can give it back and be such a Nice Guy.
That was handled badly.
Oh, instead he's going to steal the box.
Halloween's nice, but can we say waste of resources?
And easy target, apparently.
Lame chase scene.
And that's going to be another ethics debate.
How are they going to do it "his way" now that their bargaining power is nil?
How'd he know, if he wasn't involved with the bombers?
So much for parlay.
I don't *CARE* about this dead Chris guy.
The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street. Unfortunately, he's probably right in Spy Guy's case.
Go Dale!
Dad's dead, isn't he. He hasn't had much of a role so far, and they're totally setting that up. It's got power vacuum, it's got family drama, they won't be able to resist.
Just make out already.
Oh, and they get back just in time for slo-mo reaction shots.
Are they gonna enlist the help of the outlaws?
Apparently so.
Now *that's* emotional blackmail.
Dale, she's so not worth it.
Heavy makeout music.
Oh right, they're in a hurry.
Hope the diagnosis was all right. It'd suck to get back too late.
Another musical montage.
"Wheat Squares"? Nabisco wouldn't pony up for the product placement?
Next week: Rogue River, presumably.
Previously: bombs go off. People have drama, especially redheads.
Long previouslies, because nobody watches this show but me.
Fighter planes. That means we're at war? They flew overhead plenty in California. But I guess Kansas isn't California.
"I'm compromised"? Is it supposed to be a mystery who he's working for?
EMP? And they all know this how, because the power went out? And how did the "end transmission" work if all the electronics are fried?
"2 weeks later"? WTF? Nothing happened of note? Or is this told backward?
The mayor still has the flu?
How long until they become a Heinleinian survivalist community?
And so the gangs and bullies are taking over already?
I don't care about these people's love lives!
Yeah, because she is totally authorized to do that.
Can we *not* rely on the stereotype of the useless government worker?
Horse thieves. It's a western now?
They really need to show how they got here from last episode.
So the economy's on barter now?
With a name like Mitch Cafferty, of course he's a thief.
More pointless love triangle drama.
Whiny Mayor Simon.
So more economic issues. This could be interesting, but would be better as a book.
So the kid's in with the horse thieves?
Backstory.
Not in a position to make threats now, are you?
Lame-ass fight.
Nice Vulcan Neck Pinch.
But you have to take a credit card? Yeah, because I have so much faith in the First Bank of Radioactive Crater.
Like that's a scary cliffhanger. He'll just explain what it is, we won't hear the explanation, and that'll be that.
A little explanation, but not much.
He's totally the Heinleinian ubermensch here.
Gah. The IRS agent is so obviously meant to be annoying, it's ... well, annoying in a different way.
Lame-ass confrontation.
Awful acting.
Shooting Vanilla Ice is a nice touch.
Oh, just make out.
Here to help. It's easier with a montage (Wallflowers?)
So are they burning the corn or harvesting the part soaked in gasoline?
Still don't care about these people, even if Dr. Redhead is kinda cute.
Photoshopping memories.
I freeze framed just for "Screw this town"? Not that I disagree.
Previously on Jericho - pointless drama.
War. War never changes. Oh wait, this is Jericho, not Fallout.
Talk about overloading your music.
Phones ringing - are people calling or is it a voltage spike in the lines?
How does that work, actually?
Cellphones are working? WTF?
"The internet's supposed to survive a nuclear war. So why can't I check my email?" Dude, it barely survived a snowstorm.
Oh god, it's MovieOS.
Lots of strategizing about repairs. If I want this, I can just watch the news.
Mystery family. Oh, the drama.
More backstory about the black sheep of a family I care nothing about.
He has a secret? Do I care?
And the transformer, like everything else on this show, blows.
Oh no, kids in danger.
He has a MovieOS account, apparently.
Am I supposed to check the freeze frames to see what he was doing?
Bah. Stupid kid.
Very fake looking flames.
I'm not sure that's quite true - it's more that there are short circuits, right?
They still have water pressure? Oh, guess not.
Another pointless rescue drama.
What does he see in her?
Idiot plot.
This camera work doesn't add anything. I guess they were going for immediacy, but I don't feel it.
Until the writers find a way to make me care about these specific characters, there's never going to be much tension. As it is, the only character I care about has had about two minutes of screen time this episode.
Oh, there he is.
So did fire #3 come from somewhere, or was it just convenient for the plot?
Everyone's got a mysterious past.
These fire effects still look really fake.
How long do you think it will take them to forget entirely about the fire damage?
Divorce papers? How cliche. And they had to tell us what the papers were. Seriously, nuclear war isn't gonna save your marriage.
This is so cliche. Thank gods there isn't a drinking game, or I'd be dead from alcohol poisioning.
Is that the son?
They should stop the episode there.
Ok, TV feed is the end of the ep?
