There’s no doubt that vampire dramas are definitely popular these days. Every decade or so something comes around to start the vampire craze all over again. From Anne Rice to Buffy, vampires have definitely had a good run over the last two decades.

Teens have no shortage of vampires today: from the sparkling vampires of Twilight, to the soon to be lapis lazuli wearing vamps (if they kept true to the books) of the up-and-coming CW teen drama The Vampire Diaries. And while many adults have been as enraptured by the Cullens as teens have, quality adult vampire stories had taken a back seat.

Until Alan Ball got a hold of Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire Mysteries.

Ball, creator of Six Feet Under, and HBO have undeniably scored a win with the sexy, gory, vampire saga of Sookie Stackhouse and her beloved vamp, Bill Compton. The series is most definitely not for the faint of heart. But if you enjoy great storytelling and episodes that consistently leave you on the edge of your seat, then you’ll love True Blood.

In the world of True Blood, barmaid Sookie Stackhouse is a pretty young woman from a small town in Louisiana called Bon Temps. Sookie was born with what she calls a disability: she’s telepathic. When she meets the new vampire in town, Bill, she’s instantly attracted to him. Not only because he’s the first vampire she’s ever met, but because he’s able to offer her the one thing she’s never been able to find with another person: silence. Sookie discovers she can’t read the minds of a vampire. And that is just the start of her attraction to Bill.

So yes, I did mention that Bill walked into the bar where Sookie works. In the world of True Blood, vampires have “come out of the coffin” so to speak. The Japanese developed a synthetic blood that can sustain vampires without the “need” to kill humans. Once the vampires discovered this synthetic blood, they decided to reveal themselves to the world at large. Vampires are now fighting for their rights as “Undead Americans” and of course they have their radical religious enemies, a church-like organization called The Fellowship of the Sun.

Ball does a brilliant job of weaving the complexities of Harris’ world to life. He has also managed the scary proposition of taking a beloved book series and translating it to a series in a new and exciting way. While the series does draw heavily from the novels, they are not afraid to expand the world away from the books a bit, especially as you move into season two. And even more surprisingly, they’ve managed to do it in such a way that it is fun to see how they pull a little further away from the books each episode. Instead of alienating the fanbase, I feel more drawn into the world to see just how they are going to do it differently.

That said, I do still recommend reading the books. They’re great, quick, fun reads and I feel add depth of character to the television series. But I’m not your book reviewer, so back to the series.

Anna Paquin (Rogue from X-Men) is surprisingly grown up and yet still innocent in her portrayal of Sookie. She does a great job of translating Sookie’s quirks and confidence to the small screen with ease. Her vampire beau, Bill Compton is played by Paquin’s real-life fiancee Stephen Moyer. Moyer simply smolders on screen with his southern gentleman persona that exudes cool charm and old world grace. The world of Bon Temps is rounded out by wonderful secondary characters like her best friend, feisty Tara (Rutina Wesley), her simple man-whore brother, Jason (Ryan Kwanten), her sweet boss Sam (Sam Trammell), the smoldering vampire sheriff of area five Eric (Alexander Skarsgård ), and fan favorite, the flamboyant Lafayette (Nelsan Ellis). These characters add so many layers to the series they their storyline at times overshadow Sookie and Bill’s romance. And you simply don’t mind in the least.

Season Two has seen the addition of two more characters, Jessica (Deborah Ann Woll) and Maryanne (Michelle Forbes finally in a role that utilizes her talent). Both characters have added so much to Season Two that the viewer is left wanting so much more than one hour each week. Every episode is frustratingly left with a cliffhanger so big you just don’t see how you’ll ever make it to the next week. But of course, you’re parked right back in front of the television the following Sunday (or whenever you happen to pull it off of your DVR).

As I said before, this series is not afraid of violence or sex. It is by no means high art. It has it’s cheesy moments just like any other show; however, with True Blood the cheese just seems to add to the charm. So if you’re looking for some grown up vampire drama with vampires that don’t sparkle, check out True Blood. Season One is now available on DVD, and I promise, each episode will only leave you wanting to sink your teeth into more.

Hello fellow TV fans. Sorry for the delayed absence. Some real world issues got in the way for a few months, but the worst seems to have passed. So now it’s time to talk television. And just when we thought the summer had nothing to offer us, along comes the good ol’ BBC.

Torchwood: Children of Earth (henceforth, T:COE), was a week long event that basically crammed the entire third series (season) into five nights. And they were some brilliant nights of television to be sure. I could sum up the plot, but at this point, I’m sure you’ve seen it and already know all of the heartbreaking details.

So let’s talk about some of the incidentals. First, let’s discuss the pacing. Trying to cram what would typically be a season long arc into 5 nights could make the viewer feel like things were rushed. I never got that impression with T:COE. As a matter of fact, each hour or so long episode moved with such grace that they felt much more fulfilling than a mere hour. I never felt shortchanged by the end of the hour.

Ok, plot. Here’s where some of the flaws sink in to T:COE. Overall, it is an amazing idea, and a classic tale re-told with some amazing panache. The deal with the devil that proves to never really be over. And in Torchwood, the devil is instead a race of drug-trafficking aliens known only to us by a frequency: The 456. It’s the brazenness of Torchwood that confounded me in this story though. Jack and Ianto bursting into Thames House all John Wayne-like to save the day. Is this surprising for Jack? No. Captain Jack Harkness is confidence and brazenness personified. It’s Ianto’s presence that confused me. We all know beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jack cannot die. But bringing Ianto on what is sure to be a suicide mission? I know it was a plot device to bring Jack down a few hundred notches. Does it make it any less meaningless? No, I don’t really think it does.

That being said, the performances of T:COE were up to and probably over par of anything we’ll see coming from the Emmys and Oscars this year. Ianto’s (Gareth David-Lloyd) death scene was one of the most tragic and heartbreaking moments on television this year. And that was only the first of many to come. Eve Myles, probably one of my favorite actresses today, gave Gwen a new depth of pain and humanity that I didn’t think was possible. Gwen has always been one of my favorite characters, but the moment she stares into a camera and says, “I want to know about that Doctor of his. The man who shows up and saves the world. Only sometimes he doesn’t . . . Sometimes the Doctor must look at this planet and turn away in shame,” you can’t help but feel the complete and utter hopelessness that this finale is going to offer.

The series’ regulars were not the only performances that were astounding. Peter Capaldi plays middle-man John Frobisher who is asked the un-askable after 30 years of service to his country, and who is left to make the only choice he feels he has left: to keep his family safe, he must remove them from the equation. The sheer horror of knowing what was coming, yet watching his resolution as his the room to his daughter’s door slowly swung closed was nearly unbearable.

Undoubtedly the acting in T:COE was remarkable; however those performances wouldn’t have been much without the writing. While there were indeed some awkward moments and obvious plot devices, the sheer scale of the writing left the viewer emotionally drained by the end of the finale. The realization of what the Prime Minister is going to ask of Frobisher, to the council’s meeting to decide how the sacrificial children should be chosen, to the understanding that Jack has had to sacrifice his lover and his family to save the world, to the final realization that The 456 didn’t need the children to survive, but rather just to get high. The writing was compelling, powerful and emotional.

