TV Review: The Flash

Rating: 3 out of 5 Star (after three episodes)

Bottom Line: So far The Flash has delivered a straight-forward superhero romp with a dose of fun.

So last season on The CW’s Arrow we were introduced to Barry Allen who every good comic book fan watching knew would eventually become the superhero the Flash.  And now this Fall the network has spun the character off into that expected Flash series which expands upon the DC Universe that has already been building up on the parent series (but which has no connection to the Smallville version of the DC milieu that we previously saw on the same network).  In this series, Barry becomes the Flash in a similar manner to the comics which involves a lightning strike and spilled chemicals.  But they throw an interesting twist at us with the lightning linked to a super-collider malfunction which is also responsible for creating other super humans like the Flash.  So thus you get the title character as well as an instant rogue’s gallery of super villains, and perhaps some superheroes to partner with as well.  Then you have the STAR labs team who we responsible for the super-collider malfunction who are helping Barry get up to speed (sorry, couldn’t resist) with his new powers and to use them judiciously.  This series also gives us a welcomed call-out to the much-loved 1990 Flash TV series that aired for one season on CBS as that show’s star John Wesley Shipp is onboard to play Barry’s father (and I understand that Amanda Pays will be making an appearance as well).  There is a side story with the senior Allen that looks like it will carry through much of the season, which is good because I like have Shipp around.  And so far this show has avoided going dark like the DC live action adaptations typically do, which is a nice change of pace.  Plus, there is very little in the way of the soap opera side steps that derail Arrow from time to time.  I’m not too thrilled with what they are doing with Professor Xavier stand-in Harrison Wells (played by Tom Cavanaugh while channeling Jeff Goldblum) as that could likely lead to plenty of unnecessary, copy-and-paste angst-filled stories at some point.  But for the most part the show has been a fun watch and I will keep tuning in for now.  I wouldn’t rank it above the 1990 Flash series just yet, but it has a much lower camp quotient and could develop into a fun little show.

TV Review: Forever

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars (after four episodes)

Bottom Line: It's a fun little cop show with a fantasy twist, that's worth a look but hardcore genre fans may find it lacking.  

Forever gives us a show about a man stricken with a "curse" that he cannot die (why do people on TV shows always look these sort of things as bad) and has developed a fascination with death that has led him to studying it for the two hundred years he has been alive.  In the modern day, he is a medical examiner and also a very Sherlock Holmsey type of person who has a keen eye to detail.  And thus we get the case-of-the-week stories in which somebody dies and his expertise is called upon to solve the murder (and there's also the obligatory Highlander style flashbacks to his early age and some event that relates to the case he is working on).  I really didn't expect that I would like this show when I first heard the premise, yet found myself oddly drawn to it.  It borrows quite a number of elements from a wide variety of genre sources including of course the Highlander movies and TV series, but also The Immortal (a short-lived 1970 series starring Christopher George), New Amsterdam (a short-lived 2008 series starring Game of Thrones' Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), Unbreakable (2000 M. Night Shyamalan film starring Bruce Willis and Samuel Jackson), and more.  On top of that, it gives us yet another procedural with a fantasy twist and and haven't those flashback sequences been done to death yet?  And yet, even as I processed these derivative factors while watching the pilot, I found myself enjoying it.  Maybe it was Ioan Gruffudd's excellent performance as Henry Morgan.  Maybe it was Judd Hirsch's presence in the cast (he's a particular favorite actor of mine and has been criminally underutilized on TV).  Maybe it was the ageless Sherlock Holmes-type character that Henry Morgan gives us (I've always loved Arthur Conan Doyles' SH tales).  Maybe it was the show's somewhat fun, light-hearted tone that was mixed in with its more dramatic elements. But I found that something just clicked for me.  I'm not saying it is a great series or a must-watch new entry on the schedule, but it's good fun and managed to keep my interest across subsequent episodes.  Of course there is a story arc of sorts in the background as someone who shares the same "affliction"  has been making cryptic calls to Henry.  But the Sherlock Holmes style case of the week is what this show is about and that side story is probably only there to appeal to genre fans who prefer a more ongoing tale.  But I'm not sure if it has done enough to distinguish itself as a cop show or a fantasy / sci fi show, and the genre blending could ultimately work against it as it may not quite grab enough fans on either side.  Still, I plan on keeping this show on my watch list, though it will be one that I catch up with as time allows as opposed to shows like The Walking Dead, Arrow, and The Originals that I usually watch right away.  And based on the current ratings, it looks like Forever will be anything but a Prime Time immortal, which is a shame because this fun little series deserves better.  But I will at least enjoy it while it is on.

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: Constantine

Constantine: NBC, New Series, Premieres Friday October 24th 10 PM EST.

