SciFiEmpire.net - Your site for everything on Science-Fiction

Enterprise season 2 Blu-ray arrives August 20th!

May 242013

Now that Star Trek Into Darkness has hit the cinema’s there is almost a Star Trek craze that I feel wasn’t there 4 years ago. That said, Star Trek Into Darkness has received some mixed reviews that seem to have repercussions for its box-office earnings. Generally there is a feeling that the plot is a bit bloated in some areas while the character development is minimal. None of that matters when Enterprise season 2 finally comes to Blu-ray on august 20th. I had hoped the disc-set would come sooner but the date would have to do. My own recollections of season 2 are somewhat hazy, it pretty much continuous where season 1 left off but doesn’t have the innovations of season 3 yet. From that point of view it is somewhat the runt of the litter. Despite the viewership dropping during this season its quality is solid. Meaning that each episode does what it does well but there are few storytelling surprises.

However, just like season 1 this season also makes the error of introducing a species before the canon timeline that fans support. The episode ‘Regeneration’ deals with the Borg when one of their spacecraft is found in the ice of Antarctic. Unlike the season 1 episode ‘Acquisition’ that deals with the Ferengi there is little to forgive in this episode.

Now that the worst of season 2 has been mentioned. I am personally looking forward to the episode ‘The Seventh’ which is centered on T’Pol (Jolene Blalock). The episode pretty much brings her emotional state out into the open which will have consequences in all the later T’Pol episodes.

For season 2 CBS has released a trailer showing scenes from fan favorite episodes…

Yes, it does mention ‘Regeneration’. Thank god the season is 26 episodes long!

Below you can see the cover art for the Blu-ray set. I think it is quite handsome. It keeps the style of season 1 while also adding slight touches to make it special. Did you notice the Enterprise in the lower foreground departing earth? The old season 2 cover art was comparatively bland and used a season 1 promo still. Something fans thought was very cheap. Interestingly the trailer makes use of the old cover!

Enterprise season 2 Blu-ray cover – Jolene Blalock as T’pol and Scott Bakula as Jonathan Archer

Well until more details are released by CBS stay tuned to SciFiEmpire.

Source; www.trekcore.com

Warehouse 13 S4E14 ‘The Sky’s the Limit’ Review!

TV-series No Responses »

May 212013

Warehouse 13 Polly Walker targets Claudia

Polly Walker targets Claudia with a Blackberry

Warehouse 13 has been back for its second half of season 4 for two episodes now. Honestly, the series had kind of popped off my radar screen as Defiance, Continuum and Revolution are also on. To make matters worse, the first episode was one very big dud. However, last’s weeks episode ‘The Big Snag’ was one of the more enjoyable outings as Pete and Myka found themselves locked into 1940′s crime novel. The quality of the production was definitely noteworthy.

This weeks episode is entitled ‘The Sky’s the Limit’ and is rather straight up WH-13 fare. The episode is essentially split into three storylines. Steve and Claudia travel to the UK to look into the mysterious death of several racing jockey’s while Myka and Pete investigate a magician who levitates people in Las Vegas. Both storylines are basic stuff though the jokes and innuendo are quite memorable. Sadly, the buffoonery of Pete is just a bit over the top.

Abigail

However, it is really Artie’s storyline that is the main focus of the episode. Artie is of course still dealing with his inadvertent betrayal that acted as the background for the first half of the season. His guilt is starting to make him self-destructive which causes the warehouse’s Regents to appoint a caretaker for the inn. Abigail (the new caretaker) also happens to be a psychiatrist which upsets Artie as well as her casual disregard for the warehouse artifacts. The role of Abigail is to set Artie straight for the rest of the season. Personally I think this is done far too forcefully and some scenes really screamed at me. The character of Abigail seems to fit Warehouse 13 well enough but we will have to wait for more episodes to see of the shows creative staff can make her shine or that she just remains neurotic.

Joanne Kelly as Myka Bering in 40′s dress

Polly Walker is also introduced as Charlotte Dupres the new villain in this episode, but her scenes are so brief and campy that it is too early to form a good opinion. So far the show has lacked believable villains for most of its duration. With Jaime Murray’s character H.G Wells being a notable exception. Lets hope the creative staff can do something about that. Polly Walker’s credentials from Rome does speak for itself.

Score; 7.5 / 10. Entertaining but uneven episode of Warehouse 13. If you haven’t seen last week’s episode, then I suggest you see it first.

PS, Warehouse 13 will be back in two weeks and Jaime Murray will return as well!