And the feed that they're already getting doesn't happen to come on until the main characters arrive.
Or not.
Planes? Whatever.
Okay, so is that the first official "it's bombs" thing? I still remember the previews saying it might not be.
So the theme of this ep is power trouble?
I so don't care about the small town pizza joint.
Yeah, pharmacy would be a big target.
Who's that?
Radiation sickness?
And now we're in the ER portion of the show.
"We'll do everything we can until we can't" - that's some quality writing.
It's Walt II!
The monsters are due in Jericho.
Not going to make a suction joke there.
Triage. It's the post-apocalyptic Cold Equations.
"They're coming." If I cared about these people, I might be scared. As it is, I hope they show up so something exciting happens.
Oh god, I've got the attitude of a TWOP reviewer.
Okay, why the story rehearsal?
Do I really care about the teen drama? Even the one on Heroes isn't that interesting. That's the nice thing about Lost - no teenagers.
That answers that. Yay authorial fiat.
"Oh, right, I invited you." That's welcoming.
We're so worried about power, and they're blasting a stereo. Oookay.
Gasping Exposition Man.
Ok, here we go. Time for a property vs. community debate.
I'm confused. What's the deal with Mr. St. Louis?
It's like a post-apocalyptic Chanukkah.
There's a traitor? Convenient drama pulse surge.
Next time, can we have an Exposition Guy with a clearer voice?
At risk? Of what? This is the cliffhangery mystery?
"Or are we just going to watch the same three images over and over?" Metacommentary?
Oh, a doll. That's just so anviliciously poignant.
And another long speech over a montage.
The cop is the only interesting thing left - did he know Victor?
Recaps. Everyone who hasn't been on screen is dead.
Post-apoc foreshadowing.
Hazmat? Radation suit?
Won't the radiation still be there after the rain?
The mine's sealed. Still seems like an idiot plot to me.
More exposition. Yawn.
Someone's upstairs. Bet it's the cat; it's too eaarly in the ep to be anyone else.
We'll find out if the rain's radioactive, I guess. I should see if any physicists are nitpicking this show.
Maybe you shouldn't say that over the walkie-talkie, hmm?
Claustrophobia as drama.
What's wrong with the mayor?
Of course she can smoke, she's the Designated Hot Girl in the scene.
Ah, the flu.
Nothing says "let's make out" like dead family members.
More angst. Is he nauseated from stress or radiation poisoning? Do I care?
"That used to be Denver." Aww. It was better on the Doctor Who Christmas Special.
So everyone's ok. Meh. Boring. Couldn't they have had some kind of plot development in there?
Ok, so claustrophobic guy's dead. That could be interesting if he was killed by someone in an attempt to just knock him out to avert a panic. But it'll probably be just a heart attack and the folks who came up with the mines idea will angst about it.
Hee. Spider powers. First good line of the series.
Yup. Heart attack.
How it looks? Dude, where did these other kids come from?
And now they're striking out to see what happened.
And the heavy-handed inclusion of the ep title with "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse."
Lots of bombs (or something) hit apparently. Nothing we didn't already know. I suppose I could freeze-frame and see where was hit, but why?
Why do they think it's war? Because an Asian broadcaster covered it?
Lots more human drama.
Big cookout. Like on the "Everybody Hates Hugo" ep of Lost.
Why does he care? Because she's young and skinny.
Yep. Here's the drama.
And we've got a dictatorship on our hands. Because every good survivalist story needs a strong leader who brooks no opposition.
There's really not a episode plot this time, is there? I'm actually longing for the crooks in the farmhouse from last week.
There really needs to be a "holy crap" moment by the end of the ep or I'm giving up on this show. (I know, I'm all talk.)
Okay, there was some neglect there. But not sinister, just pathetic.
Shep's suicidal now. Which means there's something else out there his way.
Reverse POV shots suck.
Plane crash? Landing?
Flight recording. Will it tell us what happened? At least it's more interesting than the rest of the ep.
Why do they always shout "pull up"? Do they think the pilot just forgot?
So the fiance's all right. Of course he is.
Cookout. Gotta have the penultimate scene be an affirmation of humanity with a pop song playing over it.
That guy looks like the straight-laced Lone Gunman.
They try, but they're just not teh pretty the way the guys on Heroes, Lost and Supernatural are.
And the final cliffhangery twist: walling something up?
Guess it's not final.
Train wreck. What an apt metaphor.
Shipment's here, I guess. Is that Third Eye Blind playing?
That's it? Whatever.
Fallout's coming. After Heroes, I'm less than impressed by the drama here.
Typical shelter triage plot coming up?
These aren't really cops, are they? They're the ex-cons.
The outsider isn't doing the outsider's job of letting us share her perspective, because I just don't care about these people.
I'll probably stop watching regularly. Heroes spoiled me.
Long explanation of radiation poisoning for the benefit of the viewing audience.
