Grimm - The Lowdown
So, Mr. Chat and I started watching Grimm. Two episodes in, and I have a few things to say.
You see, here's the funny thing. Two episodes in, and I couldn't have told you the main character's name. I know it's been said several times, but I had to double-check with IMDB (it's Nick Burckhardt). Why? He's not really knocking my socks off. The supporting characters are really outshining him a lot. His partner Hank is funnier and more clever, his "big bad wolf" buddy Eddie is more snarky, his fiance Juliette seems both grounded and appropriately concerned for him, and his Aunt Marie... Wow. I could watch a whole show centered around her.
The only memorable thing about Nick is his one character quirk of trying to profile people from a distance. This would be mildly amusing if he were ever proven to be the slightest bit accurate.
However, I will say this in Nick's defense: he's trying to pick up aid in odd places. While wary of the strange creatures he sees, he started opening up to them to get them to help him. Granted this is primarily out of desperation and will probably come back to bite him in the ass at some point, but if he can convince the odd creatures he sees that not all of them will be stabbed on sight, he could gain some valuable allies.
Here's the thing though - Why do families with some kind of terrible legacy never see fit to inform their children until it's virtually too late? Aunt Marie was a badass's badass. The fact that the dying, cancer-ridden, injured old women could fight off multiple attempts on her life, including one from her deathbed made me want to re-write Grimm to show her life up until she goes to see Nick. Please tell me we get to see flashbacks with her at some point! She's more interesting than Nick in every way. But why oh why did the writers have such a prepared, dedicated fighter of evil wait until just about the last possible second to impart a lifetime's worth of information?
She barely tells Nick anything other than he can see Other Things and it's in his blood (and destiny) to fight the evil ones. "Trusting your instincts," is all well and good, but only after you have the basics down. Hence why Nick is leaning so hard on Eddie the Big Bad Wolf. He doesn't have anyone else he can talk to about this now.
Though really, truly, once you've established the fact that Aunt Marie was right, wouldn't you lock your ass in that trailer and read every single piece of paper (or parchment, or leather, or stone) until you had it memorized? Or at least written down some Cliff's notes? Why only look up things a little bit at a time? Why go knock on Eddie's door at 6:30 in the morning if the fucking answer is right there in the trailer in your back yard? I understand you're having a tough time of it, Nick, but shouldn't you be using your aunt's carefully-gathered store of information? She didn't haul it to you on a whim.
In conclusion, Nick needs some reading time and some manners, Eddie is way more accomadating than he deserves, and if I were the evil police captain or his freaky blonde henchwoman, I wouldn't worry too much about this naive and bumbling Grimm.
And I want the show to be about Aunt Marie. All the time. That is one badass lady, and I'd love to see her meeting Ellen Harvelle from Supernatural and then the two of them totally pw0ning some threat. Tell me that wouldn't be epic!
You see, here's the funny thing. Two episodes in, and I couldn't have told you the main character's name. I know it's been said several times, but I had to double-check with IMDB (it's Nick Burckhardt). Why? He's not really knocking my socks off. The supporting characters are really outshining him a lot. His partner Hank is funnier and more clever, his "big bad wolf" buddy Eddie is more snarky, his fiance Juliette seems both grounded and appropriately concerned for him, and his Aunt Marie... Wow. I could watch a whole show centered around her.
The only memorable thing about Nick is his one character quirk of trying to profile people from a distance. This would be mildly amusing if he were ever proven to be the slightest bit accurate.
However, I will say this in Nick's defense: he's trying to pick up aid in odd places. While wary of the strange creatures he sees, he started opening up to them to get them to help him. Granted this is primarily out of desperation and will probably come back to bite him in the ass at some point, but if he can convince the odd creatures he sees that not all of them will be stabbed on sight, he could gain some valuable allies.
Here's the thing though - Why do families with some kind of terrible legacy never see fit to inform their children until it's virtually too late? Aunt Marie was a badass's badass. The fact that the dying, cancer-ridden, injured old women could fight off multiple attempts on her life, including one from her deathbed made me want to re-write Grimm to show her life up until she goes to see Nick. Please tell me we get to see flashbacks with her at some point! She's more interesting than Nick in every way. But why oh why did the writers have such a prepared, dedicated fighter of evil wait until just about the last possible second to impart a lifetime's worth of information?
She barely tells Nick anything other than he can see Other Things and it's in his blood (and destiny) to fight the evil ones. "Trusting your instincts," is all well and good, but only after you have the basics down. Hence why Nick is leaning so hard on Eddie the Big Bad Wolf. He doesn't have anyone else he can talk to about this now.
Though really, truly, once you've established the fact that Aunt Marie was right, wouldn't you lock your ass in that trailer and read every single piece of paper (or parchment, or leather, or stone) until you had it memorized? Or at least written down some Cliff's notes? Why only look up things a little bit at a time? Why go knock on Eddie's door at 6:30 in the morning if the fucking answer is right there in the trailer in your back yard? I understand you're having a tough time of it, Nick, but shouldn't you be using your aunt's carefully-gathered store of information? She didn't haul it to you on a whim.
In conclusion, Nick needs some reading time and some manners, Eddie is way more accomadating than he deserves, and if I were the evil police captain or his freaky blonde henchwoman, I wouldn't worry too much about this naive and bumbling Grimm.
And I want the show to be about Aunt Marie. All the time. That is one badass lady, and I'd love to see her meeting Ellen Harvelle from Supernatural and then the two of them totally pw0ning some threat. Tell me that wouldn't be epic!