Tuning in to SciFi TV #399

1. Starting to flag a bit on ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D’. I also get easily wearied by the split-up team scenario. It feels like filler until the band gets back together. I’m not coming at this as a comics fan, so I’m not particularly jazzed yet about Ghost Rider. Cool VFX, I suppose, but he’s not a character that means much to me. Must be hard to make these things compelling in the writer’s room when they have to consider folks like me who don’t know these characters and just want good story. I like the interplay between the English scientist and Fitz, though.

   I may be getting quite close to done with superhero shows, on reflection. The fun part is the discovery and introduction. By the time they get too far into the relationship melodramas, I’m just about cooked. Like with Arrow.

   ‘Aftermath’ premiere… wow, had a hard time getting through it. I’m not sure I have the patience for it. I don’t think I’m up for the supernatural element. It’s an uncomfortable mix. But I know you guys had a more positive reaction, so I stuck it out until the end credits. I’ll give it one or two more episodes, but if it’s too full of the family versus possessed raging a-holes – that’s just too bleak, and so far I’m not jamming with any of the characters.

   In a similar vein (and perhaps the reason for my lack of enthusiasm for ‘Aftermath’) I gave up The Walking Dead at the end of what felt like a painfully long ramp-up to Negan last seaon. I just couldn’t do Negan, man. Another frikkin’ maniac in a show that just recycles endlessly. I want to know what’s happening (scientifically) and I want to see it get better. It can’t just be more torture-porn without resolution.

   Looking forward to seeing where Lucifer goes. Not really my kind of show (angels, gods, and awkward quasi-religious references) but the lead makes it work.

   Holding off on ‘The Exorcist’ until my wife gets back from a work trip. I’m not a horror guy, either, as a rule. The trailers looked compelling and I’m just curious to see what Geena Davis brings to it.

   As for upcoming new shows, I like the premise of ‘Timeless’, but it’s hard to tell if it’ll come out swinging. ‘Frequency’ might have a lot of charm going for it. It’s ‘Westworld’, however, that looks like the surest bet. I just re-watched the 1973 movie. As simple and cheesy as it was, I loved it as an artifact of the times and can see how much farther the new production can go with Crichton’s original story. And the best thing is, less outright fantasy elements, more SF!

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