KILLJOYS Not An Accurate Title

Article originally published as KILLJOYS Review on Seat42F.

KILLJOYS is the latest SyFy drama. Following three bounty hunters who operate in a four-inhabited-planet system, it’s a post-apocalyptic look at humanity’s future. This system is owned and run by a corporation, and everyone works for them. If you don’t play by their rules, you get in trouble. The bounty hunters aren’t exactly company men, their order remaining unaffiliated, but operate as an independent, reliable body tasked with hunting down those who anger someone enough to buy a contract on their kill or capture. The company allows this, and gives them a wide reach with which to perform their duties.

At the start of the pilot, there’s a lot of action. Too much action. It gives the impression of a low-quality program that is going to rely on visual fast food to tell its story, and the characters and plot seem flat and uninteresting. It’s not the type of thing that will hook those looking for intelligent science fiction, but it will certainly appeal to a certain segment of the audience. For those who it does appeal to, I hope you also appreciate the more complex, layered, character-driven type of show, because that’s what KILLJOYS morphs into in the second half of its first hour.

Dutch (Hannah John-Kamen, The Hour) and John (Aaron Ashmore, Smallville, Warehouse 13) are partners, operating a small ship, and going after the less dangerous jobs. Enter D’Avin (Luke Macfarlane, Brothers & Sisters), John’s estranged brother and PTSD-sufferer that has a kill order out on him. John risks everything to save his sibling, who quickly takes an interest in Dutch, and the team is born.

Each of these three are developed individuals with their own secrets and backstories, all of which play a heavy role in the main arcs. KILLJOYS could be just a procedural, with the trio tracking new query all the time, but I don’t think it will be because the first hour sets up a lot of dense stuff to flesh out the world and the trouble already bubbling over in the political structure. It seems poised for a big rebellion adventure, a la the original Star Wars trilogy, more so than a science fiction version of Dog the Bounty Hunter.

This program could be set in the Firefly universe. The short-lived, still-popular Joss Whedon show is not the only one that presents an outlook such as this, but the themes present and the atmosphere are similar. KILLJOYS lacks much of the humor and the Western sensibilities, both hallmark traits of Firefly, but other than, I could see this being another part of the same world, with these bounty hunters fighting the same common company that seeks to control everyone and use them for its own gains, albeit in a smaller neighborhood.

This gets me quite excited about KILLJOYS. All three of the performers are fantastic in the pilot, each given a chance to shine, and the rapidly-deepening story is intriguing. While a certain amount of status quo is maintained for now, it can’t possibly stay that way, and they are poised to be on the front lines when all hell breaks loose, prepared more than most to make a difference for an oppressed people due to their unique skillset.

I admit, there’s a chance I could be wrong about where KILLJOYS is going, and the story I’m looking for may be teased out only slowly, over a long period of time. I don’t think so, though. The way the first episode unfolds is solid, and it just seems like there will be more. As long as too many of the hours don’t rely on combat rings and fist fights, both present early in the first installment, I’m on board.

KILLJOYS premieres Friday, June 19^th at 9 p.m. ET on SyFy.

Redefining Cancellation

Article first published as Redefining Cancellation on Blogcritics.


This week, Rob Thomas and Kristen Bell posted a call on Kickstarter soliciting donations to produce a Veronica Mars film. Within, 12 hours, they'd raised the minimum $2,000,000 needed for the project, breaking all fundraising records for the site. As I'm writing this article, the total now stands at $3,572,678, and the more they raise, the bigger scale film they can make.

Many are calling this the act that re-defines how cancelled shows can be resurrected. Veronica Mars ran for three seasons on the WB and CW, and was beloved by critics and fans. The new project came together because the studio, which had no intention of making the film itself, agreed to let the show's creator and star handle things themselves. Can other series in a similar situation, like Gilmore Girls, Party Down, Bored to Death, and Jericho follow the same path?

Well, there are a variety of obstacles to such projects. Sometimes, it may too expensive to revive with fan donations, like Dollhouse. Other times, the cast may be so busy that bringing them together would be awfully difficult, like Firefly or Freaks and Geeks.

Some have theorized that fans of other cancelled shows who don't particularly care for Veronica Mars may have donated money just because they want this to succeed. If so, their own beloved favorite might be next. While there could be some truth to this, I can't imagine most of those types would have donated a lot of money, without any guarantee their cash would help towards their own goals, so I assume the majority of the backing (including my own) came from people who actually really enjoyed and miss the series.

Also, I do think some of the backers of the Veronica Mars film might be upset if the movie makes a big profit. After all, Warner Brothers still gets to keep the money the movie makes, and Kickstarter investors are not paid back. Is it fair for a studio to force the fans to pay for such things, then keeping the profit? Shouldn't they offer some sort of return on the fans' investment if the end result a profit? Or maybe, if Warner Brothers wants to keep the fans happy, they should go ahead and greenlight a sequel, giving Veronica Mars extended life, and letting us know we've been heard.

