LUCIFER Not That Devilish

Article first published as DVD Review: 'Lucifer - The Complete First Season' on Blogcritics.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment provided me with a free copy of the DVD I reviewed for this blog post. The opinions I share are my own.

WB’s Lucifer, a weekly show airing on FOX, has now released its freshman season on Blu-ray and DVD. Having premiered in January on FOX, so its first run is short, this set contains all thirteen episodes on the three-disc set, plus bonus features.

Lucifer is a great example of wasted premise. Here, we have a hugely charming protagonist with a rich, complex backstory in Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis, Miranda). So does the series dig deep into the character’s mythology, play with his morality in interesting and challenging ways, and make it one man’s journey towards finding his compass in life? Especially given that the premise has him bored with Hell and looking for some other meaning?

No, it’s just a crime procedural. Don’t get me wrong; it’s an entertaining crime procedural. But why pair up the devil himself with a detective (Lauren German, Chicago Fire) and have him solve cases when there are so many more ripe story possibilities? Why kowtow to the same tired, boring format, essentially cloning its case-of-the-weeks from dozens of other shows just like it, when it could be something so much cooler?

It’s not like Lucifer‘s producers didn’t have source material to draw from. The series is based on a comic book co-created by the wonderful Neil Gaiman (The book, for the record, is not as crime procedural). And it’s not like the cast isn’t up to the challenge. Ellis is terrific, and is joined by wonderful performers like Kevin Alejandro (True Blood), Rachael Harris (Suits), DB Woodside (24), Lesley-Ann Brandt (Spartacus), and Kevin Rankin (Justified). Instead, the production ignores the potential it has and goes the “safe” route of copying what has been successful with other shows in the past. In doing so, they fail.

The fact that Lucifer is enjoyable to watch anyway is probably the most frustrating thing about it. Which isn’t to say it’s a great show; it definitely isn’t, especially in the way Lucifer’s powers are handled. But when I have it on, I do like it. This is a testament to how good so many of the people involved are, which makes me wonder what this cast and crew could do it they truly set out to make an original, deeper series. It’s not too late to change future seasons. They should really consider it.

The extras on this set are sadly not great. The four, really five, character profiles are pretty pointless for anyone who is actually watching the show, as is the “Devilish Duo” video. A gag reel is a gag reel, and while I do see the entertainment value of them, they aren’t something I’m particularly fond of. This is an overall mediocre batch of deleted scenes. And even the Comic-Con panel is truncated and pretty bland. I really, really wish the studios would do a better job of producing these panels and releasing them for home viewing, as I think they could be a very valuable bonus, but so rarely are.

If you’re looking for some mindless entertainment, Lucifer has you covered. If you’re looking for something that will make you think, impress you, and maybe take home some award show gold, then you can skip this one because it’s not destined to be a long-remembered series with a passionate fan base. At least, not unless it changes it’s strategy completely.

Lucifer – The Complete First Season is available now.

LUCIFER: Devil in the Details, But the Format is Hell

Article originally published as LUCIFER Review on Seat42F.

FOX (along with the other broadcast networks) is killing me! Even when they have a premise ripe for serial exploration and complex story-telling, they stuff it into a case-of-the-week procedural box. Sure, they allow a bit of ongoing narrative, but given the formula in episode one, you just know it’s going to be yet another repetitive crime show, even though it is begging not to be!

Let me slow down and tell you what I’m talking about. LUCIFER, a series premiering this week on FOX, stars Tom Ellis (Miranda) as Lucifer Morningstar. That’s right, the devil himself. Bored in hell, Lucifer has come to Earth to run a nightclub and mess with people while finding new purpose. His assistant, Mazikeen (Lesley Ann-Brandt, Spartacus), disapproves, as does God’s representative, Amenadiel (D.B. Woodside, Suits, 24), but Lucifer doesn’t care. Except, he does care, he finds, when the death of a mere mortal upsets him. Sounds pretty good, no?