Here is the official description of the show from its website:

Based on the wildly popular comic book series "Hellblazer" from DC Comics, seasoned demon hunter and master of the occult John Constantine (Matt Ryan, "Criminal Minds") is armed with a ferocious knowledge of the dark arts and a wickedly naughty wit. He fights the good fight - or at least he did. With his soul already damned to hell, he's decided to abandon his campaign against evil until a series of events thrusts him back into the fray, and he'll do whatever it takes to protect the innocent. With the balance of good and evil on the line‎, Constantine will use his skills to travel the country, find the supernatural terrors that threaten our world and send them back where they belong. After that, who knows... maybe there's hope for him and his soul after all.

What I have seen of this show looks interesting, but that is largely because Matt Ryan appears to be having so much fun chewing the scenery as the title character.  Apart from that, this looks like yet another supernatural series with a looming war between good and evil and apocalyptic overtones.  We already have that several times over across the television channels and for my money Supernatural has been doing it the best (as they add plenty of gallows humor to offset the darker themes).  Still, I'm intrigued enough by Constantine to give it a look.  I should note, though, that I have never followed the Hellblazer comic, and I hear that the show will be taking some liberties with the source material.  But maybe it will manage to hit the right buttons and give the other supernatural shows on television some competition.

As for its chances for survival, I have to say that the Friday 10 PM EST timeslot that NBC has this one scheduled in looks treacherous. Dracula did not do well enough in that hour last year to get a renewal (even though the show pulled relatively decent numbers for that low viewership slot). And I don’t know that Constantine will have as much draw from the comic book audience as FOX’s Gotham will. Plus, Constantine is not an international production like Dracula was, so it comes as a more expensive entry to its network.  NBC has ordered additional scripts for the show (only three), but that's not the same as a full season pickup and sometimes the nets do that just to stir up some buzz around the shows.  If this one pulls ratings similar to Dracula, then that angel visiting Constantine in the show may need to pull some strings from above to get this one a second season.

Here is the trailer for the show:

TV Review: Agents of SHIELD Season 2

Rating: 2 ½ Out of 5 Stars (after three episodes)

Bottom Line: This show is still in search of a direction and it has unwisely decided to go dark rather than mine the comic book source material.

Last season, ABC's Agents of SHIELD was one of the most anticipated sci fi shows on the Fall schedule, and its monster debut in the ratings reflected that.  But after its premiere, the show's numbers started to slide largely because it did not quite meet up to expectations, and even a reboot of sorts (tied in with the Captain America: The Winter Soldier movie) toward the end of the season could not quite bring viewers back.  Still, the show earned a second season renewal, but debuted a few weeks ago to find itself still struggling in the ratings.  So why is this once highly anticipated series having trouble keeping its audience?  There are a few reasons that I can see for that.  For one, I'm sure plenty tuned in last year expecting to see a Marvel blockbuster on their screen each week.  However, television works on a much smaller budget and the series could not afford to deliver that level of spectacle on an ongoing basis.  That could be compensated for, though, if the series had a close enough tie to its comic book source material, but that instead has been a second major problem with the show. The main characters of the series are mostly new names except for Agent Coulson who appeared in several of the Marvel movies.  And apart from that, there has been little crossover with the comics.  Unlike The CW's successful Arrow which has made a concerted effort to bring in as many familiar names from the comics, Agents of SHIELD has mostly plotted its own course.  And for the second season, the show has decided to adopt a darker, grittier tone while still keeping the comic book universe it came from at arm's reach.  I realize this latter issue is because Marvel is targeting the big screen for many of its major and not-so-major superheros (and Netflix also scored a coup with the upcoming Defenders multi-part series that will team up Daredevil, Iron Fist, Luke Cage, and Jessica Jones).  But still, Marvel has a LOT of characters (and good stories) out there that could be merged into Agents of SHIELD to help it find that spark it needs.  And the dark tone just doesn't fit well with it either.  That's the way the DC prefers to go, but one of the keys to the success of the Marvel Avengers films which the series is so closely tied to is that they have a spirit of fun.  We saw that to an extent early on with Agents of SHIELD as Season 1 started with some witty and fun scripts, but by mid-season it just seemed to have lost steam.  I'm guessing that's because the corporate suits at Disney and Marvel wanted the show to have broad appeal and they dialed back the trademark quirkiness of the Whedon clan who have been helming the show.  But then we have a show that falls short of the superheroics comic book fans are looking for, lacks the cult feel that the Whedon fans prefer, cannot deliver the spectacle that the wider audience demands, and now its going dark which is a different direction than the Marvel movies usually follow.  This is a show that has been in search of an identity and just hasn't quite found it yet while the audience is in the process of tuning out in favor of options that have better appeal to comics fans like Arrow, The Flash, and Gotham.  And personally, my interest in the show has waned as well.  I may tune in to check up on it as its second season progresses, but it is no longer on my must-watch list.  And I think that's true of the general sci fi audience which means this one may be done by the end of the season.