Source; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warehouse_13

Star Trek Into Darkness Review!

TV-series No Responses »

May 192013

Finally I have been able to see Star Trek Into Darkness in at the cinema. If it wasn’t just only for the fact that I am a veritable Trekkie that I wanted to see it but also to finally be able to put aside the continuous promotion of the movie that has gone on for weeks now. Star Trek Into Darkness is of course J.J. Abrams second Star Trek outing. It acts as a sequel to the 2009 movie that significantly raised the stakes for the franchise. Star Trek Into Darkness is a very good movie, probably one of Star Trek’s best, but it does come with strings attached. To read why and answer the question whether you should open your wallet to see it I suggest you head below. But beware, there are SPOILERS ahead.

The Movie…

Star Trek’s strength in storytelling has always rested on dealing with current world issues in ways that confront its audience. Star Trek: The Original Series mostly picked social issues such as racism and sexuality while The Next Generation shifted to sexuality and gender issues. However, the Star Trek movies rarely choose to involve social issues but instead picked current world affairs as their background setting. The most successful Star Trek movies; Star Trek 2: The Wrath of Khan, Star Trek 4: The Voyage Home and Star Trek 6: The Undiscovered Country are excellent examples of this. Especially Star Trek 2 and 6 stand out for their plot on nuclear disarmament and the end of the cold war . So, it can hardly be surprising that Star Trek Into Darkness also has a topic related to current affairs. J.J. Abrams’s pick was terrorism. Unfortunately the audience is all too well familiar with it after more than a decade of terrorism and the recent Boston Bombings. As such it will be difficult to say whether the audience will see topic as a premise gimmick or can truly relate to the events of the movie.

Despite the choice of topic, the acts of terrorism are only the background story of the first half of the movie. After which it is revealed by the villain who perpetrated them, John Harrison, that he is in fact Khan Noonien Singh (Benedict Cumberbatch) (KHAAAaaannn). He was unfrozen from his sleeping pod onboard the Botany Bay about a year before after Starfleet started aggressively expanding into the universe. Khan started making weapons for Admiral Marcus (Peter Weller) who plans to use them to curb Klingon aggression. Thus, in comes the second villain, Admiral Marcus. Unfortunately he does not make for a very convincing villain and the only onscreen gratification the audience gets is when Khan crushes his head between his hands in front of the Admiral’s daughter Carol Marcus (Alice Eve). Then for about 10 more minutes Khan is the villain as he tries to shoot down the Enterprise with the Admiral’s secret warship.

Now, if your thinking that Star Trek Into Darkness has a slightly convoluted plot. Well, you would be right! It is difficult to get a sense of what the movie wants to do. Does it want to prove Khan’s acts as he tries to save his crew members from cryo-stasis or does it want to follow Admiral Marcus and his quest to make Starfleet stronger. Personally I like Khan’s storyline more, but we hardly learn much about him. In fact, you would have to see The Wrath of Khan to do that. Benedict Cumberbatch of course plays the perfect Khan, full of arrogant self-confidence yet with a sense of worldly experience that all the other characters lack. From Khan’s own words we learn what has happened to him. Sadly, that feels slightly shoe-horned into the script to answer any questions the audience might have. Khan survives the end of the movie. He is put back into cryo-stasis so we will probably see him again.

So, when it comes to the central storyline of Star Trek Into Darkness I would say it lacks a sense of direction and focus. As for the other characters, it focusses mostly on Kirk and Spock, but they are hardly further developed. If anything, all the characters lack a sense of development in the movie. We see them go through the motions as though they are simply needed to be there to make this a Star Trek movie. The secondary Star Trek characters, Uhura, Bones, Chekov, Sulu and Scotty are sadly underutilized. Bones has a lot of memorable one-liners while Scotty manages to partly act as the character for the audience to relate to but it is hardly convincing. As I have said before in some articles, Star Trek belongs on TV. For a movie there is simply not enough time to drive the characters into one particular direction. And as Star Trek movies now on average take about 4 years to make we are probably only going to see 2 more before thee cast is retired. As such we either see no character development or too much in one movie! The 2009 Star Trek movie managed to do much better in that respect.

The Visuals…

Sure, one area where Star Trek Into Darkness does not disappoint are the visuals. The special effects and the world of Star Trek are created convincingly and with style. The movie is set at times in cities on earth and the creative staff have taken their time to create them in a sort of 60′s futuristic style. Sadly, we do not learn much about this world and the people that inhabit them. That also reflects on the movie characters as the audience can not relate to them. Again, a Star Trek series on TV might offer the time to do that for the audience.