The problem is, early in the pilot episode, LUCIFER becomes entranced with Chloe Decker (Lauren German, Chicago Fire), an LAPD detective. For some reason, Lucifer’s charms, which usually prompt people to spill their dark desires or, as in the case of psychiatrist Linda (Rachael Harris, Suits), swoon for him, don’t work on Chloe. This would all be well and good, except Lucifer helps Chloe solve a case and now wants to work with her on a regular basis.

Why oh why do the broadcast networks do this? How many television shows do we need where an outsider joins up with a member of law enforcement to solve crimes every week? Aren’t Bones, Sleepy Hollow, iZombie, Castle, Elementary, and oh so many more enough? I understand this often nets the networks viewers in the short-term, but these types of shows have little re-watchability, giving them shorter shelf lives than their lower-rated peers, and have flooded the airwaves.

LUCIFER likes to boast of its credentials. It is based on a comic book by Neil Gaiman, a spin-off of The Sandman. But in the illustrated version, Lucifer doesn’t get involved with a cop. Why the heck does he have to on the show?

What is most frustrating is that I really like LUCIFER. Tom Ellis plays the titular devil with brilliant complexity, and the personal depths of the character are ripe for much juicy exploration. The moral questions it raises and the religious implications are intriguing, and having other supernaturals in the cast teases epic conflicts to come. The first hour is enjoyable, and there isn’t a weak member of the cast, which also includes Kevin Alejandro (True Blood, The Returned) as Dan, Chloe’s ex-husband and co-worker.

And yet, this wonderful premise is watered down by repetitive formula. FOX has rarely been all that kind to genre shows, and without Chloe, LUCIFER is likely to be a genre fantasy. However, without Chloe, or at least without Chloe’s job taking center stage, it also leaves the narrative open to a lot more possibilities and directions. This show may occasionally explore off the beaten path, but it seems likely that most weeks will basically deliver the same thing, with only small bits to serve continuity.

LUCIFER is the perfect example of what is wrong with the Big Four networks and why they are dying. Even when they get a strong concept, they twist it to fit patterns that are outdated and tired. Instead of getting excited about LUCIFER, I plan to give it just a few more episodes to prove to me it can be better than the box it’s being stuffed into. No one will be happier than me if my summation of the situation turns out to be false. But I wouldn’t count on it.

LUCIFER airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on FOX.

RUSHing Around

Article first published as RUSH Review on Seat42F.

USA’s new drama RUSH is not very original. Like the network’s own medical series, Royal Pains, it follows a private concierge doctor who works for those rich enough to afford on-call and home-based services. Unlike Hank Lawson, though, the titular character in RUSH is more along the lines of House M.D. in that he’s a heavy drug user whose life is falling apart and like Greg Kinnear’s Rake in that he enjoys his iffy lifestyle a tad too much. Thus, while RUSH is an interesting show, it just doesn’t feel all that fresh.

This is my main problem with RUSH. In a golden age of television (don’t let anyone tell you it’s not), it’s hard to have time for just-good shows any more when there are so many great ones. RUSH is a series that, five years ago, would have been the best thing on USA and certainly a solid entry for cable. Now, though, it is entertaining, but not nearly special enough to kick it into that top tier worth paying attention to. If you haven’t discovered the wealth of programs available from various sources that are better than RUSH, you may like it. But trust me, better-than-broadcast does not necessarily mean it’s at the top of the pack these days.

RUSH is fronted by Welsh actor Tom Ellis (Vera Drake, The Fades), who does a serviceable job with the cad. Rush is intelligent, of course, and much better at helping others than himself, which is an archetype quite familiar to most viewers at this point. Ellis does give him a charm and vulnerability, especially late in the pilot, that makes him seem like a real person, even if his actions and situation are far from average.

Unfortunately for Rush, he is nowhere close to being the man he should be. He has far too many enablers in his life. Dr. Alex Burke (Larenz Tate, Rescue Me), his best friend, makes excuses for Rush and still allows him to attend his godson’s birthday party, despite Rush’s less-than-sober appearance. Rush’s assistant, Eve (Sarah Habel, Underemployed), does criticize Rush, but doesn’t really do anything to try to force change. Both judge our antihero, but don’t exactly push him to change.

