Sunday, August 30th, 2009
06.00 The Big Bang Theory
06.30 Torchwood
07.30 Legend Of The Seeker
08.30 Supernatural
01.00 Due South
02.00 Batman
The Big Bang Theory. Season 2, Episode 23. "The Monopolar Expedition" North Pole.
Some great Sheldon material in this one, and a ton of great one-liners from Koothrappali. Plus a small advancement in the Leonard-Penny romance.
The show needs to put them together because they don't generate any stories from them being apart, and they might actually be some story fodder in making them a couple.
Torchwood. Episode 4. A deadly "Cyberwoman" is loose in Torchwood HQ!
What an odd episode. Once again, we see that the Torchwood group are an undisciplined bunch, but this is really bad. Ianto smuggles a dangerous Cyberwoman into Torchwood and she kills two innocent people, and tries to kill everyone she can. And, by the end of the episode, everyone seems prepared to 'forgive and forget'.
It's a pity the set-up is so bad, because - once the action starts - this is a very enjoyable episode and Caroline Chikezie sports a very sexy costume.
But, sadly, when this is over one cannot help but feel that the Torchwood bunch are idiots. Dangerous idiots, too.
Legend Of The Seeker. Episode 10. "Sacrifice" A male confessor is born and must be executed.
Wow, what a great episode. Genuine conflict between the three regulars which is well-written and interesting, several jaw-dropping moments (mostly involving the confessing of Zed and the battles that follow) and a conclusion that is satisfying.
LOTS has really grown into an enjoyable series. These most recent episodes have been superb. Richard fighting Kahlan and Zed for the life of a baby (that will probably grow up to be evil) is definitely the best story they have told so far.
Supernatural. Season 4, Episode 17. "It's a Terrible Life" Sam and Dean work side-by-side in a large company and neither one has any memory of meeting the other before...
Very cool change-of-pace episode with a great explanation at the end. The case-of-the-week is very basic and the pleasure is in watching Sam and Dean 'meet' for the first time and gradually learn to do the things we've been watching them do for four seasons.
I hate the Ghostfacers, but this was a good use for the characters. Hopefully, we never see them again.
Kurt Fuller was terrific in the final scene. He brings authority and compassion to the role. In spades.
Due South. Season 3, Episode 6. Fraser works with a lady "Bounty Hunter" and her kids.
Wendy Crewson guests as a lady bounty hunter who hits town during a bout of 'Blue Flu' (cops on strike). The Blue Flu plot has nothing much to do with anything in the episode (except that it's used to create some humourous conflict between Ray and Fraser. Indeed the case-of-the-week has nothing much to do with anything in the episode. It just fills time between important character stuff.
Fraser, you see, takes a shine to the lady bounty hunter. And she likes him. And this episode is about their partnership and feelings for one another. Fraser is a truly interesting character, so George F. Walker creates a truly interesting character to parallel Fraser and attract his interest. Janet Morse is a hoot to watch and you could easily imagine her starring in her own TV show.
The conversations that Fraser has with his father, in this episode, are superb. The last one is very, very sad.
Batman. Episode 28. "Dreams In Darkness" Batman locked up in Arkham Asylum.
One of the darkest and best episode, with some very iconic imagery.
The story opens with Batman locked up and believed to have gone insane. In flashback we see that he has fallen victim to one of Scarecrow's plots and soon all of Gotham City will fall.
It's not much of a dilemma, really, since we know that Batman can break out (and he eventually does break out) but the story affords some great insights into our hero as we see his various fears made real. The animation/imagery is superb.
Highlight? Legend Of The Seeker (several jaw-dropping moments)
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The Big Bang Theory, Torchwood, Legend Of The Seeker, Supernatural, Due South, Batman
Fri, Mar 27, 09 - The Office, Due South, Rising Damp, WKRP In Cincinnati
07.30 The Office
08.00 Due South
09.00 Rising Damp
09.30 WKRP In Cincinnati
The Office. Season 5, Episode 19. "Two Weeks" Michael decides to set up his own company.
