Whew. That last blog took a lot out of me. Thanks to everyone who took the time to read through that monster of a post, and thanks to everyone who gave me positive feedback. I actually went through the whole Israel recap post and did a few edits / corrections, as I wanted to make sure it was complete and is now there to serve as a thorough account of my recent Israel adventures. I'll be sure to post a lot more about Israel in general over the next few weeks and months, but in the meantime, man, there's A LOT I've wanted to talk about, but have put off so that I could finish up my post-Israel recap. I want to talk about Obama's inauguration, the Oscar nominations, Waltz With Bashir, and several other pressing topics, and hopefully I'll get to all of that over the next several days. But first, it's time to forget about all of that for a bit and talk TV.
Because, whoah baby, after a post-holiday lull, TV is back in a big way in January. Two of my all-time favorites have returned after lengthy absences, and, well, there's a lot to talk about ...
TWENTY-BY-GOD-FOUR RETURNS:
- I know, I know, all of you loyal blog readers have been on the edge of your seats waiting to hear my thoughts so far on the latest season of 24. So, before I get to a more critical analysis, let me first offer belated cries of gravitas-infused joy:
JACK IS BACK, BABY.
Yeah, regardless of the fact that last season of 24 was not exactly the series' best, you can't help but be pumped that, finally, after a year-long hiatus, one of the top shows of the last decade is finally back in primetime. Oh how I missed you, 24. The recent Redemption movie offered up a nice little tease, but, finally, this is the real thing. Twenty-four consecutive, real-time Jack Bauer Power Hours.
Suffice it to say, upon returning from Israel, practically priority #1 was getting reacquainted with Jack and co. Forget unpacking, forget laundry, forget tagging photos on Facebook. The clock was counting down, and I was outta time!
Okay, so what have I thought of the season so far? It's strange, there's a lot to like about what we've seen in the first several hours, but at the same time, the season has been solid and well-done, but not really mind-blowing or jaw-dropping. At least not yet. I'll start with the positives - in general, it's great to see Jack back in action and kicking ass, especially alongside his longtime right-hand man, Tony Almeida, aka the bearer of the SOUL PATCH OF DOOM. Tony's presence as a back-from-the-dead wingman of moral ambiguity is a much-needed boost to the show's overall badass quotient, and many of this season's best moments to date have been in scenes where Jack and Tony are at odds/working together /being badass in general. I mean, if you asked me to name the biggest highlights of the season thus far, some of them would include the Tony vs. Jack throwdown in the premiere, the two of them working together and joking about nearly killing each other, and Tony's taking out all of Emerson's men in this week's ep, with a Bauer-powered sniper assist, and then cooly exclaiming "why don't we put all this behind us?".
Tony's return has been a highlight, but in general the season seems to just have an overall more serious, less campy tone than last season. Sure, there are still the familiar beats of any typical 24 season, but this year, at least so far, there's no one subplot that makes you rolly our eyes and reach for the fast-forward button. At first, for instance, I expected the First Husband's subplot, in which he investigates his son's murder, to be this year's big groaner. But the storyline has surprised me by actually being very compelling, delivering some of the season's most intense moments to date. It helps that the actor playing the first husband is great - how intense was it last week as he clenched his fists in anger after being hit with a paralysis-inducing serum by his traitorous secret service agent? Their ensuing tussle and the chaos that resulted was great stuff. Like I said, the season has just had a very solid feel to it - nothing too over-the-top or campy, yet plenty of cool moments to keep the intensity high.
Now, what's bothered me about the season up to now? Okay, the biggest problem may be this: a lot of this season of 24 feels like it's expending too much effort addressing the show's critics - namely those who have complaine that the show glorifies violence and torture. To me, this season's constant and somewhat heavy-handed moral arguments regarding the merits of torture have really slowed the show's momentum at times, and also just taken me out of the action to boot. While the arguments for and against torture are interesting in the real world, not so much in a fictionalized and stylized one like 24's. I mean, imagine if you had a Batman movie where each fight scene was bookended by discussion of whether or not he was in the right to beat up crooks without due process. I'm not saying that the legitimacy of torture isn't a good *overarching* theme for the season, but the way it's been handled has undoubtedly been pretty hamfisted. I want to be able to get caught up in the action, not forced to wonder about the moral reprecussions of each of Jack Bauer's smackdowns.