The one person who could have an effect on Rush is his ex-girlfriend, whom he was with for four years, Sarah Peterson (Odette Annable, Banshee, House M.D.). But Sarah’s already given Rush all of the chances she’s willing to give, and unlike Eve and Alex, is washing her hands of Rush. Perhaps Rush’s friends should follow her example because Rush seems like the type who needs to hit rock bottom before he can start to rebuild anything resembling a successful life.

Rock bottom may not be as far as off as most who know Rush might expect. There are some Latino gang members, one of whom is named Manny (Rick Gonzalez, Reaper) and sells Rush his cocaine, that Rush gets too involved with. I won’t go into details, but while part of their story may wrap a little too easily, the pilot also leaves the door open for them to take Rush down a road he should absolutely avoid if he wants to be an upstanding individual.

RUSH also has the tendency to venture into cheesiness from time to time. Early in the first episode, multiple characters tell Rush that he looks bad. He doesn’t; not even close. You’ll see near the end of the installment what Rush looks like when he really lacks sleep and is stressed out. Instead, those early lines feel like what the script writer thinks we expect, and those making the production forgot to make it true, nor should it have been, given the larger arc of Rush’s journey. A moment meant to show Rush is a good man, giving cash to someone who turns out not to be homeless, also is forced.

The potential lies in the backstory. Rush clearly has done something to inspire the loyalty of Eve and Alex, and I do think that will eventually be revealed, though only a hint about Eve creeps into the pilot. While I don’t think the history will be enough to redeem the current man, at least there might be an engaging story there.

RUSH isn’t bad. It’s just not stellar. Judge it for yourself when it premieres this Thursday at 9 p.m. ET on USA.

Lacey Begins a New Once Upon a Time

Article first published as ONCE UPON A TIME Review Season 2 Episode 19 Lacey on Seat42F.

Grade:  94%

ABC’s ONCE UPON A TIME breaks a long hiatus this week with “Lacey.” Regina (Lana Parrilla) helps Belle (Emilie de Ravin) get her memories back, but not her fairy tale ones. Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle) is not too happy with Lacey, Belle’s new persona, who is somewhat the opposite of the girl he loves. Will they be able to find each other again, as true love’s kiss is needed to break Regina’s spell?

“Lacey” gives us another piece of the Rumplestilskin / Belle back story. We see them living together when they aren’t getting along. This is the part of the Beauty and the Beast story where things are unhappy, and ultimately culminates in the library / “there may be something there that wasn’t there before” bit. Yet, even in their most miserable times, Belle sees something in Rumple that gives her hope.

A young man named Robin Hood (Tom Ellis, Miranda) ventures into Rumple’s home to steal a magic wand. Rumple captures and tortures Robin Hood, intending to set an example for anyone else that might think to steal from him. Belle can’t stand to hear the suffering, and allows Robin to escape when Rumple isn’t looking.

I feel like these scenes in “Lacey” take Rumple in a darker direction than we’ve seen him before. Yes, we have witnessed him kill out of revenge, and use magic to manipulate and get what he wants. But we haven’t seen him being cruel, inflicting physical pain, without good reason. It’s not like he even knows Robin; Robin is just a man willing to break the rules to save the woman that he loves, with no personal beef.

It’s a little strange that Belle sticks by Rumple at this point. I mean, I get that she thinks she can save him, and sees the inner part of him that isn’t bad. But as Rumple is hurting Robin, making her wash his aprons full of blood, there should be more outrage here. Belle should be disgusted and turned off, maybe even trying to run away, despite her duty, or take down Rumple. How does she keep from judging him, even as she begs Rumple to show mercy, which he eventually does, sparing Robin’s life in the end.

Quick side musing: might Robin’s never-missing bow, which Rumple ends up with, be the same one that Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) eventually owns?

The Storybrooke versions of the characters are different than their fairy tale personas, and yet there is a thread connecting them. Lacey is nothing but dark, loving alcohol and violence. At first, this is confusing, because Rumple has always regarded Belle as a sweet, pure innocent. But I think “Lacey” shows us that his view is simplistic and wrong.