Another wonderful episode. I love the way the a-story (Michael's new company) and the b-story (Pam's mastering of the new photocopier) intersect at the very end. In this way the ending was a surprise, but it made sense.
Due South. Season 3, Episode 5. "Mountie and Soul" The Boxing Episode.
Seems like every cop show does an episode set in the world of boxing, and this one offers nothing new on the subject. It's an episode of Due South I've never seen before but - even so - I was reluctant to watch it. One knew it was a boxing episode I was bored in advance and - consequently - put off watching it several times over the past couple of months.
Now that I've finally watched the darn thing... it was exactly as I expected it to be. Bit of a yawn-fest.
Rising Damp. Season 3, Episode 6. "The Cocktail Hour" Alan gets engaged.
Strong episode, very funny. Doesn't rely on guest characters to drive the story/comedy. Most of it is conversations between Rigsby and Alan, which is - I feel - the best element of the series. The idea that Alan is about to marry a very rich girl doesn't seem at all intrusive and outlandish. Rather it serves as a great springboard for a series to debates between the naive tenant and the cynical landlord.
The sequence where Rigsby shows Alan how to behave in polite society is some of the funniest stuff Leonard Rossiter has ever done. And the pay-off later in the episode (where Alan kicks over a valuable tea set) is equally hilarious.
WKRP In Cincinnati. Episode 73. "Straight From the Heart" Herb is having heart trouble and the gang need to persuade him to get it checked.
A great story, with solid character moments and lots of laughs. It moves from the radio station, to the hospital, to a 3D Porn Movie Theatre (yes, a 3D Porn Movie Theatre) to a prison cell with ease and manages to include all of the regulars and make us believe that they really do care about sleazy Herb.
The ending is wonderful. Herb cuts the cards and pretends to lose (and agrees to go back to the hospital), even though it means passing up a night on the town with Jennifer. Tough to do, since Loni Anderson looks absolutely stunning in this episode.
Highlight? The Office (Michael and Pam)
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Fri, Dec 12, 08 - It Takes A Thief, Due South, Kolchak
06.00 It Takes A Thief
07.00 Due South
08.00 Kolchak: The Night Stalker
It Takes A Thief. Episode 7. "When Thieves Fall In" Susan Saint James returns to the series for the third time. It's her second episode playing Charlie Brown. She also plays a woman who looks just like Charlie! So... three appearances in seven episodes, playing three characters... One of whom is a semi-regular. That kind of thing don't happen too often!
As for the episode... it's a delight. The first half is pure padding, and the second one is a bundle of tension cleverly confined to one hotel room. Nice.
Noah needs Al to steal a coat with something important hidden inside the lining. Al decides he needs the help of former nemesis Charlie Brown, so the boys concoct a story and get the delectable Miss Brown out of prison and onto their team. The next 20 minures are just the three of them on a shopping spree. Malachi Throne gets more to do than in any other episode so far, as Noah gets an up close and personal view of life from Al's side of the law. It's very funny. All three characters are wonderful to watch.
For it's second half, the episode swithes tone. Charlie replaces the girl, but things immediately go wrong when she is spotted as a fake. Everything happens inside one hotel room. There's a heck of a lot of traffic through that one room over the course of a few short hours and you are constantly expecting Al and Charlie to be uncovered. Even when they are, and are trapped at the airport in the closing minutes, the script delivers are nice twist that makes perfect sense, but is impossible to predict.
Another great episode.
Due South. Season 3, Episode 4. "Strange Bedfellows" In every respect this episode is superb. Unlike the first three episodes (which were great in spots, weak in others) this one is without flaw. Every scene, every plot, every character... equals perfection.
Kowalski must protect his ex-wife's new boyfriend (a powerful politican) when shots are fired at the man in public. Ray is heart-broken about this and it shows (thanks to the amazing Callum Keith Rennie).
There are many great scenes where he speaks of his ex-wife. My favourite occurs early on, in a parked car, where he is telling Fraser what it's like for him. I love it not just because I identify with Ray, and his situation, but because Fraser shows what a truly great friend he is by listening and understanding. It's a short scene, but it tells us all we would ever need to know about these two men. We can see that Ray is consumed by his love for this woman, and we can see that Benton Fraser is the best friend anyone could ever have when they are feeling sad.