While it is suggested that you see the movie in 3D I personally think that the scenes that make that worthwhile are just shoe-horned into the movie.

Conclusion…

Ultimately, Star Trek Into Darkness feels something of a hollow experience. Benedict Cumberbatch is great as khan and I hope we will se more of him. However, I feel both a lack of character development and a lack of knowledge of the Star Trek Universe as a drain on the experience. I hope Star Trek will be back soon, either on TV or in cinema’s. J.J Abrams may not be back for another director’s role as he is busy with the upcoming Star Wars movie.

Score; 7.8 / 10. An OK Star Trek outing, but could have been so much better if it didn’t aim so high.

Iron Man 3 Review!

Film No Responses »

May 152013

Fans are finally able to watch the third Iron Man installment in cinema’s. After the disappointing second movie and the fantastic The Avengers expectations for Iron Man 3 were high. For the most part those expectations have been fulfilled, but there are a few wrinkles here and there. I like this movie more than I did the original Iron Man mainly because of its depth. However, the movies villains are just as shallow and un-memorable as before. As per the fact that I was able see the movie in cinema’s myself there is now a review here on SciFiEmpire.net.

The Movie…

Iron Man 3 at first follows a very popular plot premise. The hero, in this case Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark, is down on his luck. He is suffering from nightmares after his near death experience in The Avengers and neither his girlfriend Pepper nor Colonel Rhodes (Don Cheadle) can get to him. Finally after his friend and bodyguard Happy Hogan (John Favreau) is critically injures in a terrorist bomb blast does Tony snap out of it and pursues the villain the Mandarin. Quite quickly Tony is attacked by the Mandarin gunships and the world believes him dead as his Iron Man suit flies him to rural Tennessee. As Tony tries to uncover the plot of the Mandarin bombings a surprising twist leads the trail back to himself and scientist Aldrich Killian.

Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts and Guy Peace as Aldrich Killian

Well, I believe that gives readers just a basic overview of what Iron Man 3 is about without spoiling too much. As stated before Iron Man 3 follows a hero who has essentially fallen from his pedestal and needs to reconsider his past choices before he can get better. If you think it sounds similar to events from The Dark Knight Rises than you would be right. However, in this film we see Tony’s not trying to be Iron Man again but Tony Stark again. The film succeeds handsomely in this reverse hero’s journey. In fact, the storyline of the villains The Mandarin and Aldrich Killian seems rather goofy in comparison. From that point of view the Iron Man movies have suffered from a lack of recognizable villain ever since Jeff Bridges played Obadiah Shane in the original Iron Man of 2008.

Both Ben Kingsley and Guy Pearce play there respective parts as best as they can. The roles they played certainly weren’t easy. Guy Pearce’s character Aldrich Killian is especially near the end somewhat unbelievable. There the movie is mainly saved by Gwyneth Paltrow and her character Pepper Potts as the audience start to sympathize with her. Also actor William Sadler merits special mention as President Ellis.

Robert Downey Jr. plays his role of Tony Stark better than in any movie before. Both the actor and the character seem to have matured since the start of the series. The movie takes a long time to explore the root of Tony’s problems and as such his character development feels authentic. The viewer thus manages to relate to him similar to the way they did in the first Iron Man movie. The last scene of the movie in which Tony has managed to discard his miniature arc reactor in his chest and has destroyed all the Iron Man suits seems an appropriate end for a hero.

Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark

On the internet much has been made about actress Gwyneth Paltrow and her character Pepper Potts. I think it merits a special paragraph…

At this moment it can be confidently stated that we are in the middle of the Third Feminist Wave. The character off Pepper Potts played by Gwyneth Paltrow has been seen by some commentators as an example of a woman that conforms to the latest ideals of female independence and empowerment. Ever since the movie Alien sci-fi has had a love for strong women. At times this merely meant physical strength or onscreen promiscuous sexuality. Almost always this was accompanied by a rather scantily Hollywood dress code involving high heels and tight skirts. Women complained because of perceived sexual objectification. Fans complained as their favorite characters were altered to increase sex-appeal. Strangely enough the character of Pepper Potts is not immediately different from the ones that were criticized before. Pepper wears pencil skirts and Louboutin high heels but in a world were women are sometimes insulted for their feminine attire her looks are surprisingly independent and appealing. This is backed up by her actions. Since the second Iron Man movie from 2010 Pepper has been CEO of Stark Enterprises. A place that often puts her head to head with Tony. Gwyneth Paltrow has since the first Iron Man movie pretty much owned the role of Pepper Potts. Her real-life commentary on women’s issues allows her to play a mature independent business woman with much conviction. Pepper’s role in this movie is much expanded from the first two Iron Man movies as well as The Avengers. You can almost state that the movie is split in two as the storylines follows both Tony and Pepper closely. The scene were Gwyneth Paltrow briefly dons Tony’s Iron Man suit was over far too soon. It was sad that we did not see her transform into her superhero alter ego ‘Rescue’. It is also sad that both Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert Downey Jr. have stated that this could be their last Iron Man movie.