Oh, we all know cops don't have tattoos.
Why are the deputies in the trunk? Some postapocalyptic world.
Heh. Know-it-all.
More explanation of bombs. (Literally explode the air? That doesn't sound right.)
Halfway through and there's really not much going on. Storm coming, and the convicts at the farm.
Medical planning drama is just not interesting. Didn't they do the coming storm thing on Invasion?
Yeah, wondering when they were gonna communicate. If the writers are gonna make the character deaf so that they can sign, they take their time about actually doing it.
Convenient salt mine. Is that realistic for Kansas?
Another Morse code message. Worth decoding, or are they gonna hand it to us?
Where's Mayor Simon? Who cares?
Oh god. She's literally going to fire the pistol we saw hung on the wall earlier. It's a metaphor, writers!
Blowing up the cave. Good idea, guys.
Ooh, she's gonna broadcast to the walkie-talkie. That's what passes for suspense on this show?
That's a pretty lame boom.
Who the heck is Mr. Hawkins?
And to the rescue. Is this the guy from the bus?
Oh, that was so unexpected.
These guys are awful shots.
Storm at the end. Is this really going to help them? Radioactive material will still be on the ground after the storm, right?
Ending montage. This really feels by-the-numbers.
Roswell?
Oh, god, baby as life-goes-on metaphor.
How does he know where these bombs hit?
What TV show(s) will you be watching this season? Why?
Submitted by ducnly.vox.com.
[Yes, I know this is really a Question of the Yesterday. But I want to answer it.]
Thanks to my TV card, a heck of a lot. My must-sees for this season:
Lost
Doctor Who
Heroes
Veronica Mars
Eureka
Jericho
And my also-records:
Supernatural (this would be a must-see, except I've got a lot to catch up on.)
The 4400 (ditto this.)
Stargate Atlantis
The Office
Corner Gas
My Name Is Earl
The Daily Show
The Colbert Report
Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends
[Vox really needs a cut tag. Until then, consider yourself warned for spoilers. On the other hand, if you haven't seen the relevant episodes, these stream-of-consciousness posts are going to make no sense at all.]
Is the Morse code at the beginning saying anything?
Character introductions feel forced. I don't care about these people, at least not yet. That's what sunk Invasion for me.
Just waiting for the bomb to drop. If I were writing the ep, I'd actually wait until about 40 minutes in to do that.
Every conversation, they have to drop exposition in there. I know they're catching up with him, but it's like they've all never met him and have to establish background details or something.
The nondiegetic music is too loud. It's like a bad trailer, and the music (that Goo Goo Dolls song whose title I can't remember) is chosen for being a hit rather than being apropos.
Stole the "triple" line - was it from Maureen Dowd?
It's plodding right now. I don't care about these characters; that's not what I'm checking out this pilot for.
He's leaving the eponymous town. LIke he'll get far. The show's not called San Diego.
Children's song - just like the LBJ commercial. Even interposed with political speeches.
And all the radio and TV signals go out. EMP? Mushroom cloud points to yes. And now the real show starts.
Did a shockwave hit the bus? Apparently so.
Oh no, a kid on a bus may be hurt. Um, if this was a nuclear attack scenario, how many people (including children) would be dead? But of course they'll be ok.
Cut to commercial with the Lost drumbeat.
Unless something weird happens, it seems like they're focusing on the least important aspects.
Ooh, foreshadowing of postapocalyptic setting?
Creepy answering machine. But would the line be working up to the point the receiver got blasted?
And he metamorphoses into Jack from Lost. We still don't know his background, do we?
Wow. They did kill a kid...
Or not. MacGyver-style trachaeotomy. I can't look.
I'm not sure what happened; did someone say "that's the wrong bus" before the guy got shot?
The tape again. Would you be able to hear the rumbling before the shockwave hit? Doesn't it travel at or faster than the speed of sound?
Cutting back and forth between equally dark settings is just confusing.
And the looting begins. Because as we know from TV news, disaster -> looting. Even in small, close-knit communities.
St. Louis cop is a total Gary Stu, the writers' go-to guy when they need the right answer.
Dude, that's where I know the mayor from. Simon & Simon. I'm a dork.
"Why are you turning on each other?" Save it for the fanfic, guys.
And the mayor's kid drives in with a busload of kids and the mayor's approval rating. Oh, and a love interest, apparently.
Oh, it was a prison bus. That explains the shooting. Are those yellow? How do you mistake one for the other?
Ooh, can we have a Botany Bay-style community of escaped convicts?
Shorter mayor's speech: tune in next week.
Too-loud music again (Snow Patrol? I guess playing Fallout Boy would be bad taste.) and a final sequence - cliffhanger? What was on the ground around the blonde woman? Time to check the recording.
Next week: invaders (the convicts?) and radioactive rain.