This leads me to another issue with this season. No way to put this subtly - there's just an overall lack of gravitas so far this year. Yes, Tony is back, and so is the white-haired mastermind Bill Buchanan. But there's no villain who really gets your blood boiling like Peter Weller did a couple of seasons ago. No big bad who Jack has a true personal stake in taking down and taking down hard. Similarly, things in the White House are just kind of ... there. Without a heavy-hitter player like a Powers Boothe in these scenes, there's not quite the intensity present that we're used to seeing in 24's Oval Office. Cherry Jones is doing a nice job, and upped the ante this week with one heck of an emotional speech to her cabinet. But still, give us some White House rivalries we can really sink our teeth into. Same can be said for CTU, I mean the FBI. So far the FBI team comes off as CTU-lite - a more realistic but less cool version of the usual archtypes we always see on 24. Hell, there's even a mole. 24 needs some new types of characters who don't mirror ones we've already seen again and again on the show. Right now, things are solid, but all too familiar-feeling.
Finally, the writing is brisk and focused, but maybe too much so. At the drop of a dime, Jack accepts Tony and Bill's premise that there is an urgent need to work outside the government, even though thousands of lives could be risked by doing so. Bill's plans are similarly strange - is it really worth it to impede the government at every turn in a time of crisis, just to expose yet another conspiracy within its ranks?
That said, there are few shows that can deliver the same visceral thrills as 24, and the great thing about this season is that there's a whole lot of upside. Even if feels like the show is just kind of spinning its wheels right now, there is a very intriguing groundwork being laid, and it feels like things could really blow up at any moment. And already, we've gotten some instant-classic 24 scenes. How about Jack steering a car off a building from the floor, bracing himself for the big drop with a rare quip - "this is gonna hurt ...".
So yeah, thank the action-TV gods, 24 is back. The question is, will this be another *great* season, or merely a decent one?
My Grade:
Hours 1 & 2: B+
Hours 3 &4: B
Hour 5: B
Hour 6: A-
LOST:
- If you read my massive BEST OF 2008 series of blogs (if not, go do that ASAP ...), then you're well aware that I named Lost my Best TV Show of 2008. So it goes without saying that I was really, really psyched for the show's much-anticipated return two weeks ago. And I am happy to say that the first three episodes of 2009 did not disappoint.
I think the great thing about Lost right now, which really became clear last season, is that the writers now seem to have such a solid vision for what the show's mythology is, how it fits together, and where it's all headed. Like many, I got very frustrated in the second season when you couldn't help but feel that the show was being written on the fly without a clear sense of direction. Now, there's that great sense that the puzzle pieces are slowly but surely coming together. Part of that is thanks to the new twist in which the castaways still on the island are being hurled through time, continually emerging in different periods in the island's history. It's a brilliant device in that allows the writers to seamlessly and organically reveal a ton of new information about the show's mythology without resorting to hard flashbacks or flash-forwards. Already, we've seen some huge reveals about Richard Alpert, Ethan Rom, and of course Charles Whidmore and their collective histories on the island, and it's clear that there's a lot more of these revelations still to come. And man, what a great opening to the season, in which we saw a flash to a scene where Daniel Faraday is somehow lurking amongst the members of the Dharma group circa the 1970's. Can't wait to see the follow-up to that intriguing teaser.
I know some people get turned off by all the time travel stuff, but to me, it's a real treat when such an inherently cool concept is handled in such a smart and imaginative manner. I love all of the rules being established, the paradoxes and possibilities. It gives the show a bit more of a true sci-fi edge, but there's still that sense of fun and mystery and grand adventure. This was apparent in this week's Desmond-centric ep, as Desmond is always a character who gives the show that epic, sweeping feel that its best episodes often possess. The first few episode have been pretty plot-heavy so far, but what's great about Lost is that it always takes a few seconds in the midst of all the action and delivers some classic character moments. That said, I found this week's Desmond and Daniel-focused ep a lot more intriguing and dramatic then the previous week's Hurley-centric hour. With so much going on and so much intrigue on and off the island, it just felt like kind of an odd choice to spend so much time with Hurley and his oddball family.
The only other complaint is that even with so much revealed and such a focus on unraveling the show's mythology, there's still a tendency to simply not have characters communicate realistically. For example, as a former Other, it's clear that Juliette might in fact be a wellspring of valuable information on the island's history, and yet the writer's still have her talking in vague sentances and we've yet to see her really questioned by Sawyer or Locke.
But really, Lost to me is firing on almost all cylinders so far in '09, and I'm as intrigued as ever by the show's ever-expanding cast of characters. I'm dying to know why Whidmore was an Other and how he came to leave the island and become at odds with Ben Linus. I'm curious as to the story of Faraday's mother, and eager to see what role Desmond, Penny, and their son Charlie will play going forward.
In a season of so-so new shows and heartbreaking cancellations (so long, Pushing Daisies ...), it's simply great to see a show as smart, challenging, and full of imagination as Lost back on the air. Again, the show has yet to have an absolute classic, mind-blowing episode so far this year, but I feel like it's only a matter of time.
My Grade:
Premiere: B+
Episode 3: A-
- Alright, back soon with more, including thoughts on Fringe, Smallville, and The Office - plus lots, lots more. Have a great Superbowl weekend - PEACE OUT.
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