TV Review: Gotham

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars (After 3 Episodes)

Bottom Line: This Almost Batman series has its moments but may need a bit more super-heroics to keep up interest.

Debuting this season on FOX, Gotham gives as the story of a young Jim Gordon (eventually to become the well known Commissioner Gordon from the Batman mythos) as a green yet honest cop trying to find his way in the crime-ravaged, corruption-filled Gotham City.  In the first episode, he comes in contact with a young Bruce Wayne who has just suffered the loss of his parents in an apparent street robbery, and Gordon vows to bring in the person responsible for their murder.  And thus we set off into early years that forged the Batman and eventually brought Gordon and the Caped Crusader together in an unlikely partnership against crime.  You should know right away that this series does not tie in with the movies, as it sets up its own version of the Batman universe.  It is also thus far absent of any of the superheroes or supervillains from that mythos, though we see many seeds planted for the characters we know all too well from the comics.  We have been introduced to Selina Kyle (Catwoman), Edward Nygma (The Riddler), Ivy Pepper (Poison Ivy), and Oswald Cobblepot (The Penguin) thus far (and there may have been a few other names dropped that I missed).  And the current story arc is focused on how Cobblepot morphs into that fowl character so famous from the comics.  Also in the picture is Harvey Bullock (who is Gordon's rather seedy partner), and Gordon's girlfriend Barbara could factor is at some point as Batgirl (or would Batwoman be more appropriate seeing the age difference between her and Bruce Wayne?).  The thing about this show thus far, though, is that it is pretty much just a crime drama with the names of Batman characters sprinkled about.  And while it's a decent enough crime drama, don't we have more than enough of those on television these days?  And how long will fans of the comic stick around for this "Almost Batman" series before they start to demand some payoff from the source material that is more than just teases about what the characters will be some day?  I believe one of the reasons that Agents of SHIELD has lost much of its audience is that it delivers too little of what the audience expects from the comics, and that could get to be a factor for Gotham as well.  I'm willing to tune in for a crime drama if it keeps a close tie to the source material, but if this turns into CSI: Gotham, then I will be losing interest quickly (as will probably many from the show's audience).  I'm on board for now, but still waiting for them to deliver on the goods.

Audiobook Review: The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Fellowship of the Rings: 5 out of 5 Stars (Highest Rating)

The Two Towers: 4 out of 5 Stars

The Return of the King: 4 ½ out of 5 Stars

Audiobook Rating: 4 ½ out of 5 Stars

The Lord of the Rings trilogy is of course and all-time classic of fantasy literature and one that I have read all the way through twice way back in my college days.  But I never did reread it completely around the time that the films came out as I had planned (just made it through the first book) and as I started on my audiobook adventure several years back I was disappointed that the full version of the trilogy was not available in that format (the closest were BBC dramatizations that ran about the same length as each of the films).  But apparently there were audiobook versions produced back in the books-on-tape days that have now finally surfaced during the digital age, so I snatched these up from Audible.com (who I have a love/hate relationship with) and set about revisiting the world of Middle Earth.  The Fellowship of the Rings I had reread in the late 90’s, and like the movies I still consider it the best of the trilogy.  And Peter Jackson’s film version actually follows it fairly closely, though with edits and alterations to move things along more quickly (and poor Tom Bombabil got left out completely again).  The Two Towers is the most talky of the three books and has the least amount of action even though it has the Battle of Helms Deep and the Ents assault on Isengard (which is mostly recounted as a flashback).  The Jackson film differed immensely from this book, though he had little choice because this one was not structured well to work as a film.  The Return of the King delivers the epic finale to the story and I had nearly forgotten about the final part of the book where Frodo and the other Hobbits must reclaim the Shire which has fallen on dark times.  That part didn’t make it into the movie for logistics reasons, but could practically be turned into a spin-off fourth film itself.  Revisiting these books was a labor of love as I slipped back into the world of magic and myth that Tolkien created, and it felt like catching up with a dear old friend.  All three are read by Rob Inglis, and while at first I thought his aged voice was a bit craggly for some of the characters, I developed a liking to his venerable British accent which fit well with the tales and ultimately leant itself to the enjoyment of the books.  He also has a surprisingly good singing voice which proved essential as many songs are  interwoven through the books.  I became so accustomed to Inglus’ voice over the 50+ hours that the three volumes span that eventually I could imagine no one else bringing Tolkien’s story to life.  And fortunately as I am now venturing forward into The Hobbit on audiobook, I have found that he narrates that one as well.  The audiobook format is a great way to revisit this timeless, classic trilogy and definitely worth the hours you will invest into it. 