And I loved it. Was it hard to watch at times? Yes. Am I upset at how Ianto was killed? Yes. Do I want to punch Jack in the face for running away from all of it? Yes. But is it all true to character? Absolutely. Is it what we’ve come to know and love about Torchwood? Without a doubt. Jack makes the hard choices (remember “Small Worlds” from series one when he sacrifices a child to save the world against the rest of the group’s wishes?). This idea is not new to Torchwood. It’s why we love Torchwood.

Now we are just left to hope that they…are…coming. Back.

“Born to Run” was an episode that showed what this show was meant to be: a story about the future leader of the resistance, his mother and his protector. I don’t think many will disagree when I say that so many episodes of T:SCC fell short this season. Most of them revolved around Sarah Connor. This show excelled when it dealt with the dynamic of John and his mother and protector, and of the mystery that surrounds the beautiful but deadly Catherine Weaver. This final episode encompassed all of that, as well as answered so many questions. Yet just enough were left unanswered to keep the audience from feeling spoon fed the finale. And on the incredible long shot that the series is picked up for a third season, there is possibly more story to tell.

Erroneous characters like Jesse and Riley added story that in the end didn’t do much to further the overall arc. If nothing else, they were tools used to make John stand up and start becoming the leader he is destined to be. But even in that vein, it went on longer than was necessary.

Extraneous characters started dropping like flies over the last few episodes, and it was done absolutely perfectly. Riley’s death was necessary, Jesse’s disappearance added intrigue (is she dead or not?), Charley’s death added to character growth,and Derek’s death was sudden and painful (hello, Wash all over again!). And each did more to further the story than a single episode that revolved around Sarah’s three stupid dots ever did.

This finale was utterly brilliant with spots of comedy (”I’m sure you’ve considered he can roll any number he wants.”), action, and superb homages to the original films. Jeffrey Pierce’s (Charlie Jade) T-888 going into a gun store and Summer Glau’s Cameron taking out a police station were done in such a way that they nodded to the films, yet still made each scene their own.

Also, characters from previous episodes were brought in and used to add authenticity to the series. Father Bonilla returns as an intermediary between mother and son. Just as he sheltered them in the season two opener, he helped them again. Chola returns as the strong and finally not-so-silent aide to the Conners,  giving some advice to John and Cameron from Sarah.

We can’t talk about the finale without mentioning Catherine Weaver and John Henry. Catherine (Shirley Manson) became a favorite character of mine simply for the fact she always seemed to be learning, yet was always one step ahead of everyone else. She was ambiguous at best, deadly at worst. And the moment we realize that she is in charge of helping to stop SkyNet and that John Henry is a vital tool to that end, the series achieved its potential. That reveal made everything click into place.

Speaking of John Henry, I do want to take a moment to applaud Garret Dillahunt. These are the performances that are overlooked because they “just sci-fi shows.” His transformation from cheesy out-of-work actor, to deadly terminator, to child-like fascination were so subtle they were flawless. He brought a heart to John Henry that didn’t belong. His brutal honesty matched Catherine’s coolness and the scenes between the two were always charged with intensity.

But to return to the episode itself, the ending was much more along the lines I like. Answers with a side of equivocation. John Henry scraps Cameron for parts. Catherine takes John to the future to take his role among the resistance, then disappears. John sees his father face-to-face and meets the human version of Cameron who we can be sure now is the love of his life.  And with a final spark we hear Sarah’s final words to him, “I love you, too.”

Though Fox is still calling this T:SCC’s season finale, this was undoubtedly the series finale. Wwitching nights did nothing to improve the series continued ratings drops. As a matter of fact, it’s been released that the only reason we saw a season two in the first place was because Warner Brothers reduced its fees to keep the show on to help promote its upcoming Terminator: Salvation. WB isn’t likely to reduce their fees again for a show that barely stayed alive all season long.

And I am good with that. It seems clearly evident that Josh Friedman and company knew their fate and left the series in such a way that the ending stands as a solid explanation for how things came to be as we know them. Considering this was a series that several months ago I was ready to walk away from, I couldn’t be more pleased with the ending and would almost be disappointed if it tried to go any further. This ending was a thing of beauty and I am glad to have been along for the ride. This, my friends, is some of television at its best.

I’m sure by now most of you have figured out I tend to like most shows that I’m watching. That is why I, er, watch them. And while the original is always best, I was really enjoying this American update of Life on Mars. Was it the original? No. But Jason O’Mara brought a certain charm to Sam Tyler that kept me coming back each week.

The addition of Dean Winters (or as I heard him referred to by an Entertainment Weekly reviewer, Cute, Cute Dean Winters) as Vic Tyler, Sam’s deadbeat dad, added even more panache to the show. But Cute Cute Dean Winters always brings his A game, so there’s not much of a surprise there.

The second to last episode, “Everyone Knows It’s Windy” had me starting to doubt the ending a bit. When Agent Morgan tried to convince Sam that the tiny robots were real, I started to think, “They’re really not going to do some whacked out ending like that, are they?’ But it’s later revealed that the Agent had seen Sam’s psych evaluation and had tried playing into Sam’s delusions to cover his own illegal dealings. So I moved forward with the crazy notion that the ending would still be a pretty terrific one.

And then I watched the series finale, “Life is a Rock.”

And similar to the BBC original, Sam seems to be spiraling deeper and deeper down the rabbit hole. A mysterious caller tells him he has to complete three tasks to get home. He has to save himself (as a child) and confront his father (who somehow knows that adult Sam is his son). In the meantime, he admits his feelings for Annie, who finally gets her due and is promoted to Detective, or as Ray must now begrudgingly call her, “No Longer No Nuts Norris.”

And then the phone rings to give Sam his final instructions so he can go home, and Sam succinctly tells the voice to shove it and that he’s happy right where he is, in 1973.

And that is when Colonel Sam Tyler, the astronaut in capsule 2B awakens from his cryo-sleep. As do the rest of the crew members of the 125: Chris, Ray, and Annie. They all tell of the programmed “dreams” they had for the journey, and Sam admits his had a glitch. Their computerized guide, Windy, helps them receive word from ground control, who is Agent Morgan from the previous episode. It is revealed that it is 2036, and they discuss that their mission to Mars is a “gene hunt” to show signs of life (Yep, Life on Mars). Oh yeah, and that’s when they wake up the final team member: Major Tom (a.k.a. Harvey Keitel. And no, I’m not kidding). Sam goes to talk to him privately when Major Tom places a snake-tattooed hand on Tyler’s shoulder, and calls him son.

For the promise the show had, it felt like such a cheap ending. Sam’s whole journey was to resolve daddy issues? I understand they had loose ends to tie up quickly, but this ending is so far from what I had imagined, it is a huge let down. That being said, no I didn’t expect the amazing ending the BBC series offered. But I surely expected more than this.