The casting of Anne Marie DeLuise as Stella blows me away. Right from the first moment she appears she is exactly right for Kowalski. The two actors have amazing chemistry and you believe that they were married, and are still in love. The script never tells us why they split, but we can understand how it came to be this way in the way they respond to one another. Their scenes together, particularly the last major one, are simply wonderful. Two people very much in love, who can't seem to make it work between then, who are still able to be honest with one another.
The case-of-the-week is good, too. A political scandal and a mad bomber and both of these impact nicely on what Ray is going through.
Fraser, meanwhile, is hearing things and - in the final scenes - discovers an office that the ghost of his father has made for himself. In Fraser's closet! He has no sooner come to terms with this revelation than Meg Thatcher opens the door and finds him talking to himself in the closet. A classic moment.
Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Episode 7. "The Devil's Platform" A classic episode. Carl tracks a corrupt politican. One who has done a deal with the Prince Of Darkness and can turn into a demon dog to dispose of his rivals and enemies.
So how does it measure up to the expected Kolchak formula?
The Bad Guy. Tom Skerritt is arguably the best foe that Kolchak ever faced. Not only is the performance fantastic, but the idea of a crooked politican doing a deal to enable him to do these things is not as far-fetched as some of the ideas on the show.
The Authority Figure/Conspiracy. Strangely, considering that this is one of the very best episodes, this story lacks these two vital parts of the Kolchak mythos. There are no press conferences and no stonewalling by anybody. There's also no indication that anybody else has a clue what is going on. Just Carl this time.
The Experts. This time out the only real experts that Carl goes to are a cop and a doctor. The cop, for once on this show, is more than happy to tall Carl the truth. Off the record, of course. William Mims is only in two scenes, but he is great in both (particularly the scene with Carl).
The Regular Cast. All three supporting characters are in this episode and all three get some great scenes. Tony is in fine form, and delivers many of the funniest lines every uttered in the series. Miss Emily has a great scene bringing heavy books to Carl. It's a funny scene, and it tells us a lot about Carl. This is also the episode where Emily brings Carl a new hat.
The FX. There are only a few FX shots in this one. Mostly to do with the way the dog attacks are filmed. The attacks on Carl are important to the story and the shooting/editing does a good job of telling the story of what is happing during each attack.
The Scare Factor. The climax of this one is a doozy. Carl and his foe face to face... in conversation. The Politican delivers a short paragraph that tells us that he knows exactly who Carl Kolchak is. It also tells us a few very important details about our hero... what he wants, why he'll never get it, and how self-aware he is/isn't about his own flaws. It may well be the finest scene in the series so far.
The Logic. Carl's deductions make perfect sense in this story, because he is on-site for a very odd event at the very start and merely investigates that to it's logical conclusion. It's old-fashioned research, too. Carl, all alone in the INS offices, reading book after book as he searches, searches...
It's a noble, heroic, romantic image.
Highlight? Due South (i love the love story of ray and stella)
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Fri, Nov 21, 08 - Due South, Avengers, Kolchak
07.00 Due South
08.00 The Avengers
10.30 Kolchak: The Night Stalker
Due South. Season 3, Episode 3. "I Coulda Been A Defendant" First time I saw this episode I didn't like it very much. Yet, repeated viewings have made it into one of my favourite episodes. The story isn't really up to much (brother tries to kill brother, yadda, yadda) so, on first viewing, it's rather bland. Thing is: the episode has some fantastic performances and - quite possibly - the most visually/aurally stylish climax that they show ever delivered. On first viewing I really liked that aspect of it, but over the years since it has come to haunt my imagination and remains one of the coolest things I have ever seen in a television show. Ever.
A good Samaritan runs from the TV cameras that captured his good deed. Fraser and Kowalski give chase and, when they spy a gun, they arrest the guy. Turning him into even more of a celebrity. Turns out that he is in the Witness Protection Program. His own brother is the agent that put him there. And, would you believe it, it was the brother that actually did the crime (more or less). It's a Rainman type of scenario. But never mind. In the end, there's a climax in the pouring rain. And I mean pouring. Never has there been a downpour like this. And our heroes are out in it, fighting for their lives in a pitch gun battle, while Dire Straits/Brothers In Arms dominates the soundtrack.