Lacey urges Gold to keep beating on the Keith, a.k.a. the Sheriff of Nottingham (Wil Traval, All Saints), in Storybrooke, delighting in the dark side it brings out of him. This can’t come out of nowhere. I think the purpose of the “Lacey” back story is to show us that Belle doesn’t flinch at darkness, and may even be attracted to it. Yes, she encourages Rumple / Gold to act good, but perhaps she also likes knowing that, deep down inside, he is bad. Or she likes the influence she has over this part of him, making her feel powerful to be able to control someone like that, even if it comes across as her encouraging Rumple to better himself.

It’s a sobering and depressing turn. It reveals the more complex nature of Belle, but it also shows us something about her that we won’t like. This kind of changes the game, giving us a new understanding of a pivotal character that could have long reaching affects.

There is an immediate consequence in “Lacey,” and that’s that Gold is now embracing the evil nature he fights to overcome. He is in love with Belle, or Lacey, or whoever she is. He is going to do what makes her happy, even if it’s what the old version of her wouldn’t have wanted, at least, so he thinks. The fact that she eggs him on when he is beating Keith, and so Gold keeps going, is a bad sign for where the character of Rumple may go in the last few episodes of the season to impress his gal.

See, “Lacey” opens with a powerful scene in which Rumple murders Henry (Jared Gilmore), his own grandson, because Henry has been foretold to be the instrument of Rumple’s destruction. At the beginning of the hour, Rumple is deeply bothered by this vision, and clearly is not comfortable carrying it out, hoping Belle might remember who she is and help him overcome these desires. However, if Lacey wants him to be bad, we’ve seen how easily Rumple can get caught up in that darkness. His behavior late in the installment is bad news for Henry.

Which means Regina has screwed up again. By manipulating Belle to be Lacey, thinking she is just going to hurt Gold, she actually puts Henry is danger. This is similar to last year’s late arc, in which Regina tries to poison Emma (Jennifer Morrison) and Henry ends up the one in the coma. Clearly, Regina has not learned her lesson.

Regina is also causing trouble in another way. She secretly investigates what the dwarves and Anton (Jorge Garcia) have been doing, and discovers their beanstalks. The question is, what will she do about it?

She doesn’t immediately burn the fields, so maybe she wants to go home. It seems the Charmings have no intention of taking her with them, based on a line Emma lets slip, probably a good move considering the threat Regina poses in the past in fairy tale land. But this now means they can’t just escape her. Which, they couldn’t have anyway. The disappearance of many, if not all, of the townsfolk would have eventually raised her suspicion, and she would have found them. Now, though, she may threaten them leaving in the first place.

It is doubtful that Regina will team up with Gold, considering she doesn’t trust him. Regina only finds out this week that Gold is Henry’s grandfather, and considering that he arranges her adoption of the boy in the first place, she doesn’t believe that he didn’t know who Henry is ahead of time. Might the two baddies battle each other, rather than the heroes?

Even if they do, the end of “Lacey” triples the threat count when Tamara (Sonequa Martin-Green) and Greg / Owen (Ethan Embry) bring Hook (Colin O’Donoghue) back to town. He is their prisoner, but surely he will have no objection to causing trouble for their enemies. Plus, Hook arrives along with quite a few boxes. What is in all of those?

“Lacey” is very much setting up some big end-of-the-season plots, and is interesting, if a bit depressing, in its own right. For every amusing scene of David (Josh Dallas) giving Gold dating advice, we get one of Lacey ditching Gold during dinner, balancing the enjoyable with the story elements that cause dread. The next three hours should be very exciting.

ONCE UPON A TIME airs Sundays at 8 p.m. ET. on ABC.