And according to an interview with TVGuide.com, this was the ending they’d always envisioned for the series. And if that is the case, I am glad it was canceled. Because this Dallas-style “It was all a dream” crap is hard to swallow after 17 episodes. Imagine what it would have been like after several seasons.

Primeval was honestly a series I was not crazy about from the start. A lot of people raved about the series, but it just seemed like Torchwood with dinosaurs instead of aliens. And basically, that is the premise of the show.

Nick Cutter, an evolutionary biologist, is called in by the goverment to help with a rash of strange animals randomly appearing throughout the city. It is discovered that there is an event called an anomoly that allows creatures from the past to slip into modern day. These creatures have to be hearded back through their anomoly and back to their own time before everyday citizens catch on to just what is happening.

Cutter assembles a team from the university that works together to assist the goverment, return the animals to their timelines, to study the creatures, and the anomolies. His team inlcudes: his right-hand man, Stephen (James Murray); herpetologist Abby (Hannah Spearritt); and Connor (Andrew-Lee Potts), the equipment and tech specialist. They also have a department liason, Claudia (Lucy Brown), a love interest for Cutter, whose wife was presumed dead eight years ago.

As I mentioned, the show was a little slow to start. I had a hard time rooting for Nick, played by Douglas Henshall. There was something about him that I just couldn’t get behind in the beginning. The episodes themselves were pretty formulaic and the effects were impressive, for a television budget.

And then we started to learn more about the anomolies. They weren’t just portals to the past, but also to the future. And when a future creature is released onto the populus that is the most honed and evolved hunter imaginable, the show got interesting.

Not only did we learn that the anomolies could open up a path to the future, we also discover how the smallest mistake can change things indefinitely. At the end of Series 1, Claudia and Cutter are finally starting to realize their feelings for one another when one tiny mistake through an anomaly removes Claudia from existence. And replaces her with her doppelganger, Jenny. And what was brilliant about it, is that it stuck. Series 2 wasn’t all about finding out how to get Claudia back. She is gone and no one but Cutter remembers who she is.

Even the way Cutter’s group worked with the government changed. Rather than at University, they were in a modern building and state-of-the-art lab with resources and facilities they were never privy to previously.

More intrigue is added to the show by Cutter’s presumed dead wife, Helen, played by Juliet Aubrey. She is almost a Gaius Baltar type character – there is something about her that just makes me seethe disgust. She is a character you love to hate, and yet, are never able to really figure out what exactly she is up to.

Series 1 is just six episodes, and Series 2 is seven. I believe Series 3 has already begun on ITV in Britain, and according to the BBC America website, will be coming to BBC America sometime this year. With limited runs on Torchwood and Doctor Who this year, British sci-fi fans are itching for a return of some really enjoyable television. And Primeval has proved to be just that – well worth the wait.

Lorne was the loveable green demon, host of Keritas, and all around heart of Angel Investigations.

I met Andy at Dragon*Con two years ago and I have to say that meeting him was one of the most pleasurable fan experiences I’ve ever had. He was a complete gentleman and spent time with the people who came to see him.

His loss will be felt by Whedon fans everywhere.

Source E Online

The latest Supernatural episode, “On the Head of a Pin,” is arguably the best episode of the series. This episode did more to further the season and the characters than any episode that readily comes to mind. We learned just how Sam has become so strong, how Dean had to learn to survive in Hell, how the Apocolypse began, how it must end, and just how tough Castiel and Anna can be. That’s a hell of a lot to ask from one episode, and this one did it beautifully. Ben Edlund, the writer of such classic Whedon episodes like Angel’s “Sacrifice” and Firefly’s “Jaynestown,” wrote this penultimate episode. Even the stunt casting of Christopher Heyerdahl in the role of Alastair added such darkness and dimension to the show that the viewer is left cringing.  Kripke and Co. showed exactly how to come back from a hiatus, and how to do it with a bang, both literally and emotionally.

Speaking of Joss Whedon, this week’s episode of Dollhouse was advertised as the best yet – the one to make you grab hold and not let go. And as expected, he did not disappoint. The latest episode, “Man on the Street,” added more intrigue, suspense, and action to the show than the previous six episodes combined. Dushku continued to amaze with her versatility from frightened housewife to deadly assassin. And we learn that Alpha is not the only one after the Dollhouse. This episode cemented my devotion to the show, and I strongly urge anyone who had given up on the show to treat yourself to a mini-marathon. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

As for disappointed, I’ve heard many say that they felt the Battlestar Galactica series finale was amazing, but overall, disappointing, even lazy. While I can understand that some might feel that way, I thoroughly enjoyed the culmination of four seasons of Ron Moore’s amazing vision for BSG. The show has always been steeped in mysticism and mythology, and I would have been surprised if they had ignored that heritage in the finale, especially since they had not addressed it much this back half of the season. I liked the ambiguity of it all. It made me cheer, it made my cry, it broke my heart and it inspired me – everything this series has always done. And one thing’s for sure: I will never hear “All Along the Watchtower” in the same way.

Legend of the Seeker has continued to impress each week. Every episode draws a little more from the original books, but does so in a new and refreshing way. And they always do it in such a way as to never undermine the integrity of the characters. Bridget Regan continues to impress with her portrayal of Kahlan. I  have to say that of all the actors, she is the most perfectly cast. The latest episodes, “Conversion” and “Bloodline” have masterfully incorporated such elements from the book as Kahlan’s Blood Rage and Richard’s Pristinely Ungifted sister, Jensen. Even the incorporation of the Mord Sith, though done slightly differently from the novels, is thoroughly engaging and true to the core essence of the characters.

And most recently, Heroes. This episode, titled “Cold Snap,” marked the return of Bryan Fuller to the series. Fuller worked on what is probably the best of Season One episodes, “Company Man.” So, did his return make for amazing television? He definitely made some major changes. From the reveal of who Rebel is to Angela being saved by an unlikely source, Heroes was undeniably compelling. And tragic. While I understand the need for whittling down characters, I am not entirely happy with who they keep knocking off. But I will continue to watch to see if these payoffs continue. Heroes is definitely heading in the right direction for greatness again, and I am definitely glad to see Fuller’s touch return to the show. He adds a poignancy that has been lacking for far too long.

So there, my fellow TV addicts, some thoughts on what has been some amazing television over the past few days. We’ve said farewell to an epic favorite, found a new Friday night addiction, and are encouraged by what is possibly shaping up to be some great Monday night storytelling, again. One thing is for sure, I haven’t enjoyed television this much in a long time.

And here’s to its continued success.

The amazing British series Life on Mars has a sequel. This time she’s back in the nick of time.

A few weeks ago I wrote about Life on Mars, a British import now on ABC. And a week or so after that article, ABC decided to not renew Life on Mars for a second season. Well, at least they’ll finish out their season and hopefully conclude the series in an original and imaginative way.

But throughout that article I mentioned that though the import was a fun and entertaining watch, the original BBC series was the superior show.

And now that series has a sequel.

Ashes to Ashes picks up eight years later in 1981. DCI Alex Drake (Keeley Hawes) is a single mother who has risen through police ranks through psychological profiling. One of her cases, that of a now deceased Sam Tyler, introduces her to his world of time travel. She believes it to be a case of psychological trauma. That is, until the psychosis becomes her own.

