Showing posts with label V. Show all posts
Showing posts with label V. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
V, "Welcome to the War": Pick up the pieces
Because every episode of "V" is so heavy on special effects, ABC couldn't make a completed version of tonight's return episode - the first in months, and the first under new showrunner Scott Rosenbaum - available for review until late last night. So I couldn't write about it for today's column (that, instead, became a collection of "American Idol" gripes), but I'll have a few non-spoiler-y thoughts on it after the jump, and feel free to use this post to discuss "Welcome to the War" after it airs tonight...
Rosenbaum has worked on two of my favorite shows ever in "The Shield" and "Chuck" (where he most recently wrote "Chuck vs. the Beard"), and so I was hopeful he'd be able to turn around the drab, pointless remake that "V" was during its brief fall run. And there are definite improvements in tonight's episode: more of a sense of forward momentum from the human resistance (and a more plausible sense that they actually have a chance against the Visitors), some more emotional resonance for several characters who had previously been paper-thin, and a few very creepy reminders of how un-human the V's are.
The problem, though, is that Rosenbaum has to mostly play the hand he was dealt by the previous creative team, and there's only so much he can fix at once, especially since "Welcome to the War" also has to serve as a kind of refresher course for the series after the long time away. So we're still stuck with Elizabeth Mitchell's annoying teenage son getting played by the V's, still stuck with a cast that isn't terribly charismatic outside of Elizabeth Mitchell and Morena Baccarin, still going through the motions we expect from this story, whether we saw the '80s show or not.
I'm going to give Rosenbaum time, since you can't turn a freighter around on a dime, and it would be hard for him to come in and immediately ditch all the elements that weren't working. But you may want to manage your expectations for tonight's show. Click here to read the full post
Rosenbaum has worked on two of my favorite shows ever in "The Shield" and "Chuck" (where he most recently wrote "Chuck vs. the Beard"), and so I was hopeful he'd be able to turn around the drab, pointless remake that "V" was during its brief fall run. And there are definite improvements in tonight's episode: more of a sense of forward momentum from the human resistance (and a more plausible sense that they actually have a chance against the Visitors), some more emotional resonance for several characters who had previously been paper-thin, and a few very creepy reminders of how un-human the V's are.
The problem, though, is that Rosenbaum has to mostly play the hand he was dealt by the previous creative team, and there's only so much he can fix at once, especially since "Welcome to the War" also has to serve as a kind of refresher course for the series after the long time away. So we're still stuck with Elizabeth Mitchell's annoying teenage son getting played by the V's, still stuck with a cast that isn't terribly charismatic outside of Elizabeth Mitchell and Morena Baccarin, still going through the motions we expect from this story, whether we saw the '80s show or not.
I'm going to give Rosenbaum time, since you can't turn a freighter around on a dime, and it would be hard for him to come in and immediately ditch all the elements that weren't working. But you may want to manage your expectations for tonight's show. Click here to read the full post
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
V, "It's Only the Beginning": In treatment
Spoilers for the fall finale of "V" coming up just as soon as I show you my turbine room...
Peters was obviously wrestling with how to deal with viewer expectations, leading to some unfortunate pacing issues. Too often, it feels like the show has raced past important plot points, like the off-hand reveal of what the Vs really look like, because Peters and company felt the audience knew they would be coming, and/or that it was something they had to do, rather than a part of the story they were really excited to tell.
And yet on the flip side, sometimes the show tends to drag its feet in a futile attempt to create suspense. I rolled my eyes at the start of this episode as soon as we got the in media res teaser, both because the device is so overdone and because any viewer with half a brain would know that Ryan was shooting past Erica, and not at her. So all the time spent later in the episode suggesting Ryan and Erica didn't trust each other seemed wasted.
So we have plotting that feels rushed and/or obligatory, characterizations that can be charitably referred to as thin, and fairly lame post-pilot production values. Why exactly am I supposed to care? Other than the fact that Morena Baccarin is rocking the pixie cut and occasionally looks like The Joker when she grins?
I'll check back in at some point during the spring run after we're into Rosenbaum-produced episodes, but nothing in "It's Only the Beginning" had me feeling particularly sad that I'd need to wait months to see the next episode.
