LOST IN SPACE Again

Article first published as TV Review: LOST IN SPACE on Seat42F.

Amid a flurry of reboots and revivals, Netflix rolled out a brand-new version of LOST IN SPACE this week. A sort of sci-fi Swiss Family Robinson, the current series, like the original, finds the Robinsons crash-landing on an alien world. With no way off and only so many supplies, they will have to rely on one another and adapt to the environment. Of course, they have the help of Robbie the Robot and must watch out for the nefarious Dr. Smith.

The new LOST IN SPACE looks fantastic. That shouldn’t be surprising, as recent television series have been able to make good on special effects, even with a small screen budget. The world looks fantastical, the technology is cool, and Robbie himself is fully CGI-ed. The sequences with the spaceship are stunning, and I had no problem believing the setting as it is shown.

The story is, as it should be, focused on family dynamics. In this iteration, flashbacks are used to show us the Robinsons were far from perfectly happy prior to events. Father John (Toby Stephens, Black Sails), often away on military missions, was well on the way to divorce with his brilliant wife, Maureen (Molly Parker, House of Cards), who was tired of keeping the home running without him. Elder daughter Judy (Taylor Russell, Falling Skies) was totally devoted to the clan, even willing to give up escaping a dying Earth if her little brother, Will (Maxwell Jenkins, Sense8), couldn’t go, too. But that left middle child Penny (Mina Sundwall, Maggie’s Plan) unsure of her own place.

This is more nuanced and interesting than the original. LOST IN SPACE lacks the cheese it was previously known for, and instead attempts a more ambitious, modern narrative. This is extended to the supporting players, including a faux Dr. Smith (Parker Posey, A Mighty Wind) whose intentions are kept hidden from the audience and other characters. And by keeping it focused on the family, viewers only get things outside the scope of their experience in tidbits, leaving a lot of questions to be answered in small spurts over a longer period of time.

Most of these adjustments are good and needed, but where it feels a little weird is in Robbie the Robot himself. By the end of the first hour, we’ve met Robbie, but there are some pretty big questions surrounding him that make him hard to trust. This adds some uncertainty and threat, and yet it’s hard to believe any LOST IN SPACE would not make it turn out all right. Given Robbie’s pop-culture status, it seems odd to treat him this way. It also makes his uttering of the iconic catchphrase feel forced and jarringly out of place, especially as he doesn’t say much before or after.

It seems unlikely that any member of the Robinson clan will die even though they are surrounded by things that are trying to kill them. That doesn’t gel all that well with the complex serial story. (Individual episodes have some procedural plot, but there is definitely an important ongoing element.) Audiences of this kind of show are used to there being some sort of cost or sacrifice over time, and LOST IN SPACE doesn’t really make room for that in sticking with the family framework.

The result of all this is something pleasant and entertaining, but lacking the teeth needed to make it a fully realized and compelling story. It’s pretty good television, not great television. Which would have been fine ten years ago, but may leave it struggling to find a passionate fan base in this day and age.

LOST IN SPACE’s ten episode first season is available now on Netflix.

Raise the BLACK SAILS

Article first published as BLACK SAILS Review on Seat42F.

Starz’s BLACK SAILS, a prequel to Treasure Island, opens exactly how one would expect such a show to begin – with a high-octane battle on the high seas. It’s exciting, with lots of fighting and bloodshed, explosions and combat. Basically, it kicks things off as a pay-cable pirate program should, reeling in the viewers with a flashy sequence that will hook those tuning in for just such a scene.

Because this is Starz, there is gratuitous violence and nudity. However, it’s not so much so that it distracts from the story. Instead, it’s the sort of enhancement subscribers have become accustomed to, and are typically used in the correct manner, not being a hindrance to the writing.

Underneath that, there are real characters and story that unfold over the hour, titled “I.,” perhaps a reference to its literary roots. Captain Flint (Toby Stephens, Vexed) is the leader of this pirate ship. His reign is threatened by a man named Singleton (Anthony Bishop, District 9) when Flint’s power seems to waver, with smaller and small hauls. Flint’s right-hand-man, Gates (Mark Ryan, The Prestige), does his best to sway opinion back the other way, but it may be too late.

This struggle is best illustrated through the part of Billy Bones (Tom Hopper, Merlin), whose loyalty to Flint is wavering, but whom still accompanies him on a mission to see their business partner, Richard Guthrie (Sean Cameron Michael, This Life), offering protection and counsel. Billy wants to keep the faith in his superior, but because he thinks the captain has grown weak, he considers turning away. Yet, he’s noble enough to give Flint the chance to win back his authority.