Of course, there are some benefits to a Kickstarter campaign. Not only do fans get to take ownership and bragging rights, but the swag offered is also pretty good. For a donation of only $100, fans receive a movie poster, t-shirt, Blu-ray copy of the film, and a downloadable .pdf of the script. They will also receive a finished copy of the movie when it hits theaters. That's quite a bit of stuff thrown in for your support. Bigger donors will even get to name characters and appear on screen. These sorts of premiums and chances to be involved help fans feel even more connected and likely to support the project, though they are sort of unfairly balanced towards those who can afford to give big time.

But even should Kickstarter model not work long-term, there are other ways to resurrect a beloved series from cancellation hell. Sometimes network powers that be can be persuaded to change their minds, like AMC did for The Killing (with a little financial help from another source). Sometimes another producer or netword will come along to save the day, like Netflix did for Arrested Development or Comedy Central for Futurama. Occasionally, DVD sales are strong enough to justify another chance, like FOX did with Family Guy. Comic books can extend the show's life, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

Then there are the prequels and sequels. 90210 got five more seasons with a new cast on the CW. Dallas is back on TNT, mixing old and new characters. The Carrie Diaries seeks to tell the beginning of the story for Sex and the City, eventually bringing in many familiar faces.

The point is, never has there been a time when cancelled doesn't necessarily mean cancelled. Sure, The River won't come back in any way, shape, or form. But that doesn't mean that some of those that deserve it aren't finding ways to continue.

This isn't entirely a new phenomenon. The Brady Bunch and The Waltons made TV movies long after they went off the air. Star Trek went to the big screen and produced ten films spun off of two shows, not counting the new reboot with recasts.

However, I think the newer model is more encouraging. Veronica Mars may only live for two more short hours, but many of the other examples I've listed have gotten far more screen time, and some even run for years after their resurrection. This brings them to all new fans, as well as the old ones, extending their lives exponentially.

Are we out of new ideas? Of course not. There will always be a fresh series right around the bend. But that doesn't mean there isn't still life left in those that have been put out to pasture, and for some, getting to fulfill untapped potential, playing out as they should, rather than getting an early grave, this a trend to celebrate.

The hype is Justified

     I had already read several glowing reviews about FX’s new drama Justified before it aired.  That, combined with the fact that it is set in Lexington, Kentucky, where I currently reside, got my excited for a show that didn’t look like my cup of tea.  The third thing it had going for it was that it was based on a story by Elmore Leonard, author of stories that were made into films, such as Get Shorty and Be Cool, both excellent films.  Luckily, the good things said about it turned out to be completely true.

     There is no better word to describe the main character, Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant, Damages, Deadwood) than cool.  The opening, set in Maimi, Florida, was so exciting and intense, I was immediately drawn into the world.  And he maintained that personality all though the story, despite his challenges.  It is also clear that Raylan is a true action hero, the likes of which only come along every once in awhile.  It isn’t possible to overestimate his skill.  Think Jack Bauer in a cowboy hat, but he would rather kill than torture.   And he handles smaller scale problems.

     The supporting cast is much less-defined in the pilot episode.  Raylan’s friend who has gone astray, Boyd, (Walton Goggins, The Shield) gets plenty of screen time in his show down with Raylan (guess who wins?), but ex-wife Winona (Natalie Zea, Dirty Sexy Money) appears in just one scene of consequence.

     The pacing is tight, the setting feels authentic, even if it wasn’t filmed here, though producers have expressed an interest in coming to location if the show is picked up for a second season.  Which, hopefully, it will be.  It is fresh, original.  It’s sort of a Western, which is rare for television these days, and hasn’t been seen on broadcast networks since Firefly.  The humor isn’t there much, but the drama and tension is done well. 

     Justified airs Tuesday nights at 10pm on FX.

V Vindicated

     Back in November, I was raving about a brilliant pilot for FlashForward and a lame one for ABC's V.  Now the tables have turned.  While Flash Forward suffers along, V has delivered three excellent episodes before breaking for four months.  Stupid to go on such a long hiatus right after premiering a great new show?  Monumentally.  The interim may kill the show, and that would be a shame, because it has really shaped up.