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead, AMC, Returning Series (5th Season), Premiere Tuesday October 12th 9 PM EST

Here’s the official description for the fifth season of The Walking Dead:

Season Four of The Walking Dead ended with Rick and the group outgunned, outnumbered, and trapped in a train car awaiting a grim fate. Season Five picks up shortly thereafter. What follows is a story that weaves the true motives of the people of Terminus with the hopeful prospect of a cure in Washington, D.C., the fate of the group’s lost comrades, as well as new locales, new conflicts, and new obstacles in keeping the group together and staying alive. Stories will break apart and intersect. The characters will find love and hate. Peace and conflict. Contentment and terror. And, in the quest to find a permanent, safe place to call home, one question will haunt them…After all they’ve seen, all they’ve done, all they’ve sacrificed, lost, and held on to no matter what the cost…Who do they become? AMC

Season 4 of this show was definitely an exhausting affair, giving us the final showdown with the Governor and then all the struggles that followed when the group was scattered afterwards.  I’ve heard that the upcoming season will deliver a bit less in the way of gut-wrenching drama and instead focus more on action.  That may not be such a bad thing, as fans could use a break from some of those heart-stopping moments.  But TWD being what it is, don’t count on too much of a respite (especially with the specter of cannibalism lurking in Terminus).  Still, I expect this show to keep up the level of quality we have seen through its first four years (that includes the much-maligned second season), and I would direct you to Syfy’s Z Nation if you are looking for any zombie levity.

As far as the show's ratings prospects for this coming season, don't expect those numbers to be dropping much any time soon.  And the fact is that it could still slip a couple of points and still rank as the highest rated shows across the broadcast nets and cable. TWD even beat high profile sporting events pretty regularly based on the ratings in the 18-49 demo several times last season. This one will almost certainly be going out on its own terms and that won't be any time soon (and that spin-off series should be hitting some time next year).

Here is the Trailer for Season 5:
 

Buy The Walking Dead on DVD and Blu-ray or Stream Episodes from Amazon.com:

Review: Z Nation

Rating: 4 out of 5 Guilty Pleasure Stars (after three episodes)

Bottom Line:  This show is just good, cheesy zombie fun

Syfy has apparently decided to try and grab a piece of The Walking Dead’s massive genre audience with Z Nation, and personally I think the show is off to a good start.  The basic premise is a given: there’s been a zombie-pocalypse (do we really care why or about the details?) and small pockets of un-infected people are trying to survive.  This show’s twist: one person has been given a (now lost) vaccine and survived several zombie bites and he may be the key to saving the world.  Problem 1: he’s an asshole.  Problem 2: a group of survivors has been tasked with getting him across country to a lab that can get the cure from his blood, but they don’t like him nor did they willingly accept their mission.  From there, plenty of zombie-gore and post-apocalyptic yarns ensue.  And whereas The Walking Dead goes for grim, gritty reality, Z Nation revels in the exploitive nature of the zombie genre while also deliverimg plenty of dark humor.  The show comes from The Asylum, notorious for mock-busters like Transmorphers, The Almighty Thor, and The Day the Earth Stopped as well as those Sharknado movies (a third is on the way).  And it definitely borrows some of the same absurdity those latter flicks are known for (though toned down, fortunately), but it does it with a gleeful smirk and a wink at its audience.  They aren’t going for classic sci fi here, and they know it.  But they do the cheesy zombie shtick well enough and they brought aboard a bang-up troupe of actors (mostly unknowns apart from Lost’s Harold Perrineau) who are so far having great fun with their roles.  And the icing on the cake is watchful Citizen Z monitoring the progress of this group from an NSA station in the North Pole (with plenty of fun jabs at that Orwell-Come-to-Life organization) played completely over-the-top by the always enjoyable D.J. Qualls (I was disappointed he did not become a regular on Supernatural, but all the better for this show).  Some may say that Z Nation is The Asylum’s mock-buster take on The Walking Dead, and you could make an argument to that effect.  Don’t sign on to this one expecting well thought out, carefully crafted stories as the leaps of logic and plot holes are almost as prevalent as the zombies.  And while it does give us some of the same moral ambiguities that are stock-and-trade for TWD, Z Nation is much more about action and shock value and much less about gut-wrenching drama.  Approach this the way you would any cheesy, low-rent zombie flick, and know that they embrace that milieu and do it as well as it can be done.

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: The Originals

The Originals, The CW, Returning Series (2nd Season), Premieres Monday Octobers 6th 8 PM EST

Here’s the official description for the second season of The Originals:

Season two finds our heroes adjusting to a new status quo, with the newly empowered werewolves controlling the city and a myriad of unknown threats lurking. Though Klaus and Hayley have vowed to scorch the earth in order to make New Orleans a safe home for their daughter, Hope, they also have inner demons to battle. As she adjusts to life as a hybrid, Hayley experiences crippling rage and depression after saying goodbye to her daughter, and Klaus – who needs his strength now more than ever – finds himself regularly weakened as the werewolves use the moonlight rings forged in his blood. Elijah, finding himself isolated from his troubled family, sets out to destroy Francesca (guest star Peta Sergeant) and her traitorous werewolves, connecting with Marcel and his renewed vampire community in the process. Despite the dangerous climate of the city, Cami recommits to her studies and to pursuing the life she wanted before she met Klaus – but the werewolves in the Quarter aren’t the only enemies preventing New Orleans from any semblance of peace.