She is kidnapped by a gunman before her daughter’s birthday party. He shoots her, and she wakes up in 1981. She believes she is stuck in her mind, just as Sam Tyler had been. And the arrival of some familiar faces does nothing to dissuade her.

Back on the scene, DCI Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), DS Ray Carling (Dean Andrews), and DC Chris Skelton (Marshall Lancaster), reprise their original roles from the original series. And I’ve got to say, it’s great to see Hunt back in rare form.

The immediate chemistry between he and Drake is palpable. The relationship is such an immediate change from Hunt’s relationship with Sam that it is at first jarring. You expect animosity and instead get curiosity. It seems as though Hunt’s been through this before and rather than fight her “craziness” he’s going to get wrapped right up in it.

As in the original we get jarring visuals. In this series, Alex is stalked by a creepy clown (similar to David Bowie’s clown on his Ashes to Ashes album cover). The clown seems to be giving her clues and leading her to the reason why she is stuck in 1981. The same year her parents were murdered by a car bomb.

There are still the same weekly crimes to solve and new mysteries to reveal, but the tone of the show is much more laid back. The viewer gets so wrapped up in the relationship forming between Drake and Hunt that her reason for being there is almost secondary.

If you’re a fan of the original BBC series, you’ve got to give Ashes to Ashes a chance. And, if you tried the American series and are looking for something to fill your crime-drama-time-travel niche, then tune in to Ashes to Ashes. Because if nothing else, Glenister’s Gene-the-Genie is such a delight to watch, you won’t be able to turn away.

Ratings for both shows saw an increase in ratings for their most recent episodes. T:SCC saw a 20 percent increase, while Dollhouse (who already had more viewers) saw growth of 7 percent.

Let’s hope the trend continues with what Joss Whedon has been calling the ground-breaking episode of Dollhouse this Friday.

Source: Slice of Sci Fi

Not Shaken . . . Just Nerd.

I am gonna go out on a limb here and say it: Chuck is the most fun show on TV today. That being said, I can see how some people who want a little more depth to their story or more serialized television might not have been a big fan of Chuck in its early days. But to you I say: It’s time to play catch up.

Chuck started out with a rather simple premise. Chuck Bartowski (Zachary Levi), leader of the Nerd Herd (i.e. Geek Squad) at his local Buy More (i.e. Best Buy) is pretty much a college drop-out slacker-type who lives with his sister. He has a best friend, Morgan Grimes (Joshua Gomez), who is his childhood friend, gaming buddy and all around hanger-on. Then he opens an e-mail from his former college buddy, Bryce Larkin.

And Chuck becomes the most valuable secret the U.S. Government has.

Chuck has downloaded all of the Nation’s most classified and Top Secret projects and personnel into his head. He is now guarded around the clock by his cover girlfriend, the beautiful but deadly Sarah Walker (Yvonne Strahovski), and his cover co-worker and neighbor, the stoic and gruff John Casey (Adam Baldwin).

Admittedly, I watched this show in the beginning for two reasons: 1)It looked to be a fun show and 2) It had Adam Baldwin in it. And I have made a solemn vow to try watch everything Firefly alumni get a role in (Thank you SciFi channel for making me watch some truly craptastic movies). But I digress.

For the first half of the season or so, it was a pretty formulaic and episodic show. But after they came back from the writer’s strike, the show really took off. It is still formulaic, but there is a serious heart to the show now that wasn’t there previously.

I think that charm comes from two things. First of all Chuck has some of the most amazing stunt casting seen today: Melinda Clarke as a deadly seductress (Hey, it’s Nandi – more Firefly!), Michael Clarke Duncan as dangerous villain (The Green Mile), John Laroquette as a former spy and ladies’ man (Night Court), Bruce Boxleitner as Chuck’s sister’s soon to be father-in-law (Scarecrow & Mrs. King) and probably my favorite: Reginald VelJohnson as a doughnut munching cop outside a hostage situation at the Buy More (Die Hard, as a doughnut munching cop outside Nakatomi towers). Each actor and actress just adds a little something to the series as a whole.

The second though, is Yvonne Strahovski. Yes, she wears ridiculous outfits and has fight scenes that make fanboys everywhere melt. But the heart she puts into Sarah makes her more than your average two-dimensional cover girl. We watch Sarah slowly fall for Chuck, and watch her heart break when she realizes that nothing can possibly ever work between them. In a recent episode where she thought Chuck had been killed was some of her best work to date. The utter shock, disbelief, horror and grief that struck her in those few seconds were absolutely overwhelming. She, like so many other genre actresses, ranks among the most underrated in television.

While the show has been a little stale over the last few episodes, news from Chuck’s creator, Josh Schwartz has me more psyched for the show than ever. They have a game-changing ending for this season of Chuck which will lead to one of two things. If Chuck doesn’t get picked up for a third season, this ending will send the show out with a bang. If they are renewed, the show will go a whole new direction next season. I, for one, am good to go either way. I’ve enjoyed the show from the beginning, and am pretty sure I’ll continue to enjoy it through its conclusion, now, or hopefully a few more years down the road.

Returning to the airwaves this week is the CW’s Reaper. It is a fun show similar in vein to NBC’s Chuck. Reaper is the story of Sam Oliver (Bret Harrison), a twenty-something slacker who has dropped out of college and is working at The Work Bench (The Work Bench is to Home Depot what the Buy More is to Best Buy). At work he is surrounded by his two best friends Bert “Sock” Wysocki (Tyler Labine) and Ben Gonzalez (Rick Gonzalez). He also pines for his co-worker and long-time friend, Andi (played by Missy Peregrym for you Season 1 Heroes fans out there).

On Sam’s twenty-first birthday, his parents start acting strange. They finally reveal to him that in return for his father’s health when he was dying long before he was born, they sold their first-born son’s soul to the Devil. They had even tried to not have children, but of course the Devil had made sure Sam would come to be.

When Sam is later confronted by the Devil (played brilliantly by Ray Wise of in Twin Peaks fame), instead of being dragged to Hell, the Devil offers him a job. When Sam tries to back out of the deal, he’s told his mother’s soul will be forfeit. Sam will be Hell’s bounty hunter (or reaper), tracking down and capturing some of Hell’s worst lost souls that have escaped. For each soul he has to capture, he is sent a different vessel with which to capture it. These vessels have ranged from Dirt Devil Hand Vacs, Taser guns, and even a live dove.

The fun of this show is the character interactions. Sock is the slapstick comic relief and typical best-friend-bound-to-get-Sam-in-trouble. Ben is the punching bag for the trio, and sadly, the brains of the operation. His role has moved to a more behind the scenes nature while he plots the strategies that Sam and Sock carry out.

Andi has been newly let in on Sam’s dirty little secret. At the end of the first season, she witnessed one of Sam’s “Reaper” moments and he finally had to come clean, with permission from the Devil, of course. She now helps out the team, usually with research and is just coming to terms with Sam’s new life.