Pepper Potts with iron man mask

The Visuals…

For the most part the visuals in Iron Man 3 are good, even very good. However, just like some instances in Iron Man 2 and The Avengers there are moments were the person wearing the iron man suit looks fake. Those scenes do distracts a bit. For the most part the action scenes are well choreographed but often they do last a bit long. This causes the viewer to lose track of what is happening and thus the suspense of disbelief is sometimes ruined. However, for the most part the action scenes contrast nicely with scenes that move the plot along. As such it is not the action rollercoaster rides that films studios have come up with like the Spiderman sequels or Pirates of The Caribbean.

Conclusion…

Iron Man 3 is very good summer action flick. I have seen it once and will definitely get the Blu-ray disc because I belief the subtle plot points are worth a second and third viewing. I think it is the best Iron Man movie yet. It is of courser better than the second but it beats the first when it comes to character development. Gwyneth Paltrow acting needs particular praise, though we didn’t see her character Pepper Potts transform into ‘Rescue’. She is also no longer the Hollywood damsel in distress which I saw in the first two Iron Man movies. Director Shane Black has managed to beat fan expectations in my opinion.

Score; 8.3 / 10.

: Gwyneth Paltrow in naked dress Iron Man 3

: Gwyneth Paltrow Iron Man 3 premiere

: Gwyneth Paltrow in nude dress Iron Man 3 premiere

: Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert Downey Jr. at Iron Man 3 Premiere

: Robert Downey Jr Iron Man 3 Premiere

Defiance gets renewed for second season by Syfy!

Computer Games, TV-series No Responses »

May 132013

After just 5 episodes into its first season Syfy has already given its news flagship show Defiance the benefit of the doubt. Syfy has renewed the show for another 13-episodes that will start airing in 2014.

The announcement is surprising for several reasons. So far the quality has been uneven. A lot of viewers are confused about the background world. A situation that echoes what happened with Farscape 10 years back. Also the ratings have so far been steadily dropping over the course of 5 episodes. The last episode gaining 2.19 million viewers. Personally I only became enthusiastic about the show after seeing the fifth episode ‘A Well Respected Man’. If you gave up on Defiance before that, than I suggest you read the review here on SciFiEmpire.net.

Though I am happy that Syfy has renewed the show the reason has probably more to do with business than with success. There is of course also an MMO to be considered. It would an epic failure if the first TV-series/MMO tie-in would fail after just one season. As for the MMO, it has it fair share of deficiencies but fans have come to appreciate it.

Defiance will be back tonight with the episode ‘The Serpent’s Egg’ starring Grant Bowler, Jaime Murray, Tony Curran, Julie Benz and Stephanie Leonidas.

Source; www.Blastr.com

Defiance ep4 ‘A Well Respected Man’ review!

TV-series No Responses »

May 082013

Datak and Nolan do some investigating

A Well Respected Man is the fourth episode of Defiance (5 if you count the pilot as 2). So far the show has been mediocre at best and tedious as worst. Luckily this weeks episode turns that around. It is quick, brisk and has a lot of character development. It also manages to portray some events from the pilot, such as Luke’s death, as a bit more mysterious than what it might have been at first glance. I like this episode, I hope you will too. If Defiance can live up to this weeks quality than I say we have one damn good show to watch for the foreseeable future.

Ulysses – The Bioman

As for the story of ‘A Well Respected Man’…

Nolan intercepts a shipment of weapons being transferred by two of Datak Tarr’s men; unknown to both Nolan and Amanda, the town council had made a deal with Datak to arrange for weapons to be delivered to the town after the loss of the shield generator. Nolan’s relationship with Amanda’s sister Kenya develops, somewhat to Amanda’s displeasure. Kenya and one of her girls are kidnapped by Ulysses, the bioman employed by Datak as a prizefighter; he is kidnapping street people and taking them to a human lab technician, Miko (guest star Robin Dunne), who is harvesting their adrenalin to use as an illegal drug. Nolan and Amanda clash with Datak to get her back, but he refuses to help; Stahma Tarr suggests to Amanda that she show respect to Datak by making him a member of the town council. With grudging help from Datak, Nolan locates the lab; meanwhile Kenya has realizes that her wanderings in a maze, pursued by a Volge, are a virtual reality, escapes and kills Miko. Nolan, Irisa and Amanda arrive in time to save Kenya from the Ulysses. Rafe and Quentin descend into the sealed shaft where Luke had found the strange object, and discover a set of disturbing cave paintings featuring the object. Datak takes his seat on the council and Nolan realizes that Stahma is the more dangerous of the two.

