07.00 Logan's Run
08.00 The Sarah Connor Chronicles
09.00 House
11.30 Big Wolf On Campus
12.00 My Secret Identity
Logan's Run. Episode 7. "Crypt" It might be a tad po-faced and slow in places but this is a great hour of TV. On their way to rescue six cryogenically frozen plague sufferers Logan and his crew are caught in an earthquake and half of the antidote is destroyed! So Logan is face-to-face with six strangers (from 200 years in the past) who only have 48 hours to live, and only enough serum to save three of them. It's a great dilemma, perfectly realised by six talented guest actors: Led by the always-great Christopher Stone and a very sexy Adrienne Larussa who sets out to seduce Logan.
REM (the show's best regular character) gets several solid scenes in this one: trying to understand the strange ways of humans and (in the story's final moments) giving a long speech before revealing which of the candidates are not who they appear to be. Although they both get a fair amount of screentime, Logan and Jessica appear here as secondary characters to REM. The opening scenes are nothing more than the two of them firing questions at REM. Questions he is always able to answer. Later his very nature (as an android) is a matter of much debate among the plague sufferers and - as I said - at the very end he is the one who solves everything.
The end of the story is very good. And, while Logan's Run is certainly not as good/clever as something like Star Trek, it is far above '70s contemporaries like Fantastic Journey, Man From Atlantis or Buck Rogers.
The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Season 2, Episode 9. "Complications" Another flawless episode. Ellison makes a horrible mistake that has me shouting at the screen in despair. But, given all that has been happening to him this season, it makes sense that he would trust Catherine Weaver. Idiot!
Cameron gets some amazing scenes this week, as her nature continues to evolve. The scenes with John and the moment where she turned Ellison over (from lying on his back) are among the best that the show has ever done with this character.
But the absolute how-frakkin-cool-is-this highlight of the episode was the Derek storyline as he and Jesse capture/torture/execute a man from the future for crimes he committed in a timeline that Derek does not remember anymore. Awesome.
Awesome because we have tangible proof that the heroes are getting some good work done and awesome that a TV show delivers a low-key time conundrum that makes sense. Ideas like the decision to torture the younger version of the prisoner really make this the most exciting show on TV right now.
Brian Austin Green does some of his best work in his scenes with Richard Schiff. The whole thing is a delight.
House. Season 5, Episode 5. "Lucky Thirteen" When you watch House you keep hoping for things to happen that never will. You want House to show his nice side and treat someone with compassion. In this episode Thirteen (who is dying) is spiralling out of control and you keep hoping House will treat her well, reach out to her. But if he doesn't then he's not really House any more.
It's a great episode. Thirteen's downward spiral into drugs and casual sex is wonderfully realised and you keep hoping the show will offer her a light at the end of the tunnel. But if it does than it's not really House any more.
Big Wolf On Campus. Episode 1. "Pilot" Broad comedy and great characters. While both stars are terrific in their roles it is Danny Smith as the sidekick who gets all the big laughs and provides the main reason for watching/loving this cool little show. The tone of the show allows the comedy bits to be large and OTT, but the moments that allude to the friendship between the guys are played down and - consequently - work. Brandon Quinn is a terrific leading man. Tommy is an atypical superhero. In his normal life he is the popular kid: everybody loves Tommy and he's the star of the school. Becoming a werewolf puts a major crimp in his style until Merton shows up with a ton of answers and their friendship is born.
My Secret Identity. Episode 1. "My Secret Identity" It's got one of the best-ever TV Themes and it's about a comic-book reader who gets superpowers. What's not to love? Jerry O'Connell and Derek McGrath make a great team from the get-go. So what if the mechanics of the plot (the kidnapping of a girl that Andrew likes) are simplistic? It's just a ton of fun watching Andrew master his powers and Jeffcoate rush in to give back-up.
Highlight? The Sarah Connor Chronicles (time-travel conundrum)
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Wed, Nov 19, 08 - Logan's Run, Sarah Connor Chronicles, House, Big Wolf On Campus, My Secret Identity