Unbeknownst to Klaus and Elijah, their ruthlessly devious parents have returned from the dead. Though their father, Mikael (guest star Sebastian Roché), is controlled by Davina’s magic, he remains ever-intent on killing Klaus – even if he has to go through Davina to do it. Elsewhere, their mother, Esther (guest star Alice Evans), inhabiting the body of a teenage witch, is fueled by a consuming and twisted love for her children as she devises a disturbing plan to reunite her fractured family – a plan that involves untold torment not only for the Original siblings, but for any and all of their loved ones.  --The CW

 I found myself hooked by this Vampire Diaries spin-off last season even though I never cared much for the parent series.  In its first season, The Originals dispensed with all of the angsty stories of show it came from (and I understand Diaries has veered from that as well) and also focused less on the soap opera aspects you might expect from it.  Instead, it delivered plenty of morally ambiguous characters in a power struggle that was downright Shakespearean at times.   And the second year promises more of the same.  For my money, this is the true heir to Dark Shadows and it also realizes the potential that the short-lived Kindred: The Embraced hinted at back in 1996 and I’m definitely pumped for the coming second season.

As far as its prospects of making it to a third season, I have to say I'm less than optimistic at this point.  The Originals was hit hard by The CW’s late season slump last year, and now it finds itself shifted to Mondays which have been a disaster for the network the last few years.  I realize they are hoping the show will help them win back some of the audience share for that night like it did with Tuesdays last season.  But then it had the assistance of Supernatural then whereas it is taking on Mondays with an untested (non-genre) new entry.  That makes me very nervous.  Still, since it airs on the fifth place network, it will be given a bit more leeway if its numbers drop.  But don't be surprised to see this show at bubble status before too long.

Here is the trailer for Season 2:

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: Star Wars Rebels

Star Wars Rebels: Disney XD, New Series, Premiere Movie Airs Friday October 3rd 9 PM EST, Series Premieres Monday Octobers 13th 9 PM EST

This animated series takes place between Episode III and IV of the movies and the show's website describes the premise thusly:

The story unfolds during a dark time when the evil Galactic Empire is tightening its grip of power on the galaxy. Imperial forces have occupied a remote planet and are ruining the lives of its people. The motley but clever crew of the starship Ghost – cowboy Jedi Kanan, ace pilot Hera, street-smart teenager Ezra, the "muscle" Zeb, warrior firebrand Sabine, and cantankerous old astromech droid Chopper – is among a select few who are brave enough to stand against the Empire. Together, they will face threatening new villains, encounter colorful adversaries, embark on thrilling adventures and become heroes with the power to ignite a rebellion.

The movie Star Wars Rebels: Spark of Rebellion will premiere on the Disney XD website on September 29 and then on the Disney XD channel on October 3rd.  Then the weekly series will begin in its regular Monday timeslot on October 13th at 9 PM EST.  You can see the trailer for the show below and several shorts and additional clips at the show's website.

From what I have seen so far, the animation looks good, which was the strongest point of Star Wars: The Clone Wars.  But it looks like they have to have the requisite, annoying teenager as the focus of the series and also the expected wise-cracking badass running around as well.  Hopefully, though, it won't turn out as derivative and redundant as The Clone Wars did.  And since its Star Wars, we have to at least give it a look.  My expectations are not too high for this one, but I'm at least hoping it delivers some entertaining space opera each week that's not too bogged down by cliche.

As far as its chances for survival, this one is a strong contender going in and will likely go as long as Disney wants to air it. The only reason that Star Wars: The Clone Wars was truncated (though it made it well past the hundred episodes Lucas originally envisioned) was because Disney was cleaning house of the old in preparation for the new. Expect Rebels to pull decent ratings for its network and stick around for several years.  And sell a ton of toys and other merchandising in the process . . .

Here is the Trailer:


The First Star Wars Rebels Lego Sets are Available Now:

Review: Extant Season 1

Rating: 3 ½ out of 5 Stars

Bottom Line: Showed promise with some good sci fi concepts, but fell short in its first season.