Nolan and Amanda at the Tarr’s

Conclusion…

‘A Well Respected Man’ is an excellent episode of Defiance that furthers the story for pretty much all of the main characters. For Datak (Tony Curran), McCawley (Graham Greene) and Amanda (Julie Benz) this is certainly true. Not only do we learn more about them they now also have a likeable edge to them. However, the focus on multiple characters also means that the episode makes some big jumps.

After Datak’s nocturnal tirade against Nolan and Amanda he is suddenly his calm self again the next day. By the end of the episode Datak becomes one of council members for Defiance which is quite a leap from the start of the episode. McCawley meanwhile transforms from a xenophobic man with a big mouth into a father figure with a can-do attitude. As for Amanda and her sister Kenya (Mia Kirshner). Their past problems with their mother during the war may be gripping, but it does seem that the audience gets a lot less out of it because we don’t really know them well enough. It is a story you would expect to see just before the finale of a season and not so early on.

As for sheriff Nolan (Grant Bowler), he is being his normal likable self. He seems to be able to carry the show even if he is not center stage. It was a shame that his daughter Irisa did not make an appearance in the episode.

As for the alien races collectively knows as the Votan, we don’t really know enough about them yet and when actors refer to them I do have problems with visualizing them. Something in the viewer experience is lost because of this.

One major visual problem with the episode is that it was clear that Tony Curran (Datak Tarr) wasn’t wearing his white make-up below the neck line. Jaime Murray on the other hand seems to have taken up body painting ever since the shows pilot. Her character Stahma has so far remained my favorite on the show. The shear level of depth the character that she portrays will take numerous seasons to fully unravel.

Score; 8 / 10. Excellent episode though some characters are spread a little thin.

Ender’s Game trailer released!

Film No Responses »

May 082013

A few weeks ago I gave a small preview on Ender’s Game after several still pictures were released. Last week a teaser trailer was released but today we are also the happy recipient of the full trailer for Ender’s Game. The movie is scheduled for a November 1st release in the US and will star Asa Butterfield (Hugo) as Ender Wiggin, Harrison Ford as Colonel Graff and Hailee Steinfeld as Petra Arkanian. Last week along with the teaser trailer a still was released showing Ben Kingsley as Mazer Rackham. After his appearance in Iron Man 3 I think it is a good idea that he remains to do such high profile movies. Ben Kingsley also visually seems to resemble the Mazer Rackham from the novel very closely. And to think that Will Smith was once mulled for the part!

Well, without further ado. Here is the trailer for Ender’s Game.

Now that is what I call a trailer. If you want to see it in cinema’s than buy a ticket for Star Trek Into Darkness as it will be shown with that movie.

The song heard in the trailer is of course from Tron Legacy!. It is quickly becoming the standard fare for trailer and sneak peeks.

Below is that still picture of Ben Kingsley that I owed you…

Ben Kingsley as Mazer Rackham

Source; www.collider.com

Continuum S2Ep3 ‘Second Thoughts’ Review!

TV-series No Responses »

May 062013

Last weeks episode of Continuum was hardly the shows best. The plot felt a bit too forced as the writers tried to push the characters into a new direction. Alec quitting his job to work for Kellog and Liber8 turning on each other are examples. However, against all odds this weeks episode of Continuum is able to capitalize on this new situation by seriously putting every character out of their comfort zone. I must warn anyone before viewing this episode, there is some serious violence, gore and mind-fucking going on in ‘Second Thoughts’.

The plot of ‘Second Thoughts’…

In a flashback to 2077 we see Kiera (Rachel Nichols) having trouble keeping her younger sister from using a very dangerous drug. This drug allows people to relive their most intense memories. In the present Alec’s friend are also using this ‘newfound’ drug and call it Flash. Alec (Erik Knudsen) doesn’t use it but does allow his friend to drive and they subsequently get into an accident.