See this once and you will never forget it.
The Avengers. Episode 134. "Have Guns- Will Haggle" Most really good Avengers episodes are high-concept ones. The ones that are easily described in one sentence and revolve around something really unusual. This isn't one of those. It's an average story with only a few Avengers touches.
Lots of high-tech guns have been stolen. And a bidding war follows the theft. Steed (easily) poses as a bidder, while Tara is captured and used as a target for the demonstration. It could be any sixties spy show. And when you can say that about an Avengers episode, you know it's a fairly bland one.
It does have some nice touches. The chief baddie is a frightfully posh, very sexy lady and Steed's rival bidder for the weapons is dangerous but he and Steed conduct very civilised conversations (even after an attempt on Steed's life). It's all very cool. But there's just not enough of it.
Tara switches outfits and wigs with wild abandon (due to behind the scenes production problems) and looks fantastic in every scene. She gets captured easily, it is true, but she acquits herself wonderfully when it matters. As we wait for the duel to start, the viewer is breathless hoping that Tara runs for the same gun as her rival and not to the one that has been left out for her. After the signal is given to run, the camera cleverly hides from us what she is doing, then reveals to us (and him!) that she is right behind him and ready to beat the living tar out of him just as he reaches for his weapon. You go Tara! It's a cheer-out-loud moment in an otherwise dull episode (Apart from a cool car chase earlier on, where Tara shows off her excellent driving skills.)
Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Episode 5. "The Werewolf" One of my favourite episodes. The whole thing is set on a cruise ship so it feels very different to all the other episodes. It's also got some great guest stars. And it's a ton of fun from start to finish.
Christmas at INS and Tony learns (at the last minute) that he cannot go on a working cruise. He is crushed. Carl isn't. He gets to go instead. It's a Single's Cruise. Carl's not too chuffed about that aspect (or with is bubbly cabin-mate: Richard Gautier) but he makes the best of it. Until he (and several crewmembers) witness what can only be a werewolf running amok on the ship. There then follows one of the best Kolchak investigations/situations. He and the passengers are trapped at sea. The captain (a superb Henry Jones) and crew know what is going on, but - of course - they won't tell anybody and they hate Kolchak for knowing. Our hero pulls together a band of helpers (unusual for this show) and they help him find the necessary tools to finish the werewolf. Nita Talbot is the best of the bunch. She's got spark and great chemistry with Darren McGavin. For once the woman working with Carl isn't passive, this lady gets in the trenches (distracting people so Kolchak can get important stuff done) and the episode is all the better for it.
As is always the case with Kolchak episodes, the killing sprees are fast and violent. The action scenes don't look like anything else on TV at the time or since. The activity is fast and (mostly) a fair distance from the camera. It looks, to be honest, like a camera crew filming a real werewolf attack on another deck, or at the other end of the hallway, or whatever. It just looks real. A great compliment for any series about supernatural killers.
Rounding out the great cast is Eric Braeden. We get to see the Bad Guy in this one. Braeden is the werewolf. But, unlike previous killers on the show, he is not a deliberate murderer. In fact, as the story unfolds we are inclined to feel sorry for the man and the hand that fate dealt him.
It's a fast-moving, violent episode with a strong story. And several comedy highlights. Carl pretending to be the Captain's son is a personal favourite of mine. Leading to the great line: "And stop pretending to be my son!"
Highlight? Kolchak (werewolf on a cruise ship, where do you hide?)
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Fri, Nov 14, 08 - It Takes A Thief, Avengers, Due South, Kolchak
06.30 It Takes A Thief
07.30 The Avengers
08.30 Due South
11.00 Kolchak: The Night Stalker
It Takes A Thief. Episode 4. "A Very Warm Reception" Since some elements don't quite work, this is the least enjoyable of the first four episodes. But there's still a lot that does work, and it's still an enjoyable spy yarn for all it's 'flaws'.
