Micro-reaction: New Monday Shows
['Scorpion' and 'Forever' premieres, some spoilers]
Awkward setup with a lot of tell, don't show, and a few "You're going to do WHAT? Are you a CARTOON?" level plot contrivances, but a lot of fun with quirky genius badasses, a main character with angst issues visible from space (who's child self needs to have been Sherlock and Mycroft's childhood BFF from Ireland, seriously), decent tension and pacing (in the pilot at least) and some nicely quippy one-liners. In a way a bit like the movie Sneakers with far less social aptitude. The show has also already skipped the later jump-the-shark issue by introducing the super-genius child character right in the pilot along with his mom.
I liked it, I'll watch it again. So far I like all the characters, though I don't know if I'll like them as much when they aren't just a rag-tag bunch of independent social misfits and are instead a bunch of social misfits with a lab and a bankroll. Also contains Robert Patrick (who played the T2 liquid metal Terminator, though not now, though that would be a heck of a twist) and Ernie Hudson (who played Winston Zeddemore in the Ghostbusters movies) which was cool.
They may have blown most of the budget for the entire series run on the stunts at the end of this first episode though. But golly that was fun.
Forever
Voiceovers everywhere, but I'm thinking that's mostly because it's the premiere and this guy has a ton of backstory. Also Ioan Gruffudd is using something close to his normal accent instead of mimicking an American one so I find I don't mind him doing a lot of talking.
References! POCKET WATCH (Doctor Who), SCARF (tied exactly like Sherlock does), at the end of this episode (which is the first one of a two parter that ends tomorrow apparently but if it's on the same time as Agents of Shield it's S.O.L.) the female police officer character comes to ask for the main character's help with a MURDER COMMITTED WITH A RARE AND SPECIAL OLD SWORD (Highlander). Lots more I'm sure I'm missing. They appear to have very few issues acknowledging who they are borrowing from. There is also a nice bit of coat action here and there.
Bonus surprise Judd Hirsh! Whose character may be a part of the whole run of the show, or might be tragically killed off tomorrow, but I hope he sticks around. I loved him in Independence Day.
Both shows
So. Much. Sherlock-scanning. Glance at a person and give them their life story stuff. Without the floating text, but seriously, super-genius men need to stop doing that to people who are being obviously introduced as potential love interests. Though it's a handy method of exposition.
Also, all of these people need to get together with all the characters from Sherlock and, I dunno, save the world or genius each other to death or something. The Homeland Security and NYPD people can hang out at the bar with John, Lestrade, Sally and Anderson while the rest of them technobabble and snark at each other.
Awkward setup with a lot of tell, don't show, and a few "You're going to do WHAT? Are you a CARTOON?" level plot contrivances, but a lot of fun with quirky genius badasses, a main character with angst issues visible from space (who's child self needs to have been Sherlock and Mycroft's childhood BFF from Ireland, seriously), decent tension and pacing (in the pilot at least) and some nicely quippy one-liners. In a way a bit like the movie Sneakers with far less social aptitude. The show has also already skipped the later jump-the-shark issue by introducing the super-genius child character right in the pilot along with his mom.
I liked it, I'll watch it again. So far I like all the characters, though I don't know if I'll like them as much when they aren't just a rag-tag bunch of independent social misfits and are instead a bunch of social misfits with a lab and a bankroll. Also contains Robert Patrick (who played the T2 liquid metal Terminator, though not now, though that would be a heck of a twist) and Ernie Hudson (who played Winston Zeddemore in the Ghostbusters movies) which was cool.
They may have blown most of the budget for the entire series run on the stunts at the end of this first episode though. But golly that was fun.
Forever
Voiceovers everywhere, but I'm thinking that's mostly because it's the premiere and this guy has a ton of backstory. Also Ioan Gruffudd is using something close to his normal accent instead of mimicking an American one so I find I don't mind him doing a lot of talking.
References! POCKET WATCH (Doctor Who), SCARF (tied exactly like Sherlock does), at the end of this episode (which is the first one of a two parter that ends tomorrow apparently but if it's on the same time as Agents of Shield it's S.O.L.) the female police officer character comes to ask for the main character's help with a MURDER COMMITTED WITH A RARE AND SPECIAL OLD SWORD (Highlander). Lots more I'm sure I'm missing. They appear to have very few issues acknowledging who they are borrowing from. There is also a nice bit of coat action here and there.
Bonus surprise Judd Hirsh! Whose character may be a part of the whole run of the show, or might be tragically killed off tomorrow, but I hope he sticks around. I loved him in Independence Day.
Both shows
So. Much. Sherlock-scanning. Glance at a person and give them their life story stuff. Without the floating text, but seriously, super-genius men need to stop doing that to people who are being obviously introduced as potential love interests. Though it's a handy method of exposition.
Also, all of these people need to get together with all the characters from Sherlock and, I dunno, save the world or genius each other to death or something. The Homeland Security and NYPD people can hang out at the bar with John, Lestrade, Sally and Anderson while the rest of them technobabble and snark at each other.