Vancouver is meanwhile being gripped by a series of gang assassinations. The problem of the drug ‘flash’ seems to only add to the list. Jason, the time-traveler revealed in the season 1 finale has a warning for Carlos that there are freelancers at work. Carlos (Victor Webster) doesn’t understand the warning but seems to think Jason is an informant of Kiera.

Julian’s stepmother Ann visits him in prison. She says that the bombing killed a number of CEO’s of pharmaceutical companies that wished to form a illegal monopoly on hard to get drugs. Kiera meanwhile pushes Kellog to leave Alec alone. Something he refuses to do as they are teaming up to change the future.

Kiera finally seems to make time for Jason. While questioning him about ‘freelancers’ he tells her that pretty much all the big inventions of the past were brought from the future. Kiera seems skeptical but does listen to his warning that there are more time-travelers from the future here in the present.

Alec meanwhile visits one of his friends that was injured in the car crash. He asks her if it is really possible to see the past in a completely lucid state. She says it is but warns him that the past might seem to be better than it really was for real. It is later shown that Alec has kept some of the drug for himself. Kellog meanwhile wants to know what Alec’s answer is to his offer.

After Carlos and Kiera’s failed discussion with the gang leaders they track the car the gangsters are using with a tracker that Kiera planted. This takes them to the warehouse Sonya is using to make the drug ‘flash’. Despite Carlos’s objection Kiera decides to take down Sonya. After a lengthy gunfight Sonya manages to escape while Kiera seems to be overwhelmed by the number of gang members. Carlos and Kiera finally manage to put down the shooters and take the warehouse.

After Sonya loses her drug lab we see Travis entering a gang nightclub. With a dozen guns trained on him he proclaims himself to be the new head of all the gangs of Vancouver. To proof his power he opens the case he brought along with him and presents the three heads of the previous gang leaders. One by one the gang soldiers lower their guns showing that they accept him as their new leader.

Alec finally manages the courage to take ‘flash’. While in a lucid dream state he see presumably his father. As the man turns it is shown to be Jason.

Julian while incarcerated is protected by a quick succession of gangs. After Travis manages to become head of the underworld we see this change of guard presumably for the last time.

The last scene of the episode shows Kiera’s younger sister dancing on the ledge of a building, despite Kiera’s pleas she jumps to her death.

Conclusion…

This episode is just fantastic on so many levels. Not only does it continue the surprising level of violence (for a mainstream show), it also shows how drugs can affect everyone’s life so intensely and disturbingly. This episode pretty much moves everyone firmly into the dark side, even Kiera and Alec. For the first time the show acknowledges the possibility that Kiera will never make it back to 2077, or at least, the 2077 as she knew it.

The major gunfight between Kiera, Carlos and Sonya with her gangbangers is the most intense and realistic that I have ever seen on a TV-show. The violence proofs to viewers that bullets really do kill. The choreography shows that the director really does know what he is doing. Alas, I am not familiar with any other credentials of William Waring, but if you are, then check out his work!

The scene whereby Travis becomes the de facto head of all the crime syndicates by presenting the heads of the bosses to his soldiers was totally unexpected and came as a big shock. Only TV-series such as Hannibal show the same level of gore while shows such as Game of Throne tend to be a little bit clean in comparison (preferring nudity instead). The scene is effective in establishing the Travis/Sonya faction of Liber8 as the most violent one while Sonya and Lucas actually swear off associating with gangs. As such the lines have been drawn in the sand. The rest of the season will show us how things unravel.

After Alec takes the drug ‘flash’ it is shown that his mother knew Jason, the time traveler revealed in the season one finale. That Jason is Alec’s father has not yet been established but it is strongly alluded to. I am not sure if I find that revelation at all convincing because if so time-line organization becomes very difficult. I already have difficulty in believing that Kagame blew up the building in 2012. Because, if during the very first 2012 timeline he was just being born than Julian would have fulfilled his destiny by performing the bombing, yet we see Julian as being alive in 2077. If you enjoy reasoning about this (if you enjoy mind-fucks that is), then you should definitely view this episode.

The episode did have a number of issues. Julian’s incarceration seems to offer little of interest to viewers. The visit of his stepmother in prison was a surprise as was her approval of the deaths of 5 CEO’s of pharmaceutical companies in the terrorist blast of the first season’s finale. Perhaps future episodes can straighten things out. One question that needs answering is why she choose to marry Julian’s father Roland as she before seemed to show little interest in his anti-capitalist beliefs.

Score; 9 / 10. Showcase and Syfy try to make some good TV, for a change….

Source; http://www.showcase.ca/continuum/

Person of Interest ‘God mode’ Preview!