Since the tone of the show is deadly serious (we open with the brutal gunning down of a SIA agent) it doesn't quite gel when Al is able to enter the embassy at the centre of this week's story using three separate comedy disguises. Also the first third of the episode (where Al uses a cardboard cutout of himself to fool the bad guys) is too silly for this show. Much better is the last two thirds as Al and his team pull out all the stops to derail an embassy function and steal some important microfilm.
Previous episodes have highlighted Al as very much a lone wolf. Working with a team, yes, but still the only one who can get the job done (on his own) at the very end. This story is different. Al relies on others very much in this one. And it feels in many ways like a Mission Impossible story.
Katherine Crawford (who would go on to work side by side with the Gemini Man) makes a great guest star in this story. And another great female partner for Al. She's clever and funny and - in the episode's thrilling final moments - she saves Al's life when a bad guy has a gun on him. Refreshing and very enjoyable.
The Avengers. Episode 133. "Get-A-Way" DELIGHTFUL. This one is pure Avengers: the good guys have a high-security prison, for spies, which is a monastery patrolled by monks (!) and the bad guys are escaping from said prison by dousing themselves in a liquid which gives them the properties of a chameleon (so they can hide in plain sight!). I love it.
The opening is unusual in that is goes to great lengths to give Steed an emotional connection to the first two murder victims. Usually, on The Avengers, people are being murdered left, right and center and the script never dwells on the loss of life. It's not how The Avengers works. This one is a tad different. These were Steed's two best friends (we are told) and this personal loss is referenced once or twice later in the episode. Not sure that it works and not sure why the writers bothered. This isn't suitable for The Avengers and including it in the story does nothing for the story. As, by the mid-point, they two dead men, might as well have been any two agents. The friendship angle is never mentioned again. Maybe it had more to do with the fact that Steed was 'showing off' Tara to his oldest friends. Maybe it was about her, not them. I don't know.
Peter Bowles gives a great performance in this one as the lead Bad Guy and all of his scenes with Patrick Macnee are pure heaven to watch. Bowles is superb as the master spy/killer tauting Steed over civilised glasses of vodka.
Linda Thorson is especially beautiful and elegant in this episode. Tara (once again) doesn't work side by side with Steed but she is given plenty of screentime on her own. She makes a lot of the deductive leaps that solves the mystery and the bad guy is very enamoured of her brains in the closing moments of the story.
Due South. Season 3, Episode 2. "Eclipse" is one of my favourite episodes of Due South. It's devoted to the show's new character (Stanley Ray Kowalski) and it's a hoot from start to finish, largely due to the performance of Callum Keith Rennie. Some elements of the story don't work but the ones that do work are so good that they overshadow everything that fails.
Ray is needed back at the precinct to cover for "The Real Ray" in an Internal Affairs Investigation, but he's more concerned with taking the day off to track down a bank robber who affected him deeply when he was a child.
The Internal Affairs Investigation angle of the story doesn't work and seems to be there to create false tension (some place that Ray ought to be). However, everything that happens in the graveyard is great fun. Ray is staking out a funeral waiting for the bank robber to show up to say good-bye to his mother. Fraser tracks him down fairly easily and the two of them have some healthy debates. It's a busy day at the graveyard and - before long - the duo have two crooks, a drunken caretaker and a very odd widow locked up in the crypt with them, on the stakeout, and all six characters are hilarious together, with conversations running the gamut from how attractive Ray is/isn't to the writings of Francis Bacon.
We learn about a lot about Ray in this one, and his love for his ex-wife Stella. We also get to see (again) what a good person Fraser is (and how good a friend he is willing to be). So, in many ways, this episode makes me fall in love with the two men and their friendship/bond and accomplishes everything the convoluted season premier failed to do. After seeing this I was a fan of the show for the first time ever and I was excited about seeing what happened next.
Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Episode 4. "The Vampire" After the misfire of the previous episode, KTNS returns to form with this superb episode. The story is strong (a sequel to the first movie), the bad guy is great and William Daniels makes the first superb Police foe for Kolchak to spar with in the weekly series. Their scenes together are terrific. Each one (the press conference, alone at the crime scene, and after the football players are killed) is capable of being rewatched many times over. I know. I've done it.