Supporting characters add as much to the show as reoccurring characters. Gladys, the DMV worker who Sam takes his collected souls to, has a love-hate relationship with Sock that grows funnier each episode. Steve and Tony, the gay neighbors of Sam, who also turn out to be demons sent to try to convince Sam to help in a demon-uprising against the Devil. Tony becomes a more significant character towards the end of the first season.

But the highlight of the show for me is The Devil. Ray Wise has been a favorite actor of mine since Twin Peaks. Wise plays the role of The Devil with such relish, you can’t help but enjoy him, even when he is being his worst. I once read of Wise that he has a smile that never reaches his eyes, and it is so very true. And it makes him perfect to portray the bureaucratic businessman who just so happens to be The Devil himself.

Reaper returns to the CW Tuesday, March 3 at 8:00 p.m. ET. I hope you get a chance to tune in. I’m sure there will be a re-cap of the last season that will fill you in enough for the current season’s story lines.  While it may not be up to the caliber of Chuck, there are enough differences, especially in the sense of humor of the show, that make it fun to watch. And any show that has Kevin Smith as a creative consultant has my vote.

With a few exceptions, BBC television imports really work when they are retooled for American television. I was a fan of the original BBC show, Life on Mars, starring John Simm (the Master from the seires three Doctor Who finale) as desperate detective Sam Tyler and the fabulously grumpy Philip Glenister as the horribly comical DCI Gene Hunt. When I heard it was being done for ABC television, I thought there was no way this wonderful and intriguing show would work for American audiences.

And I was almost right. Originally the first Life on Mars pilot was filmed in cheesy 70’s style in bright and sunny L.A. And it was horrid. So show runners re-cast some of the major characters and transferred the location to New York City.

And much to my amazement, it actually worked.

So what is Life on Mars? On the surface it’s a weekly crime serial set in 1973. Detective Sam Tyler (Jason O’Mara for the US version) and the 125th precinct, led by Lieutenant Gene Hunt (Mr. White himself, Harvey Keitel) solve a crime-of-the week (murder, mobsters, general mayhem) with a few over arching character plots that tie the episodes together.

“But that doesn’t sound very sci-fi” you say. And here is where I say, “Now here is where it gets interesting.”

In the pilot, Detective Sam Tyler is a NY city detective breaking a major case, in 2008. As he heads back to his car and radios in his location, an oncoming vehicle mows him down. When he comes to, it is 1973, and he walks into a life that has been set up for him: A job transfer to the 125th and a tiny apartment in the East Village. Sam has no idea how he has gotten there and no idea how to get back home. And now he’s a modern cop having to make-do with archaic equipment and pre-politically correct mentalities.

Now let me add in here that the US show has gone in a completely different direction than its BBC predecessor. Which is ideal. While the BBC series ending was by far one of the most amazing I’ve seen, if the show runners want the series to last longer than one season, things were going to have to change.

And the change has been for the better. O’Mara, who I was highly skeptical of from the first images I saw of him, dives right into the role of Sam Tyler. He plays Tyler’s confused and obsessive personality with realism and without being melodramatic, rarely seen in major network prime time these days. He pulls off drugged, insane, devastated and desperate in such a convincing way, it’s hard not to root for him.

Even Keitel, not usually one of my favorite actors, brings a vulnerability to Hunt that was never seen in the BBC series. Part of that is the different writing staff, but also, part of that is Keitel. Though he does bring a brash sense of humor to the show, he still can’t beat Gleister’s wonderfully brutuish version of Hunt.

In the episode, “Home is Where You Hang Your Holster,” we begin to see that Sam is not the only time-traveler around. When he captures a Councilman during a prostitution sting, the Councilman confesses that he’s not even supposed to be here, that he’s from 2009. Once he convinces Sam that he is from the future, the Councilman also reveals that he’s found a way home. Of course he dies before Sam can find out how, but it’s opened up the mystery even further behind Sam’s predicament.

The best thing I can tell you about Life on Mars is the fact that every week after watching this show I always have to say, “I can’t believe how GOOD this show is!” I am endlessly surprised not only that a BBC show is really working over here, but that even with the re-tooling of the show, it is still so well done.

I have to admit, Fringe is the first J.J. Abrams series I have watched. As many of you may know by now, I’ve never watched Lost, and while Alias did seem like a show I’d like at the time, I never got around to catching up on it.

That’s not to say that I wasn’t a little nervous jumping into one of Abrams’ series. I know people who watch Lost and are simultaneously entranced and frustrated by it. But I’d read Fringe would be different: the viewer would not have to follow it religiously to be able to stay involved with the story. And while I’ve no doubt that is the case with Fringe compared to Lost, I see a show that can be watched carefully to truly enjoy its nuances and overall arc.

If you haven’t watched it, Fringe is the story of a division of Homeland Security that focuses on cases that revolve around the areas of “fringe” science: teleportation, regeneration, suspended animation, etc. The division is aware of an international “Pattern” that seems to be in effect, making the world at large someone’s lab.  There is also a morally ambiguous corporation, Massive Dynamic, which tends to be connected to each case, and the “Pattern.”

The story itself revolves around an agent of this division, Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv). This character by far has been the most controversial of the show. Very cold and apathetic from the beginning, Agent Dunham has been a hard character to root for. Over the season she has slowly melted and become much more personable and at times, even jovial. She’s finally a character the viewer can like.

There could be two reasons for this. Either originally the writers tried to write her as a tough woman and missed the mark by a country mile, or, as I hope the case is, to show character growth. In the first episode, Olivia goes from euphoric love, to seeing the man she is getting engaged to (her partner) nearly blown apart, to later discovering this same man may be a traitor not only to her, but his country as well. That sure is a lot for one character to go through in the matter of one episode. We learn she can be single-mindedly determined, but this determination ends up shutting her down.

As the series progresses, we see pieces of the old Olivia shine through. However, it is not until the introduction of her sister and niece that she finally comes out of her shell. At this time, also, she is finally able to let go of her former lover and partner and gain some closure to that part of her life.

So was that supposed to be the character arc all along, or did the show runner hear the complaints of fans who had trouble getting behind his main character?  Maybe a little of both – we’ll probably never know. Regardless, she’s now a character the viewer can get behind and actually like.

You can’t talk about Fringe without discussing the Bishops. Walter Bishop (John Noble) is the brilliant scientist whose original work seems to be the origin of many of the “Pattern’s” experiments, and who has been locked away in a mental institution after a lab accident killed his assistant. Walter is a big focus for the show, not only because of his inane ramblings which tend to mean more than they seem (or nothing at all), but because his past is still so mysterious, the viewer is unsure of how it all relates back to him. He is undoubtedly, however, the comic relief of the series.

His son is Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson), who is needed to get his father out of the institution to help Olivia in the premiere episode. Peter’s past seems to be a legally ambiguous one. He has various shady contacts that he uses throughout the series to help the increasingly strange and unique cases faced by the Fringe Division.