What did everybody else think? Click here to read the full post
"The more predictable we are, the more vulnerable we are." -EricaWell, if you're gonna make it that easy, "V"... As many of you know, Scott Peters was replaced as "V" showrunner shortly before the show premiered, but after the first batch of episodes was produced. His replacement is "The Shield" and "Chuck" alum Scott Rosenbaum, who had some encouraging things to say in this interview, specifically these two portions:
I’m going to probably do the show a little more visceral, it will be a little more fast-paced, it will be learning more of the mythology and the history of the Vs. In my mind, viewers are very advanced at this point, and I want them to come to “V” and see, A, stuff they can’t see anywhere else, and, B, also feel like they’re getting storytelling that doesn’t feel retread or old, that’s, frankly, exciting.And
my goal is that in every single episode there will be an “Oh my God, I can’t believe that happened” moment, or a “Wow” moment – at least one – in every single episode. And I think that would not only be a mythology plot reveal, but also a character reveal.Those two passages underline so much of what's been dull about these first four episodes. "V" thus far has been the exact show - no more, no less - you would have expected it to be as soon as you heard ABC was doing a remake.
Peters was obviously wrestling with how to deal with viewer expectations, leading to some unfortunate pacing issues. Too often, it feels like the show has raced past important plot points, like the off-hand reveal of what the Vs really look like, because Peters and company felt the audience knew they would be coming, and/or that it was something they had to do, rather than a part of the story they were really excited to tell.
And yet on the flip side, sometimes the show tends to drag its feet in a futile attempt to create suspense. I rolled my eyes at the start of this episode as soon as we got the in media res teaser, both because the device is so overdone and because any viewer with half a brain would know that Ryan was shooting past Erica, and not at her. So all the time spent later in the episode suggesting Ryan and Erica didn't trust each other seemed wasted.
So we have plotting that feels rushed and/or obligatory, characterizations that can be charitably referred to as thin, and fairly lame post-pilot production values. Why exactly am I supposed to care? Other than the fact that Morena Baccarin is rocking the pixie cut and occasionally looks like The Joker when she grins?
I'll check back in at some point during the spring run after we're into Rosenbaum-produced episodes, but nothing in "It's Only the Beginning" had me feeling particularly sad that I'd need to wait months to see the next episode.
What did everybody else think? Click here to read the full post
Tuesday, November 10, 2009
V, "There Is No Normal Anymore": La resistance lives on!
Quick thoughts on "V" episode two coming up just as soon as I take an iPhone self-portrait...
Not sure how much writing I'll be doing about "V" going forward. The show feels a little too '80s, and not in the fun retro style of the dramas on USA - where they take the things that worked in the '80s, give them a polish and make them feel contemporary - but like an actual '80s show with better special effects and a cast with more advanced hair and skincare technology.
"There Is No Normal" moved pretty well, and I still like Elizabeth Mitchell and Morena Baccarin, but I'm not especially engaged by the characters, nor by the larger story arc. The dialogue is still cheesey, and the teenage son stuff is even more annoying than usual for this sort of show. Too many empty calories, and they don't even taste salty or sweet enough to compensate.
I'll check the next two out, and if they change my opinion, I'll write about them, but otherwise, I'm waiting for the episodes written by "Chuck"/"Shield" alum Scott Rosenbaum, who just took over as showrunner this week.
What did everybody else think? Click here to read the full post
Not sure how much writing I'll be doing about "V" going forward. The show feels a little too '80s, and not in the fun retro style of the dramas on USA - where they take the things that worked in the '80s, give them a polish and make them feel contemporary - but like an actual '80s show with better special effects and a cast with more advanced hair and skincare technology.
"There Is No Normal" moved pretty well, and I still like Elizabeth Mitchell and Morena Baccarin, but I'm not especially engaged by the characters, nor by the larger story arc. The dialogue is still cheesey, and the teenage son stuff is even more annoying than usual for this sort of show. Too many empty calories, and they don't even taste salty or sweet enough to compensate.
I'll check the next two out, and if they change my opinion, I'll write about them, but otherwise, I'm waiting for the episodes written by "Chuck"/"Shield" alum Scott Rosenbaum, who just took over as showrunner this week.
What did everybody else think? Click here to read the full post
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
'V' review - Sepinwall on TV
In today's column, I review ABC's remake of "V," which debuts tonight. Didn't love the pilot, but didn't hate it, either. Will give it a few weeks (at least through the end of its November run, before ABC pulls it off the air until March) to win me over. Don't think I'll be doing a separate blog post tonight, so feel free to discuss it here.
UPDATE: Bumping this up so those who watched can talk about it here. Click here to read the full post
UPDATE: Bumping this up so those who watched can talk about it here. Click here to read the full post
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