Extant bowed on CBS in July with much fanfare and big names Halle Berry and Steven Spielberg attached as the network hoped to replicate its success with Under the Dome from the prior season. That didn’t quite work as Extant stumbled in the ratings and received only a lukewarm response from fans and critics (while UtD also took a hit in the ratings and from the fans), but it wasn’t completely a lost cause. I originally considered Extant’s premise somewhat flimsy: a female astronaut (Berry) returns from an extended solo mission in space and finds that she is pregnant with an alien embryo. But they actually managed to run with the concept as the show delivered an interesting first contact story while also while also merging in a parallel story about humanoid robots (referred to as humanichs) and artificial intelligence. Unfortunately, at times it seemed the show was piling on cliché after cliché in a spaghetti-against-the-wall attempt to find what would stick with fans. But Extant did manage to present its own spin on these many tropes and it did deliver that rare broadcast network entry that sticks close to its sci fi concepts rather than set them on the sill as so much window dressing. And they even avoided the cute-kid pitfalls with Ethan the humanich as we didn’t get too much in the way of angsty storylines. Halle Berry delivered a standup, veteran performance despite the fact that the show insisted she walk around with a perpetual WTF look on her face. And she had an excellent supporting cast as well that helped elevate the production. Unfortunately, though, all of the first season’s promise derailed with an anti-climactic, copy-and-paste finale that may have been thrown together in an effort to wrap up storylines because they were assuming no second season would be forth-coming. It didn’t totally kill the series, but I sure found it disappointing. The other thing I think they missed on was not playing up the horror angle. British sci fi often successfully embraces horror and Extant flirted with it a few times, which could have really taken the show to the next level. But I imagine that network executives put a kibosh on taking that too far which ultimately left us with a watered down product. Based on the ratings, the show will almost certainly not return to CBS next summer. But financial partner Amazon could elect to keep it going (assuming they can afford to pick up the full production costs), and that would be good thing because they may give it the freedom to really explore its sci fi concepts and perhaps amp up the horror elements. If this show were to survive and go in that direction, then it could turn into a first-rate genre entry.

Stream Extant and Under the Dome on Amazon Instant Video, Included with Amazon Prime Subscription:

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: Person of Interest

Select previews of this Fall’s upcoming science fiction and fantasy shows. You can see the full schedule of shows at this link.

Person of Interest: CBS, Returning Series (4th Season), Premieres Tuesday September 23rd 10 PM EST

The Season 3 finale of this series brought quite a lot of changes to Person of Interest with Finch and his partners forced to go rogue as the “new” (and nefarious) machine Samaritan appears ready to take over as the sentinel for humanity.  It looks like the series could be setting itself up for a course change from its more procedural focused stories from its first three years (though it was already veering away from that for much if its third season).  However, TV shows love to make you think that big changes are coming, especially around season finale time, and then set things back to business as usual after an episode or two of the new year.

Person of Interest started out in 2011 as yet another “procedural with a twist” and it fit comfortably within CBS’ lineup of similar cop dramas.  But as the show has progressed, it has continued to delve into its sci fi elements even if it typically avoids too much in the way of pondering over the moral quandaries of its pre-crime concept.  In the show’s third season, it moved further away from its procedural elements as it really explored the AI nature of the machine and also brought in the competing system that ended up having its day as the finale rolled around.  Hopefully it will continue in that direction and not backtrack too much, though the show’s network is not one known for taking a lot of risks.  I will continue to tune it, though, and this series has developed some decent buzz from the sci fi community as it has grown across its three seasons.

As far as its prospects for renewal, the show's ratings in the 18-49 demographic dropped last season, but it total viewers numbers remained high which is a factor at older-skewing CBS, and it regularly landed in the Top 20 based on that metric.  It will be in its fourth season now, so anything beyond that is just padding for the syndication run.  If it doesn’t drop too far and if CBS doesn’t consider it too expensive, it should be good to go for a fifth season.

Here is the Season 4 Trailer:

Buy Person of Interest on DVD and Blu-ray or Stream Episodes from Amazon.com:

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: Agents of SHIELD

Marvel's Agents of SHIELD: ABC, Returning Series (2nd Season), Premieres Tuesday September 23rd 9 PM EST

This show is back for a second season and it bring's Xena's Lucy Lawless onboard as a "longtime S.H.I.E.L.D. veteran" and Nick Blood as "Lance Hunter from S.T.R.I.K.E., a character that executive producer Jeffrey Bell describes as a mercenary who will join forces with the agents of S.H.I.E.L.D."  Patton Oswalt will also be returning as Agent Koenig who is apparently not as dead as he appeared to be at the end of the first season.  And as we know, Coulson now leads a rogue team that is on the run but still trying to defeat the threat that Hydra brings to the world.

Last season, Agents of SHIELD debuted to monster ratings, but those quickly dropped off when viewers found that the show could not deliver the same level of spectacle as the Marvel blockbusters on the big screen (and I expect to see FOX's Gotham experience a similar spike and quick drop-off).  And I have to admit that while I loved the show early on for its excellent cast and its witty scripts, I found that the quality dropped off by mid-season and I felt like I was pretty close to hate-watching the second half of the series, even when things started to pick up at the end of the season.  I'm guessing that the executives over at Marvel and ABC and Disney will have insisted on some retooling of the show and the cast additions mentioned above are likely part of that.  And I plan on tuning in early to see if the second season can recapture the sense of fun we saw at the beginning of the show's first year.  But if it starts veering toward hate-watching, there are plenty of other genre options on the tube this season (just take a look at the Fall schedule).