TV-series No Responses »

May 052013

I am glad to see that the Person of Interest finale scheduled for Thursday evening is so hotly anticipated by viewers online. As I mentioned in last weeks review of Zero Day PoI had some problems during the middle of its second season with character being killed off just because the actors playing them had scheduling conflicts. At this moment PoI is in as special sweet spot when it comes to plot development. So much so that a part of me is sad to see it unravel in the upcoming episode and season 3.

Before all that happens there is of course season 2′s finale entitled ‘God mode’. The phrase ‘God mode’ of course refers to a special cheat code used in old-school shooters that give players unlimited ammo and health. With regards to PoI it supposedly give users of The Machine not only total control but also the ability to ask it any question they want. If that were to happen PoI would definitely put a solid foot in the sci-fi genre that has so far only been hinted at.

‘God mode’ was written by the shows creator Jonathan Nolan. Alas he won’t be directing it.

Without further ado, here is the trailer for God mode…

Here is also the official synopsis for the episode…

“God Mode” – Reese and Finch team up with surprising allies in a race to save The Machine from a familiar, nefarious entity, and the true nature of Finch’s relationship with former partner Nathan Ingram is revealed. Meanwhile, Carter tries to bring Beecher’s murderer to justice and finds herself at odds with the criminal organization HR on the second season finale of PERSON OF INTEREST, Thursday, May 9 (9:00 – 10:00 PM, ET/PT) on the CBS Television Network. Carrie Preston, Amy Acker, Sarah Shahi, Brett Cullen, Jay O. Sanders and Enrico Colantoni guest star.

Source; http://www.spoilertv.com/2013/04/person-of-interest-episode-222-god-mode.html

Person of Interest ‘Zero Day’ Review!

TV-series No Responses »

May 032013

This is the review of Zero Day, the first to last episode of Person of Interests second season. While this season has been notably bumpier than the first I am happy to say that the show has been able to get itself back on track. At this moment the sow seems to suffer more from having to many factions and characters than too few. As such this episode excludes some of those for brevity’s sake. Then again, we don’t want every storyline to be resolved now do we?

The plot of Zero Day…

The episode starts with Finch (Michael Emerson) and Reese (Jim Caviezel) eagerly waiting for a new number. As ‘The Machine’ has been infected with a virus they haven’t gotten one in over 10 days. Reese resorts to shadowing the police in order to protect those who might get murdered, but he is mostly failing. Detective Carter (Taraji P. Henson) investigates the homicide of some of Elias’s men. Officer Marconi offers her his sympathies for Cal Beecher’s murder. She of course doesn’t know he murdered him. Carter spots Reese and asks why the hasn’t been able to stop any of the murders. She further warns him that the Russian mafia is starting to make more inroads in the underworld.

In Washington DC we see the Special Council making inquires about why The Machine hasn’t been offering any numbers. He states that the entire terrorist surveillance program is in jeopardy. Afterwards Root (Amy Acker), who had been working for him as a secretary, reveals herself and interrogates the Special Council at gunpoint. Finch has in the meantime finally received a number from The Machine, a Mr. Thornhill is either the victim or the perpetrator of a murder. However, Finch can find very little about the man as he has a small digital footprint. Finch does discovers that Thornhill has bought up payphone companies in New York.

Both Finch and Reese decide to visit the company that Thornhill runs but are told that a meeting is out of the question. While there Finch sees people typing in masses of code by hand after it gets printed on paper. Root meanwhile phones Finch, she warns him that she knows that ‘The Machine’ is in danger. She further taunts Finch by asking if he has found out who Thornhill is yet. A flashback to 2010 shows Finch talking about his future with Nate Ingram (Brett Cullen). Ingram encourages him to pursue an ordinary life but warns him that revealing his past might cause a lot of problems. It is alludes that Finch is wanted by the government for sedition. When Ingram leaves to get a drink Finch notices that Ingram’s smart-phone has got texts from The Machine on it.

Back in the present Finch discovers that Thornhill has rented a taxi to take him from the airport. While Reese shadows him he notices that another man is doing the same. Reese is too late to prevent the man from using a drone to attack the taxi, but the Reese quickly discovers that Thornhill wasn’t in the taxi. Finch deduces that Thornhill doesn’t exist. The Machine made him up to make people manually reboot the system by typing in code. A flashback shows Finch proposing to Grace, he seems ready to make a change to his life but also seems to have doubt.