Fringe is a unique series in that you get out of it however much you put in. If you just occasionally watch, you get a good creepy show in the vein of X-Files stand-alone episodes. If you watch each week casually, you get a pretty decent story with some good twists and turns that make continued watching enjoyable. Or, you can pick apart each episode for hidden clues, play the ARG, and follow the “Where’s Waldo” version of the show by watching for The Observer, a pale man in black fedora and trench that appears in every episode. For that, I give Abrams credit for making a show so user-friendly.

Personally, I fall into the middle viewer category. I watch weekly to follow the overall arc, but that’s about it. And the beauty of it? I don’t feel I’m missing anything by not following the ARG or watching for clues (though I do admit it’s fun to watch for The Observer!). I feel like this show is kind of like those Choose-Your-Own-Adventure books from my childhood – you pick your favorite way to watch the show and follow along.

If you’re a Whedonite, you’ve been anticipating Friday the 13th, 2009 for some time now. And now it has finally come: Dollhouse and Joss Whedon’s return to television.

Let me preface by saying I have done everything I could to remain spoiler-free for the premiere. I refused to read reviews, stopped visiting Whedonesque.com, and did my best to skim over Tweets from those who got an advanced look at the episode. I wanted to go in with a clean slate. And as Echo says in the first few minutes of the episode, “You ever actually try to clean a slate? You always see what was on it before.”

That being said, I am not going to compare Dollhouse’s first episode, “Ghost” to any of Joss’ other works. It’s too early to do that, and I honestly don’t think it is fair. Echo is not Faith, The Dollhouse is not Wolfram & Hart, and Topher is definitely no Wash, regardless to their outward traits.

“Ghost” gives the viewer a lot of information in one hour of television (which is helped immensely by Fox’s “More Tv. Less Commercials.” push – Thank you Fox!). On the surface we see The Dollhouse, an illegal private organization that imprints personalities on their “actives” to suit their wealthy client’s needs. The actives are volunteers who have signed on to get a new start at life. They have a 5 year contract, which after they fulfill, they are supposedly free to go, we can assume, wiped clean of all memories of the Dollhouse. Which on the surface, is a relatively simple premise that could give the show a decent season or two of television. But of course, this is Joss Whedon: nothing is ever simple.

In the beginning we see Caroline (Eliza Dushku), who hardly seems  a volunteer. Rather, she seems coerced into signing her 5 year contract. She is transformed into Echo, an almost innocent and child-like soul. When she happens to witness a new active, Sierra (Dichen Lachman), being wiped clean of her former “self,” she almost confusingly looks to Topher (Fran Kranz), the chief mind-wiping tech of the Dollhouse, and says, “She hurts.” The way Topher responds to her is almost as he would a child.

We learn through Agent Paul Ballard (Tamoh Penikett), who has been assigned to the mysterious Dollhouse case for 14 months, that the clientele of the organization include princes and senators, and that the Dollhouse has ties to a Russian human trafficking ring.  His supervisors try to get him under control on a case they think is a “fairytale.” But we also learn that he doesn’t back down very easily.

There is also a rogue active, Alpha, who is threatening to bring down the Dollhouse and its incredibly questionable activities which include not only imprinting people with personalities from real people right for the mission, but the physical limitations that can inevitably come with “real people” (near-sightedness, asthma, etc.).

So there is definitely a great set up for much intrigue and drama amidst the weekly assignments Echo will be sent on.

My biggest concern going into the show was Eliza Dushku. I was never a huge fan of Faith, and the other movies I’ve seen her in, her characters have never seemed to have much depth. So I wondered, can she really pull off being that many different people?

After the first episode: I am hopeful. Dushku transitions from desperate Caroline, to a fun-loving party girl, to the kidnap expert with a troubled past Eleanor Penn, and to innocent Echo very believably. The most haunting scene of the episode is as Miss Penn carries the kidnapped child, Devina, away from her hostages telling her over and over, “You’re free.” The scene changes and fades to Echo peacefully walking away from the mind-wiping chair, once again innocent and free from the burdens she had just faced.

I have heard overall mixed reviews of the show so far and of course everyone is entitled to their opinion. My biggest hope is that viewers will stay tuned to see where the show will lead, because one thing is for certain: Joss will never leave things on the surface. He’ll dig deep into the emotions of the characters and of the themes of the show and leave the viewers with more questions than answers – as good television should do. So long as we start getting answers before too long, this show has the potential for greatness. And that is what I always look for in the shows that I watch: not only what the episode itself said, but what the potential for the upcoming episodes could offer. Like Battlestar Galactica, the fun in watching is the speculation. This show could very well fill that looming gap.

Because in the Dollhouse, as its owner says in the very first line of the series, “Nothing is what it appears to be.”

WARNING: Spoilers for the episode follow – don’t read until you’ve seen the latest episode of Heroes!

Let’s admit it, Heroes had a lot to live up to upon its return. Volume three was amazingly lackluster, especially for a show that has so much potential. That was my biggest issue with “Villains” – its complete and utter loss of focus from the show’s original theme of “ordinary people with extraordinary abilities.”

So the first episode of this arc, “A Clear and Present Danger,” brings us back to that core theme. It has been two months since we last saw our heroes, and villains.  People have moved on: Peter has become a paramedic, Claire has gotten her GED and is looking at colleges, Daphne is a bike messenger (though she’s not too fond of using her bike), and Tracy has moved on from Nathan back to her governor. Oh, and Noah is back to being, well, Noah. And that’s the point – we’re back to our heroes being everyday people.

But of course, they won’t be left alone too long. Nathan has been on a Blagojevich-type media blitzkrieg trying to convince America that he is out to protect the nation from “dangerous people” with his work with Homeland security. Of course the average American thinks he means terrorists, but those with abilities know better.

As for the rest of the episode, you know what happened by now (or at least you should! Stop reading if you haven’t! Unless you don’t care about spoilers, then there is nothing I can do for you). What I want to focus on are some of the highlights of Heroes’ return.

Noah Bennet. We have returned to an ambiguous Mr. Bennet, which really folks, is kinda the way it should be. Protective Daddy was fun for a while, but it was getting old.  It brings up so many new questions – How did Noah get involved with Nathan’s organization? Blackmail or genuine interest in what Senator Petrelli is selling? Noah Bennet is so much more intriguing when he is straying into the gray area, rather than trying to keep things black-and-white.

Speaking of Gray, Sylar’s back and is still trying to find his parents. And still isn’t getting anywhere. As he only person with abilities that was able to beat the ambush that was set up to collect him, he may be the first person out of the gate to try to stop Nathan and his war on those with abilities. Sylar teaming up with some of our other heroes could once again lead to some amazing moments.

Hiro and Ando. We get to see now if Ando has the heroic chops to match Hiro. This is Ando’s chance to shine and I hope James Kyson Lee gets the story line to back up his talent. I’ve been excited to see what he could do when it was his turn to step up and be the hero, and I really don’t expect this arc to disappoint.