     Why has it improved so much?  Because the aliens are awesome!  In four short hours, viewers have already covered plenty of nifty little twists about our complex Visitors.  For one, there is a movement called the Fifth Column made up of Vs that want to overthrow head honcho Anna (Morena Baccarin, Firefly).  It appears that they were mostly defeated awhile ago, but now they are back, including Ryan (Morris Chestnut), who may have fathered the first hybrid baby.  Equally creepy is the sophisticated way Anna plans to inject the human population with her concoction, and the jackets that spy on people.  Why she had her daughter, Lisa (Laura Vandervoot, Smallville, whom I sincerely apologize to for criticizing her casing) seduce Tyler (Logan Huffman) is anyone's guess, but surely there is more than meets the eye.  Plus, super large fleet of Vs on their way to Earth!

     Back in the human camp, the teamup of federal agent Erica (Elizabeth Mitchell, Lost) with Father Jack (Joel Gretsch) makes much more sense now that we now he is ex-military and can hold his own.  A priest that can stitch up a bullet wound and throw a punch?  Sign me up!  What I really want to know is when Chad (Scott Wolf, Everwood) is going to stop taking orders and start fighting back.  Clearly he is suspicious of Anna and the gang, but since they've given him a stardom, he seems reluctant to question them too difficult.  But that can't possibly go on too much longer.

     If you haven't given V a chance, or canceled the season pass after the mediocre, plot-hole ridden pilot, you still have plenty of time to catch up.  After all, only four episodes have aired.  V will return on March 30th.

V is for ?

     The pilot for ABC's new V was vexing.  I say that, because it was impossible to tell if the series is going to be any good or not.  Pilots can often be decieving, and this one puzzled me.  I am not a fan of the original version, so I can't compare, only write about impressions from the one hour that ABC aired Tuesday.
     On one hand, there was the great cast, led by Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost) and including two Firefly / Serenity veterans (Morena Baccarin and the always fantastic Alan Tudyk), as well as other television stars such as Joel Gretsch (The 4400) and Scott Wolf (Party of Five, The Nine).  It also had wonderful special effects, hints of a mysterious backstory, and potential intrigue.

     On the other, it had cheesiness out the wazoo.  TWO priests assigned to a church that has "stood empty for years", save for a handful of bums?  With the nationwide shortage of clergy, I can't see one such priest staying there, or even the church staying open, let alone two, and it looks well kept up and clean.  Then Elizabeth Mitchell just happened to find her son in the busy city swarming with people?  And speaking of her character, why didn't she notice that Alan Tudyk was ready to give up three seconds after smashing into the shed, despite being a trained FBI agent?  It makes sense to the viewer, because of his twist later, but as far as she knows, he is her loyal partner.  Would the feds really give up that easily?  Even I knew that there had to be some secret trap door down to a basement.  Duh!  I also count casting Smallville's wooden Supergirl, Laura Vandervoot, as a misstep.

     Glaring cliches like those could hold this series back, and earn it a cancellation by February sweeps.  It is a positive sign that ABC is airing it through November.  This was one of the shows I was looking most forward to this year.  By episode two, the loopholes may be fixed, and they'd better be, or else the Viewers may not care to watch the Visitors.

Belonging to the Dollhouse

    Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse has been benched through the November sweeps, and when it returns in December, Fox will be burning off double episodes. It looks like it may be over for the ratings challenged drama, and Fox has killed yet another of Joss Whedon’s fantastic universes. For fans who remember how Firefly was also pushed onto Fridays nights and wasn’t even given a full season, the unexpected, last minute second season pickup of Dollhouse was a breath of fresh air, which was quickly taken away again.

      After several episodes that made the show feel like a procedural last winter, it really started to soar into the spring, and continues to due so this fall. Led by the exceptionally talented Eliza Dushku, also a producer on the show, the series revolves around the mysterious Dollhouse, which wipes people’s minds and programs them for ‘encounters’ for wealthy clients. Also in the cast are several employees of the Dollhouse, including Paul Ballard, an FBI agent who was attempting to bring them down, and now secretly still is, from the inside. The series is original and brilliant, but put in an unenviable time slot, it is all but dead.

      This week’s episode, “Belonging”, was amazing. Viewers discovered that the alluring Sierra was actually drugged into psychosis by a raving lunatic, who arranged for her to become a doll, as she has been for the past year. The employees of the company faced a tough, moral dilemma when they were ordered to hand over Sierra permanently to the madman, or face a ruined life if they refused. They did hand Sierra over, but with an awareness that allowed her to kill and get revenge. Unfortunately, that left another mess to cleanup, and more moral issues for each character to face.

     In the ongoing plot of the series, Sierra and Victor continue with a blossoming romance, despite supposedly being wiped of all personal feelings, while Echo retains more and more memory. It is a Jurassic Park-esque scenario, where nature will find a way, and no man can control everything, as much as he (or she) may want to. It’s an intriguing concept, but sadly it seems not fated to play out. A huge shame and waste of glorious potential.

Save Dollhouse!