BLACK SAILS is not a story of noble people, by and large, but there is a certain honor code among a number of the characters. Flint seems intelligent and has a legitimate beef against those who would make the rules. Viewers will root for him to succeed in his quest to become king of the pirates, even as that goes against the law of the land. I supposed any series starring pirates, though, must strive to make them likeable characters.

Somehow, the pirate myths have taken on an air of romanticism over the years. These were hard men, outlaws who would slit the throat of an innocent man to steal his treasure without batting an eye. But there’s also an attractive, rebellious quality, a hint that they might stand for something and are acting out for good reason. Plus, they seem to lead a life of fun, and so we cheer their accomplishments.

The character in BLACK SAILS I found hardest to like is the one with the familiar name recognition, John Silver (Luke Arnold, Winners & Losers). We know he’s a treacherous fellow with a selfish streak, someone who will earn Flint’s trust and fear. This dynamic is set up right away in “I.” for Silver, though Flint is barely aware of the younger man’s existence. It’ll be interesting to see when Silver makes his move and in what way.

The rest of the cast is packed with a variety of interesting parts. Captain Vane (Zach McGowan, Shameless) seems like the villain of the piece, at least in its first season, while the motivations of Rackham (Toby Schmitz, The Cookes), another pirate, are more murky. We have Mr. Scott (Hakeem Kae-Kizim, 24), who seems to act more important than he is, and Eleanor Guthrie (Hannah New, El tiempo entre costuras), who may do the opposite.

Eleanor does feel like a stock character, the strong woman in an era that didn’t have many of those. Yet she also has a role to play that’s more than two dimensional. There are two other girls in the main cast, too, Max (Jessica Parker Kennedy, The Secret Circle) and Anny Bonny (Clara Paget, Fast & Furious 6), prostitutes with business acumen, who can be described the same way. The women in this show are not wasted or subservient when they don’t want to be, and whether they are historically accurate or not, they will be compelling parts.

There is a lack of suspense in the fates of certain characters because the story of Treasure Island takes place about twenty years after this starts, ensuring the survival of John Silver, Captain Flint, and Billy Bones. We also know this crew will eventually amass a large fortune, so their victory is guaranteed. That is, unless BLACK SAILS decides to toss out its source material and go in a completely original direction, which would be a refreshing surprise, sure to be delivered with great effect.

The challenges BLACK SAILS faces are the same as any prequel, admittedly, but the argument about being disappointed because the lack of stakes figures more prominently here than in other stories because it is such a dangerous tale. There is inherent risk to the pirate life, and we see people killed in the first hour alone. By removing any real threat to the lives of multiple main players, it waters down their story, as well as makes the other main characters more disposable, perhaps leading viewers to be less invested in those who aren’t around for Treasure Island.

Apart from these things, though, BLACK SAILS is an enjoyable and well-made show that I look forward to watching. Its characters and story are better developed than other recent Starz efforts, and the production looks terrific, using physical sets more than CGI (though there’s some of that, too), and building on a grand scale.

BLACK SAILS airs Saturdays at 9 p.m. ET on Starz.

Vexed anything but vexing to watch

Acorn Media has recently released Vexed Series 1 on DVD. Previously unavailable in the United States, this single disc set contains all three, hour long episodes of the first series. (A second series recently aired in Britain).

Vexed is the story of two police detectives, but unlike many crime dramas, it is not a procedural. There are cases in each episode that must be solved, but these by far take a back seat to the tale of the main characters. This is a show about personalities, and those personalities are entertaining and engaging. Plus, it's light-hearted, making it more a dramedy than a straight drama.

DI Kate Bishop (Lucy Punch, Ben and Kate, Bad Teacher) is new to town. She is driven and smart, but not so good with her personal life, which is why her marriage to husband Dan (Rory Kinnear, Quantum of Solace) is crumbling. While at work, she plays by the rules and follows the clues. At home, she reacts erratically and jumps to conclusions. She does her best to keep it all together, but sometimes her best just isn't enough.

Enter DI Jack Armstrong (Toby Stephens, Wired, Die Another Day), a lazy, bumbling cop who would rather charm everyone than actually listen to them. Yet, somehow he manages to get the job done. He's a good balance for Kate, doing things that she would never do during the course of their investigation, and at the end of the day, he comes to care about his partner. They make an interesting, and surprisingly effective, team.