As good as the two male leads are, Kathleen Nolan pretty much steals the episode out from under them as the real estate agent that Carl cons into being a journalist to fool Tony. Her scenes with Darren McGavin are hilarious. And the episode has many truly hilarious moments. At one stage Kolchak and Faye pull up at his hotel, he fires her out of the car, yells out the room number and instructs her to "start without me" before he speeds off to the next crime scene. The face of the Doorman is priceless.
This episode is the one where Carl is on assignment in Los Angeles. The way he conned his way onto the assignment is genius/hilarious and all of the phone conversations between Tony (the editor back in Chicago) and Carl (out in LA) are wonderful. My favourite occurs after Carl has submitted the story (written by Faye). Tony (very angry) gets on the phone to Carl and reads back portions of the story that are rubbish. Carl, meanwhile, reading the story for the first time ever at the other end, tries to process what he is reading and - incredibly - justify it to Tony.
As well as being funny, this is a violent episode. Suzanne Charney (who guested with Kathleen Nolan on an episode of The Incredible Hulk) makes a great evil Vampire. Beautiful but scary, her various killing sprees are gripping to watch and the final chase scene (where she tracks Kolchak at high speed through the Hollywood Hills) is a classic. Again, the viewer is reminded that Carl Kolchak is terrified and in a lot of danger. He makes a great Hero. He does what he does to get the story out and defeat the people in power, but he is ill-equipped to the task of Vampire Hunter.
The episode ends with the Iconic image of the cross blazing over LA and the police - of course - charging Kolchak with first-degree murder, as a means of running him out of the city. A classic Kolchak ending.
Highlight? Kolchak (very funny and very violent)
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Wed, Jun 25th, 08 - Greatest American Hero, Avengers, Good Morning Miami, Rescue 77, Due South
07:00 The Greatest American Hero
08:00 The Avengers
09:00 Good Morning Miami
10:30 Rescue 77
11:30 Due South
The Greatest American Hero. Episode 5. "Reseda Rose" The timeframe for all these early episodes is the same: a few short hours. And that excitement factor is part of the considerable appeal of the show: Bill always shows up when Ralph is trying to do something else. And they always rush off leaving other people waiting on them, or with only a few hours before Ralph has to be somewhere/do something. As well as being funny, it adds an extra level of tension to the proceedings. Everything is happening against the clock. Often over the course of one evening.
Factor in the great dialogue between Ralph, Pam and Bill and you have another great episode.
The Avengers. Episode 142. "False Witness" In much the same way that my favourite season of Due South is the last one (the one with unpopular cast changes) my favourite season of The Avengers is also the last one (the one with unpopular cast changes). I adore Tara King. And, by default, Linda Thorson also. I love the type of stories (fantasy-espionage) and the type of relationship between the leads (mentor/pupil). And, in general, the show is inventive and great fun.
Case in point: a story about several people who are saying the exact opposite of what they intend to say. Mysterous. And unfortunate, given that some of them happen to Agents on assignment and others are key witnesses in a major prosecution. All of this mystery is very entertaining. So is the solution: a nefarious organisation drugging the milk supply! If you take your coffee black then you are safe! Great stuff. Steed and Tara mostly mostly work alone in this one, and each comes off very well in the story. The highpoint is the hectic climax with several bad guys (drugged by Steed) running around saying the oppsite of what they mean: Steed's not here, He's not over there, etc.
I came to The Avengers through The New Avengers (which is still my favouite of the two) so I'm used to seeing a Steed who is older and superior. The earlier seasons of the original show always seemed odd to me because of that. And while the Steed-Peel partnership is great fun and - many would say - set the standard by which all male-female partnerships are judged on televisioon, I still get more of a kick from watching Steed with Tara King.
Plus, I've also had a huge crush on her since 1982 (when I first saw the show)!
