Case of the Week...on a Case By Case basis.

[monimala]

Earlier today I mentioned that the Case of the Week format on Undercovers was wearing on me...shortly after praising Hawaii Five-O, and I realized that sounds horribly hypocritical.

I think the narrative voice on H5O appeals to me more, so I'm willing to give it more leeway. Something about Undercovers is very slow and bland despite all the

Comments

[leobrat]

Also, I feel like H5 is dangling enough carrots that have the potential to be season-long arcs, like James Marsters as McGarrett's dad's killer, and clearing Chin's name...Danno being generally winsome with every child he meets.

[monimala]

Right. Whereas the two carrots Undercovers is dangling boil down to "Why did S/S really leave the CIA?" and "What is the CIA's Secret Plan For Them?" and that's all very vague. There's nothing there to hold on to, because we don't know the characters well enough to invest in such nonspecific mysteries.

[mardia]

I wish I loved Undercovers more than I do, or that I really enjoyed it at all, but I think there are several issues here--one is that the plotting is incredibly predictable, and (and what I think is the more serious issue) none of the characters jump out enough from the screen for you to ignore that. There's just not enough "oomph" to much of anything about the show.

Hawaii 5-0 on the other hand, what problems it's got, does have charm to it, mainly because of the emsemble and how well they're gelling, and there are actual distinct characterizations. Undercovers, if I'm being honest, is just too bland for charm. Which is a shame, because I really wanted to like this show.

[monimala]

Yeah, I watch Undercovers because I *want* to like it, but it's become a show I catch up with on a Saturday or a Sunday when I'm bored, rather than a Wednesday night must-see.

You're right, it's lacking in "oomph." For all the exotic locales and "exciting" cases, there's nothing else there.

If Steven and Samantha are going to be your established, married couple who ground the show, then I think everybody else *around* them needs to be a lot more dynamic. Since we already know "who's going to hook up" (which is, let's face it, the question MOST of the TV audience asks themselves), you have to compensate with the rest of the cast. It's like HIMYM...we all know Ted has to Meet The Mother. So his *friends* all have to be the ones doing things we can't predict! But Hoyt, Cranky Ol' Boss, and that guy Sam hooked up with...well, they're just not that interesting.