These two leads are the reason I like Vexed a lot. Punch and Stephens have great chemistry, and the focus is always more on them than the murder or kidnapping they are looking into. Punch is more toned down than in many of other roles, which works very well here, and Stephens captures that Damian Lewis-esque character, but with a much more free-style spin to it. The bottom line is, whatever the merits of this series may be, it is genuinely fun to watch.

It is supremely disappointing that Punch's Kate has been replaced by a different character in series two, though not having seen the newer episodes, I am unable to say if the show is able to hang onto what it has without her.

The only thing that didn't really work for me was Kate and Dan's relationship. When they fight, it's great, and the way she continuously injures him is amusing. But then, as they try to make up, it feels a little hollow. It's almost like two distinctly separate couples, their interactions in those two types of scenes being so wildly different. This is an important element to Vexed, but it's not so big that it can't be overlooked in favor of the better parts.

The supporting cast includes Ronny Jhutti (Ideal) as Naz, a nerdy analyst who works the crime scenes, and Roger Griffiths (Holby City, Family Affairs) as Tony, a former cop who runs the restaurant Jack works out of, as Jack claims he doesn't like for the police station. Neither Naz nor Tony get a lot to do, but Griffiths' character is especially interesting, having a mysterious past that I'd like to learn more about, and messing with Kate in the funniest of ways. Hopefully, series two will give more insight into him.

The only bonus features are promotional trailers and a photo gallery.

I would recommend picking up Vexed just because the series doesn't really feel like something we have in America. We've done versions of this sort of thing, but watered down over dozens of episodes. The short arc and terrific cast makes Vexed worth watching, and a series I won't soon forget.

Vexed Series 1 is available now on DVD.

If you like my reviews, please follow me on Twitter! Check out my website, JeromeWetzel.com! First posted on TheTVKing

Wired hits DVD in the US this Tuesday

     New on DVD from Acorn Media is the well received 2008 British TV miniseries, Wired. Three episodes make up this tale of financial deceit, double crossing, theft, and self preservation. Louise Evans (Jodie Whittaker, St. Trinian's, Venus) is approached by her friend, Anna (Charlie Brooks, EastEnders, Bleak House), to help some bad men steal a bunch of money from a rich client at the bank where Louise works. When Louise refuses, the villains threaten her daughter, Erica (Helena Fox). Louise goes along with it, only to be approached by Detective Crawford Hill (Toby Stephens, Die Another Day, Severance) to help the cops catch the crooks. Louise ends up playing both sides as she looks for the best way out of a terrible situation.

     Totaling around two hours and fifteen minutes, Wired feels like a heist movie rather than something made for television. The acting is top notch, the directing and art design makes the entire thing look realistic, and the plot is complicated and obtuse. Many characters aren't on a right or wrong side, but are doing what they can given the circumstances. Lest you worry about being bored when the robbery merely involves electronic transfers, rather than breaking into vaults, the pacing and various twists keep things flying along at quite a fast pace. From start to finish, it's hard to really be sure what anyone's motivations are, or what they might do next.

     Besides Louise, who is the star of the entire piece, Ben (Sacha Dhawan, Outsourced) is in a similar position, and provides a nice foil. Considering Dhawan was most recently seen in a zany NBC sitcom, it is refreshing to see him work his chops, and prove he can do gritty drama, as well.

     Manesh (Riz Ahmed, Dead Set, Four Lions) and Phillip (Laurence Fox, Inspector Lewis) are the bad guys Louise has direct contact with, but as they are only in the game for themselves, their loyalty, too, is called into question. Also appearing is Jason Watkins (Being Human) as Louise's boss. Delightful to see him in an environment that doesn't include the supernatural, though he does play a similar character. Instead of sucking blood, he sucks money from those who can afford it.

     Louise is a highly sympathetic main character. She obviously needs the money being involved in illegal activities will bring, but she can do without the threat, and so is willing to forgo the payout if it keeps her out of trouble. Though, if she can snag a bit in the process, she will. Her morality merely extends to protecting her daughter and herself, and she seems to have little qualm about defrauding the bank's clients.

     Really interesting is the dynamic between Louise and Crawford. Not a typical romance, they do have some sexual tension, and there are romantic moments for the duo, including a bedroom scene. However, while Crawford does let his emotional connection with Louise get in the way of the case, he doesn't aggressively pursue her. Louise is agreeable with the attention she is getting from him, but won't let herself be distracted much when the events are so serious. It is a really neat, unexpectedly original way to handle a love story.

     There are no special features.

     Wired will be released this Tuesday, June 21st on DVD. I highly recommend purchasing a copy.

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Article first published as DVD Preview: Wired on Blogcritics.