Good Morning Miami. Episode 1. "Good Morning, Miami" I love this show. Although much maligned, it's hilarious and very, very sweet. In fact, together with Flying Blind and Almost Perfect (both of which I also have on tape) it's one of my favourite three short-lived romantic comedies. Flying Blind is my all-time favourite. And while the romances on these shows aren't quite as special as the ones between David & Maddie, Sam & Diane, Spike & Lynda or Vince & Penny they have still managed to find a special place in my heart.
Good Morning Miami starts when Jake goes along for a job interview for a job he doesn't really want. He has the world at his feet and he isn't taking it seriously at all (he's only in town to visit his grandmother). When he meets a girl called Dylan (who works there) everything changes and he takes the job to be near to her. Later discovering that she has a boyfriend.
It's silly. But so, so romantic. And I loved this show with a passion the moment I first saw Jake staring at Dylan. As time went on, I grew a bit weary of the romance but I grew to love the ensemble more and more with every passing episode (particularly the great Jere Burns as Frank) and I developed a huge crush on Constance Zimmer as Penny. So much so that it is her picture I use on my DVR menus for this show. The picture of her smiling from the Season One opening credits. I don't think I've ever seen a smile as radiant as that.
This first episode is a great first episode. Very romantic, very sweet and very, very funny. Ashley Williams is adorable as Dylan as soon as she walks on screen and it's obvious why Jake falls in love at first sight.
Me? I would have stayed at the front desk chatting with Penny!
Rescue 77. Episode 1. "Rescue 77" Produced and directed by Eric Laneuville, starring Christian Kane, Marjorie Monaghan, Robia LaMorte, Terence Knox and Richard Roundtree Rescue 77 is a collection of the names I most like to see in the credits for anything. I came to it with high expectations from the very beginning and it never disappointed. Indeed one episode has stayed with me for many, many years and can still bring a tear to my eye when I think of it or hear the music from it.
But I'll get to that in a few weeks.
This is about the first episode. And what a great first episode it is. It takes all the old rescue-show clichés and mixes them up to give you a whole new show. I grew up watching shows like Code R, 240-Robert and Chopper Squad and this one is every bit as good as all those.
Kathleen Ryan returns to active duty in the opening minutes of the story and is reunited with her old partners on the Emergency Medical Service. Wick Lobo is the daring one, creative on the job and crazy off the job. Michael Bell is the quite solid one, he's got a romantic interest in a nurse but he's taking his time with the pursuit. Kathleen, we learn, burned out on the job after a particularly rough rescue in which several children perished. But she's back now. And together they form a credible team. Their first day together (again) finds them saving a worker from under collapsed debris and a pilot from a crashed plane. All these scenes are exciting and fun to watch. The main thrust of the story - however - involves a woman who is being beaten by her boyfriend. The team befriend her, but are later called back to find her shot and dying. Her final moments of life are truly sad. She asks Kathleen if she will die. And Kathleen tells her the truth.
On paper it probably sounds awful, but this was a special show, and a great first episode. The cast had terrific chemistry and the show's fantasy elements (Wick's crazy way to save the man in the tunnel) are balanced with good human drama and a real-world perspective on the place of paramedics within the system.
The show also had two great themes: Early episodes and later episodes.
Due South. Season 3, Episode 1. "Burning Down The House" In much the same way that my favourite season of The Avengers is the last one (the one with unpopular cast changes) my favourite season of Due South is also the last one (the one with unpopular cast changes). I love the Due South pilot. I was living in Canada when it first aired and I remember being very excited and moved by it when it first aired. As the weeks wore on I liked the show less and less. I never warmed to David Marciano in this or in anything else. Eventually I stopped watching. When the show re-started in 1997 with Callum Keith Rennie I tried the first few episodes and totally fell in love with show. Not just for Rennie (although he is the best thing in the show) I also think the show has found it's feet completely by this time and is comfortable with some very extreme fantasy storylines and elements (Fraser's ghostly father being the most obvious example).
Written by series star (the wonderful Paul Gross) this episode is - for me - one of the weakest in the season. The central conceit (that nobody will stop and tell Fraser what is going on) bugs me. I don't buy it. But, in all other respects, the episode works a treat. Gross is hilarious and heroic in equal measure. Rennie feels like he's always been there, and the support cast are great too.
Highlight? Rescue 77