In the present Carter discusses with Reese the problems with the mob and Beecher’s murder. Finch meanwhile receives another text from Root. As the message has come from a place close to where Grace lives Finch fears that Root might harm her. While Reese is staking out Thornhill’s apartment to find out who wanted to kill him Finch makes an emergency call saying that there is an armed man in Thornhill’s apartment. Reese manages to talk to ex-CIA hitwoman Samantha Shaw (Sarah Shahi) about the problems with The Machine before he is arrested.

Carter is meanwhile tipped off by Marconi about whereabouts of Beecher’s assassin. At the park near Grace’s home Root questions Finch about what happens when the timer runs out at midnight. Finch says that a reboot sequence will occur that will wipe the virus from The Machine, but The Machine will also make a phone call to a payphone to give the listener administrative rights. Root quickly calls it the Godmode. The two make an uneasy alliance against the people who want to control The Machine themselves. This group was previously identified as Decima Technologies. Root however let’s it slip that she doesn’t appreciate how Finch tried to limit The Machine abilities.

A flashback to 2010 show Finch following Nathan Ingram. In an abandoned library Finch confronts him about the numbers. Nathan admits he built-in a backdoor into The Machine. So now he also gets social security numbers of people involved in violent crimes other than terrorism. After an argument in Finch makes it clear the government would want to kill Nathan over what he has done he shuts the backdoor down. As he leaves The Machine send one more number, that of Nathan Ingram though both fail to see it.

In the present Root and Finch walk through Manhattan watching as hired thugs from Decima Technologies are guarding every payphone in sight. While in police custody Reese is visited by Samantha Shaw. She tells him that it was Finch who gave the tipoff that got him arrested. Shaw questions whether Finch had anything to do with The Machine breaking down. Reese says he will want to ask Finch that very same question. Together they manage to escape from the police station.

When Root and Finch have broken into Thornhill’s office Finch tells her he made sure The Machine couldn’t grow beyond everyone’s control. He had built a purge mechanism whereby the last 24 hours of surveillance would be wiped out as well as what The Machine had learned from it. Except the information of open case files related to terrorism and homicide. Root thinks he has harmed The Machine by building such a mechanism. Finch contends that the Thornhill operation maybe a rudimentary way for The Machine to bypass the mechanism.

Carter meanwhile finds Beecher’s assassin and kills him when he draws a gun. After on no gun is found when Internal Affairs shows up Carter appears to be set up.

Later on Reese and Shaw also break into Thornhill’s office only to find Greer there. He states what it is as stake, complete control of The Machine. However, he also states that it was Finch who has sold him the virus to take control in the first place. The virus that was on the laptop that Kara Stanton and Reese had been ordered to retrieve from Ordos, China.

Near midnight, Finch and Root enter the library in which they know The Machine will make its call. Cleverly Finch reroutes the call to a phone not guarded by Greer’s men. At the stroke of 12 Root takes the call. Finch also reroutes the call to Reese and Shaw, thus leaving in doubt as to whom has access to The Machine as it reboots.

Conclusion…

Zero Day is an excellent episode to lead the audience into the season finale of next week. It is tightly written and in 43 minutes a lot happens. It is a shame that Fusco (Kevin Chapman) couldn’t part of it. As is, there might have been a few too many characters in this episode already. While the revelations about Finch creating the virus and Nathan Ingram trying to protect would-be murder victims are cleverly done they do lose some impact because they were already alluded to before. Carter’s hunt for Beecher’s murderer wasn’t too exciting I fear. Her worries about the Russian Mafia probably means that we can guess what new antagonists will show up next season.

Though I am happy to see Sarah Shahi back as Samantha Shaw in this episode her role was a bit limited. In essence she is another Reese when it comes to keeping a straight face. Maybe that is one too many for this show. Shahi’s character was bit of stand-in for Kara Stanton after the actress playing her had to cancel because of scheduling conflicts. I hope Jonathan Nolan can find more for her to do next season.

As for the overall story arc related to The Machine. I think Person of Interest is slowly developing those science-fiction roots that have for so long been hiding in plain sight. The idea that The Machine is using people to help it remember seems to be an allusion to Christopher Nolan’s movie Memento in which the protagonist suffers from the ability to store new memories. Themes such as globalization and the ever farther reaching present of the internet are also accentuated in this episode.

As said, this episode sets the pace very well for next week’s finale ‘Godmode’. It would be best to consider both episodes as one story arc. So we will have to wait until next week to form a final judgment.

Score; 8.5 / 10.

Person of Interest will be back next week with the season finale Godmode. Expect a preview of that episode this weekend and review next week.

Older Entries