The most interesting turn of the events for the evening was Matt Parkman. Visited by visions of the deceased African prophet, Usutu (damn you Papa Petrelli!), Matt is given the “paint-the-future” prescient power. This brings up an interesting point. Are powers transferred if there is no one currently with that ability? Did Usutu get the power after Isaac was murdered? Or, worst case scenario (I really hope this isn’t it), did the writers need someone with the “paint-the-future” power and just give it to Parkman instead of bringing in another new character?

I’m intrigued and my interest has once again been peaked. As I’ve said before, this show is going to get amazing again, and I sure don’t want to miss the episode when that happens. This, my friends, was a pretty good start.

So what did you think, Heroes fans? Are you encouraged by the latest episode of Heroes? Reserving judgement? Or are you ready to give up all together?

Now if they’ll just get rid of Claire’s horrible wig . . .

WARNING: Very mild spoilers about the first season follow. You’ve been warned!

Sanctuary started out as 15-20 minute webisodes on SciFi.com in 2007. As the popularity of the show grew, SciFi green lit the show to move to broadcast television for 13 episodes in the fall of 2008. The success of premiere has been equal to another of SciFi’s popular shows, Eureka.  The network has already renewed the series for a second season.

The Sanctuary is an organization started by the main character of the show, Dr. Helen Magnus (Amanda Tapping) an 157 year old British scientist. Her focus is to offer safe haven, and to study, the world’s “abnormals,” creatures of non-human genetic make-up. Thus far the show has explored everything from mer-people, nubbins (think Tribbles from Star Trek:TOS), vampires, and werewolves. Bigfoot is the house butler and valet. The rest of the cast includes: Dr. Will Zimmerman (Robin Dunne) who is our view into the Sanctuary. Dr. Magnus has chosen him to be her protégé, and we get to see this exciting new world from his eyes. Dr. Magnus’ daughter Ashley (Emilie Ullerup) is the martial enforcer of the group who helps collect new abnormals and protect the Sanctuary. Henry Foss (Ryan Robbins) is our Xander or Wash – the geeky comedy relief with the everyman’s attitude towards these fantastical situations.

The beginning of the series is admittedly slow. It started very episodic, with little to connect the series’ regulars. But after the first half-dozen episodes, the series starts focusing on its origins and nemesis, and that is when the show takes off.

Dr. Magnus hints at her origins in the first few episodes. It is later revealed that she was part of a group called The Five. The Five consisted of some of the most brilliant scientific minds of their time: Dr. Helen Magnus, Dr. James Watson (yes, of Sherlock Holmes fame), Nigel Griffin (later the Invisible Man), Nikola Tesla (the real-life “father of physics”), and John Druitt (who later becomes Jack the Ripper). This is what The League of Extraordinary Gentleman should have been. The Five discovered a vial of untainted vampire blood which gave them all a variety of new abilities. Dr. Magnus has been granted extended life and immunity to disease, Watson’s intelligence and logistic reasoning grew to near above-human proportions, Griffin had invisibility, Tesla turned into a vampire, and Druitt gained teleportation.

Also hinted at in the first episodes are a rival “abnormal” research group called The Cabal. The Cabal is not nearly as altruistic in their intent towards abnormals. They study, transform, and even kill abnormals in pursuit of their goal: protect humanity from the supposed inherent danger of abnormals.

When these two storylines collide, The Five gather to fight the Cabal, and Sanctuary really takes off. By this time the regular cast chemistry has been established and the characters themselves have been more developed. The reunion of The Five is full of all of the wit and tension you would expect. And the season finale itself, though completely predictable, is set up in such a way that we still don’t know how The Cabal has managed to pull everything off, including the betrayal of one member of the Sanctuary.

Knowing SciFi channel, we won’t see the next season of Sanctuary until next fall, so you’ve got plenty of chance to catch up on this creative gem from the network. As I said, the first few episodes are a little slow and discombobulated, but hanging on is definitely worth it –  both to support web-to-series television and especially to see where they take Sanctuary next season.

Now I have to admit, I’ve never watched an entire episode of Xena or Hercules. At the time they were on the air, I really just wasn’t interested. I’m sure I could enjoy them now, and perhaps one day when I have a little breathing room in my Netflix queue, I’ll give them a shot.

First let me say this: I am a die-hard fan of the novels. Wizard’s First Rule was the first fantasy novel I read. I was thoroughly hooked by Goodkind’s writing and characterizations. The story of Richard, Kahlan and Zedd immediately captured me and I was obsessed. It was the first novel I discussed with my husband in depth, and I think we both share an extra fondness for it because of that.

But I’m not here to talk about the novels. I’m here to talk about the television adaptation of the novels. Originally, the show was slated to be only the first novel. A twenty-two episode arc of Wizard’s First Rule. And I agreed that was the only way a visualization of that book could work. A two-hour movie or six-hour miniseries would never cut it. I kept up with the project by occasionally following the production website and keeping up with casting news, excited by what I was seeing come down the pipe.

Then in November 2008, after an excruciatingly long wait, The Legend of the Seeker aired. And as the first episode neared to a close, I was thinking, “Not too bad, the changes they made were necessary. I can live with this.” Then they literally and figuratively threw the book in the fire. And then, everything changed.

Ok, maybe not everything. But I now had to struggle with not to turning into a hysterical fan girl and saying, “but THAT’S not how it happened in the book!” Later, I learned in an interview with one of the show’s stars, Craig Horner (Richard), that the series is based on the characters from Goodkind’s book and the overall story arc, but with lots of episodic stops along the way.

And once I got over that disappointment and used to the episodic idea of it all, I did sit back and enjoy the show for what it is: a fairly predictable series, chock-full of eerily beautiful cinematography (the New Zealand landscape screams, “Epic!”), and an honorable attempt to bring those three beloved characters to life.

However, it doesn’t always succeed. Episode 5, “Listener,” is about as far away from portraying Goodkind’s story and characters as possible. I have to wonder if the writer, Stephen Tolkin, had ever bothered to crack open the source material. I’m assuming he has, since he was one of the three credited writers for the first episode, “Prophecy.” Apparently, at times, he just doesn’t care. And I was about to the point where I didn’t care either.

But I gave it another chance. And am I ever glad I did. Two weeks later, the episode “Identity” aired, and it brought back the essence of the characters and of the original story of the book. While it didn’t tell the story the same way that the novel did, it was done in an interesting way and I was excited again about the series.

I haven’t been disappointed by its return from the winter hiatus, either. The episode, “Denna,” and “Puppeteer” which followed, were everything I’d come to expect from the series, and a little more: faithful to the ideals of the original story and characters, with an interesting twist that makes me want to see where it is going.

So, will this series appeal to those who haven’t read the books? Perhaps. If you’re missing a sprawling fantasy epic of the likes of Xena or Hercules, you may like the show. Just don’t expect it to have that same campy tongue-in-cheek quality. The show does tend to take itself too seriously at times.

If you are a fan of the book series, I say give it a chance. We’ve all seen how things change when they go to film or screen (X-Men, Spiderman, Iron Man, etc.). For both camps however, new viewers and established fans, if you’re willing to be a little patient, I have a feeling the payoff is going to be worth some of the earlier, lesser quality episodes.