The Fades scares up Blu-ray and DVD

The Fades, a new British sci-fi / horror series, recently completed its first season run on BBC America, and is already available in stores. This show is the story of 17-year-old Paul (Iain De Caestecker, Coronation Street, The Little Vampire), who is suddenly drawn into the supernatural. The Fades are ghosts who cannot cross over to the other side, and are fighting a war with the Angelics, humans with special powers. The Fades have found a way to gain substance in the real world by feeding on people. Paul realizes that he has more powers than any of the Angelics, and they begin to argue over whether he could be the savior who ends their war. Death, destruction, and the possible end of mankind make the stakes high in this six episode adventure.

While not yet renewed for a second series, The Fades does not end with a neat tying up. Nor should it. It is a bold, innovative show that is not afraid to kill off main characters and take big chances. In fact, The Fades advances more plot, twists, and major game changers than most American shows do in a full, twenty-two episode season. It should be praised for that.

In the first episode, Paul is merely having dreams, but thinks he is a normal boy. By episode six, he has not only faced down death and come back from it, but is poised to become the hero who saves the world. The character changes fundamentally, as do so many of those around him.

Not everyone survives series one, and should a second be commissioned, as it must, they will be missed. Unless the show finds a way to bring them back, which it very well could, given the material. Death is an obstacle here, and though total annihilation is possible, it doesn't touch everyone.

The Fades is filled with engrossing characters. There's Sarah (Natalie Dormer, The Tudors, Captain America: The First Avenger), an Angelic killed in the first episode, who can't let go of the love that she has for her ex-husband, Mark (Tom Ellis, EastEnders, Miranda), whom she is still living with when she dies. She resists the draw of John (Joe Dempsie, Skins), the leader of the reborn Fades, who is an alluring trickster bent on world domination.

There are other Angelics, too. The most important one in The Fades is Neil (Johnny Harris, Atonement, Whitechapel), who first approaches Paul to help them. But as time goes on, Neil doesn't always agree with Paul's decisions, nor that of the other Angelics. Neil is headstrong and battle weary, and isn't willing to rely on any possible savior if that means he needs to give up trying to win the battle himself. He also takes the approach of a desperate man, which doesn't always serve him well, from a moral stand point.

Paul's family both grounds him, and complicates matters, as they can easily become pawns in the game. Paul has a mother, Meg (Claire Rushbrook, Whitechapel, Linda Green), and a twin sister, Anna (Lily Loveless, Skins), who are quite helpless against the baddies. Paul's best friend, Mac (Daniel Kaluuya, Psychoville, Skins), isn't much more capable, but at least he loyally stands by his pal through everything. And Anna's best friend Jay (Sophie Wu, Kick-Ass) further distracts the hero, as she becomes a love interest for Paul. So it's a little hard for Paul to keep his mind just on the matters at hand.

The many layers and stories interwoven together are what makes The Fades so great. It could have picked a couple of elements, and made a wonderful story. But by packing all of these and more into six hours of television, the result is a busy, enticing, exciting mess of an apocalyptic showdown, the likes of which have rarely been seen on the small screen. This is definitely a must-see British series.

It's rewarding to see The Fades on disc because BBC America censors the language and nudity. For those who are offended by such things, cable is the way to see this show. But for fans who think these elements enhance the series, this release fixes those things toned down by the network.

The Blu-ray release looks and sounds great, as one would expect with such a special effects-laden story, though the audio is sadly not presented in surround sound. But the discs themselves leave a bit to be desired. For one thing, the menus blare creepy music at a much louder volume than the episodes or extras, which makes them a pain every time one must navigate them. For another, the extras are mostly short bits of two minutes or less, grouped together by categories such as 'Extra Scenes,' 'Deleted Scenes,' and 'Mac Explains.' Now the lengths in themselves aren't the problem, as they add up to a satisfactory amount, and it's great that extra and deleted scenes are included for each episode. However, there is no 'Play All' button, even within the subcategories, so every minute or two one has to go back through the noisy menus. I recommend muting during these times.

That's really a minor complaint, though. The extras, including interviews with Johnny Harris and Natalie Dormer, are good, if not particularly deep. And the series is plenty awesome enough to make up for any inconvenience built into the discs. Seriously. It's unlike anything else on television.

Buy The Fades Season One today.

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