As for the show's chances of making it to a third season, I'd say its very iffy at this point (you can see where it came in on the Power Rankings at this link).  It dropped down into the low 2's in the 18-49 demographic based on the overnights toward the second half of its first season which had it on the verge of bubble territory.  True, with the ratings declines the broadcasts networks have been experiencing in general, a 2.0 score is good enough for many shows.  But Agents of SHIELD is an expensive entry, and I'm sure ABC wants higher ratings than where the show ended its last season.  It's part of the Avengers franchise, and Disney executives can likely trump the ABC brass because they own the network.  But you can only bleed so much.  I believe this show's numbers will have to improve, otherwise Coulson will have to come up with a scheme to avoid one the greatest super-villain of them all: the Network Executioner.

Here is the Teaser for Season 2:

Buy Agents of SHIELD Season 1 on DVD and Blu-ray or Stream Episodes from Amazon.com:

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: Gotham

Gotham: FOX, New Series, Premieres Monday September 22nd 8 PM EST

Here is the description from the show's website:

Everyone knows the name Commissioner Gordon. He is one of the crime world's greatest foes, a man whose reputation is synonymous with law and order. But what is known of Gordon's story and his rise from rookie detective to Police Commissioner? What did it take to navigate the multiple layers of corruption that secretly ruled Gotham City, the spawning ground of the world's most iconic villains? And what circumstances created them – the larger-than-life personas who would become Catwoman, The Penguin, The Riddler, Two-Face and The Joker?

GOTHAM is an origin story of the great DC Comics Super-Villains and vigilantes, revealing an entirely new chapter that has never been told. From executive producer/writer Bruno Heller (“The Mentalist,” “Rome”), GOTHAM follows one cop's rise through a dangerously corrupt city teetering on the edge of evil, and chronicles the birth of one of the most popular super heroes of our time.

Will this "almost superhero" series work?  It gives us the pre-Batman universe with the characters that have not quite yet morphed into the incarnations we expect.  And while a pre-origin tale for the Dark Knight has some potential, hasn't that character been done to death by now?  They're not giving us an actual Batman series because that character is blockbuster movie material these days.  So then why not go with someone else in the DC Universe that doesn't have a current contract on the big screen?  There's plenty to choose from.  The simple answer is that Batman has more drawing power, but how far will that go when people come to terms with the fact there is a lot less Bat on the screen than man (and that man would be Jim Gordan, Bruce Wayne is still a boy)?  Agents of SHIELD saw its audience drop by more than half last season as it delivered little in the way of the superhero spectacle that the Marvel movies offered.  Will the same thing happen with Gotham?  I'll tune it, but I'm thinking that Arrow and the Flash over on The CW will be delivering a much bigger punch.

As for the show's survival chances, I don't particularly care for its Monday 8 PM EST timeslot where last season Almost Human failed to build much of an audience.  But then that one was done in more by poor scheduling on the part of FOX (a late premiere, frequent preemptions, airing episodes our of order) and I'm sure they are looking at Gotham as a premiere Prime Time entry.  Name recognition will draw a lot of curious onlookers early, but if they lose interest quickly, FOX may let this "Almost Batman" show go the same way as Almost Human.  But I am thinking that more likely than not it will manage to hold on.

 See the Full Schedule of Fall Sci Fi / Fantasy Shows at This Link

 Trailer:

Review: High Moon

High Moon, Syfy TV Movie

Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

Bottom Line:  Bryan Fuller quirkiness on the Moon amped to the Nth degree with a bit of Lovecraft thrown in. Entertaining, but WTF?

This television movie is (very) loosely based on the book The Lotus Caves by John Christopher and is actually a failed pilot for a proposed TV series.  It takes place on the Moon where several countries have set up bases to mine Helium 3 (though it’s not in any way related to Duncan Jones’ excellent film Moon) and there is an ongoing rivalry to encroach on each other’s territory.  The plot--such that it is--of the story involves the deaths of several men that may be related to terrorism but that also turns up signs of vegetation potentially growing on the Moon.  It’s all a pretty whirlwind, mind-bending affair with the trademark quirkiness of helmer Bryan Fuller bursting at all the seams.  Visually, the film utilizes a very bright color palette not dissimilar to Fuller’s Pushing Daisies, but it delivers an all-to-clean, artificial, retro-future look that seems to misfire on giving it the distinctive look it’s going for.  But if that doesn’t work for you, stick around as it goes full-on Lovecraft toward the end.  Then there’s the giant robot dinosaur, but I don’t even know where to begin explaining that.  The movie definitely has Fuller stamped all over it and delivers plenty of the expected rapid-fire, witty dialogue.  And it has a definite sense of fun about it, something sorely lacking in many sci fi genre entries these days.   The cast are all up to Fuller’s usual standards and all have that where-did-I-see-them-before vibe going, though most of them have only minor genre credits to their name.  For those who know Fuller only from his work on Hannibal, this one may not quite work for them, though it does offer a respite from the chasm’s of darkness and near torture-porn of that show.  But those who loved Pushing Daisies, Wonderfalls, and Dead Like Me will likely find something to enjoy here.  I can definitely see why Syfy decided not to move forward with this as a series seeing as it goes well over the top while also diverging into non sequiturs.  But it can be entertaining at times as it revels in all of its idiosyncrasies.  Worth a look, but intoxicating substances may enhance the experiance