Volume Four, titled “Fugitives,” is supposed to be a back-to-basics approach that will bring back old fans of the show and draw in new viewers, according to Kring. New viewers will not need to be familiar with the previous Heroes season to be able to jump into the back half of Season 3.

Kring told TV Guide, “This volume starts us pretty much from scratch. There is almost nothing that the audience needs to know from the previous volume in order to follow the storyline.”

News of this interview comes in a timely fashion to start building hype for the upcoming episodes. For the first time, Heroes did not get an early renewal notice from NBC.

Honestly, my biggest complaint from Season 3 was the way many of the characters didn’t seem to progress past their Season 1 origins. Getting back to the “ordinary people with extraordinary powers” theme may just be the infusion of adrenaline this show needs to get back to being the amazing show it once was.

Source: Slice of SciFi

Eureka is the most fun show of SciFi’s television line-up. The show is about a little town in the Pacific-Northwest called Eureka. This government town is filled with the country’s brightest minds and the most advanced research lab, Global Dynamics. Everyone who works in the town is the best in their field, from the head of Global Dynamics to the local dry cleaner. Global Dynamics is sanctioned by the government to be ahead of the technological curve and to make sure the country is ready for any technological or biological threat. That means experimentation, and of course that means things go wrong. Horribly, horribly wrong.

The one exception to the “genius” rule, as there is always an exception, is Sheriff Jack Carter, portrayed brilliantly by Colin Ferguson. Carter accidentally finds the town when travelling back to LA with his troubled daughter, Zoe (Jordan Hinson). When the current sheriff of Eureka is crippled by one of Eureka’s notorious experiments, Jack Carter, then an U.S. Marshall, is “promoted” to sheriff of the town.

Carter is the everyman of the show. He sees the world as we, the average viewer would see it. We all know that book smarts and common sense do not always go hand and hand, and that is the primary point of the show. A town full of geniuses cannot always see the obvious, and Carter is typically stuck trying to simplify things for the audience, and for the too-smart-for-their-own-good characters. He also tends to break down the techno-babble associated with these types of shows. For example, after a highly technological description of a machine that can kill people with one shot, Carter dryly asks, “It’s a ray that causes instant death. Why don’t you just say death ray?”

While the basic plot sounds like it could get old, and it is at times formulaic, like all good television, it’s the characters that keep the viewer invested: Carter’s evolving daughter Zoe; the brilliant and beautiful head of Global Dynamics, Allison Blake (Salli Richardson); the snarky Deputy Sherriff Jo Lupo (Erica Cerra); the wise friend Henry Deacon (Joe Morton); the egotistical genius, Nathan Stark (Ed Quinn), and the quintessential screw up, Douglas Fargo (Neil Grayston) are just a few of the lovable and hate-able characters of Eureka. Even the throwaway and reoccurring characters add a sense of whimsy to the show that is hard to deny.

You can’t talk about amazing quirky characters without talking about the writers. The characters would not be an ounce of who they are without brilliant writing. Show creators Jamie Paglia and Andrew Crosby write the bulk of the series’ episodes. That is what keeps this show alive. Instead of show runners who throw out ideas to their writing staff, Eureka is largely written by the men who know where the show is going. And after hearing Paglia speak at Dragon*Con two years ago, they do have an idea of where this show is going, unlike some other not-to-be named show runners (yes Tim Kring, I’m talking to you).

Eureka has recently fallen victim to SciFi’s latest round of showing only half a season. However, the remaining half of season three will be closer to a full-length season as SciFi renewed Eureka for an astounding twenty-one episode run, rather than it’s usual thirteen. With the remaining half due to air over the summer, you have plenty of time to catch up on the first two seasons of one of SciFi channel’s most original, creative, and all around best shows.

WonderJenn

Articles, Reviews and Commentary on Television’s Best

Honestly, I live a pretty hum-drum existence. I work for a large national non-profit, I’m married to a wonderful guy, and I have some pretty awesome friends that always make life more interesting. But as far as adventure goes, that’s just not me. I don’t hike, I don’t climb mountains and frankly, I don’t get out much.

I am an escapist. I enjoy watching, reading, and doing things that take me out of my everyday hum-drum element. I love film, theatre, books, going to conventions, and above all else, television.  Perhaps the only thing I love more than television is talking about television. Plots, theories, speculation, writing and acting – you name it.

And that’s why I’m here as your new TV critic. I hope to guide you through the shows you’re watching, fill you in on shows you may have missed, and generally geek out about all things television. While I do watch copious amounts of television, and most of it is genre related, I do miss a couple of the shows that I know tend to be popular around here. Lost and Smallville just aren’t my bag. But I know there are plenty of folks around here to keep those discussions going, so I’m not gonna feel too bad about it!

So, you ask – what do I watch? Just to rattle off a few: Doctor Who, Torchwood, Sarah Jane Adventures,Sanctuary, Battlestar Galactica, Chuck, Terminator:Sarah Connor Chronicles, Heroes, Fringe, Reaper, Supernatural, Legend of the Seeker, Primeval, and Life on Mars. And I have watched every Whedon show to date and of course am excited for Dollhouse coming in just a few weeks. I look forward to discussing all of these shows, and reminiscing over some shows from the past.

Speaking of Joss Whedon, that was how I found GeekShow. I started listening to the Buffcast back in its first days and of course followed through with Angel Investigations. I’ve also always enjoyed GeekIntertainment and have finally started to listen to Two Geeks and Geek Easy.

I really feel the last few years of television have really been some of the best. Genre television is taking over the airwaves, and while not all of it is stellar, it is at least there and making waves. Thanks to shows like Lost, Battlestar Galactica, and Heroes, even mainstream audiences are sitting up and taking notice to programs they previously wouldn’t have touched with a 10-foot pole. Or polar bear.

The success of programs like Big Bang Theory show that even geeks can appeal to the mainstream audience, even if at times they don’t fully embrace their “geekyness” (I’m sorry, but making a Star Trek reference about an expendable crew member without use of the word “Redshirt” is inexcusable in my book). However, Chuck is a show that is getting it right. They are not afraid of subtle geek references (Reginald Veljohnson as a twinkie-eating cop during a hostage situation – brilliant!), as well as full-on homages (Thunderdome cage matches for Assistant Manager position at the Buy More – awesome!).

Even the recent television failures like Bionic Woman and Knight Rider show that the television industry is taking notice that genre favorites can be solid gold. The problem is that they have to be done right. It is going to take more than an attractive woman running in slow motion or amazing talking cars with attitude to make television shows popular. Today’s television viewer wants more than something pretty: they want characters they can love or hate and compelling stories that they can blog or chat about for hours.  The cardboard cut-out characters of the past are dead. We need the Malcolm Reynolds’, the William Adama’s, the Buffy Summers’, and the Noah Bennett’s to keep us tuned in. We want characters that compel, characters that disappoint, and characters that we want to live up to. That is what television is coming to – slowly but surely. While we are not there quite yet, thank you American Idol, True Beauty and Survivor, we are coming closer. Closer to television entertainment that informs, entertains and helps us do the one thing we love to do with television – escape.

WonderJenn