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: Z Nation

Z Nation: Syfy New Series, Premieres Friday September 12th 10 PM EST

Here is the series description from the show's website:

Z Nation starts three years after the zombie virus has gutted the country, a team of everyday heroes must transport the only known survivor of the plague from New York to California, where the last functioning viral lab waits for his blood. Although the antibodies he carries are the world’s last, best hope for a vaccine, he hides a dark secret that threatens them all. With humankind’s survival at stake, the ragtag band embarks on a journey of survival across three thousand miles of rusted-out post-apocalyptic America.

The good news from this show?  It was created by former Eureka executive producer Karl Schaefer, so hopefully he will inject some wit and energy into the zombie genre.  The bad news?  It's produced by The Asylum, renowned for their rip-off "mockbusters" (Transmorphers, The Day the Earth Stopped, The Almighty Thor) as well as the two Sharknado films.  Does that make Z Nation the cheap Asylum copy of AMC's monster hit (pun unintended but accepted) The Walking Dead?  I hope not, because I am looking forward to this one.  Lost's Harold Perrineau stars (he's also a member of the cast of NBC's Constantine) and D.J. Qualls is onboard as well (loved him as Garth on Supernatural).  The trailer (see below) does looks a bit cheesy and over the top, though, so no telling what we will get here.

As far as how well it will perform in the ratings, it's somewhat hard to tell at this point.  Syfy has had little in the way of hits lately, but I'm sure they are hoping that this will pull in some of the zombie crowd that regularly makes TWD the top rated show on television.  And I think it can if it doesn't sink to the level of the typical Asylum production.  Plus, the one advantage of its association with that studio is that they know how to produce something on a dime (maybe nickle? penny?), so the same 0.4 rating in the 18-49 demographic based on the overnights that won renewals for Haven and Helix just might suffice with this show as well. Trailer:

Focus on Fall Sci Fi TV: Forever

Select previews of this Fall's upcoming science fiction and fantasy shows. You can see the full schedule of shows at this link. Forever: ABC New Series, Premieres Wednesday September 23rd 10 PM EST Here is the series description from the show's website:

Doctor Henry Morgan (Ioan Gruffudd), New York City's star medical examiner, has a secret. He doesn't just study the dead to solve criminal cases, he does it to solve the mystery that has eluded him for 200 years—the answer to his own inexplicable immortality. This long life has given Henry remarkable observation skills which impresses his new partner Detective Jo Martinez (Alana De La Garza). Each week, a new case and their budding friendship will reveal layers of Henry's long and colorful past. Only his best friend and confidant, Abe (Judd Hirsch) knows Henry's secret.

ABC has offered the pilot for free online viewing, and I really didn't expect that I would like this show yet found myself oddly drawn to it.  It borrows quite a number of elements from a wide variety of genre sources including The Immortal (a short-lived 1970 series starring Christopher George), New Amsterdam (a short-lived 2008 series starring Game of Thrones' Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), Unbreakable (2000 M. Night Shyamalan film starring Bruce Willis and Samuel Jackson), the Highlander movies and TV series, and more.  On top of that, it gives us yet another procedural with a sci fi (maybe fantasy) twist and it makes frequent use of the tired flashback sequences.  And yet, even as I processed these derivative factors while watching the pilot, I found myself enjoying it.  Maybe it was Ioan Gruffudd's excellent performance as Henry Morgan.  Maybe it was Judd Hirsch's presence in the cast (he's a particular favorite actor of mine and has been criminally underutilized on TV).  Maybe it was the ageless Sherlock Holmes-type character that Henry Morgan gives us (I've always loved Arthur Conan Doyles' SH tales).  Maybe it was the show's somewhat fun, light-hearted tone that was mixed in with its more dramatic elements. But I found that something just clicked for me.  I'm not saying it is a great series or a must-watch new entry on the schedule.  But it was good fun, and I will definitely tune in for a few more episodes. As far as its prospects for survival on the Prime Time schedule?  It's kind of hard to tell at this point.  It has Agents of SHIELD as its lead-in, but that series was fading as last season was winding down.  If that show continues its decline into the current year, it will offer no help to Forever.  But then this new entry could become a surprise hit like last year's Sleepy Hollow (FOX) or Resurrection (ABC).  I give it about a 50/50 chance of surviving at this point, which are decent odds these days for a new series.