FALL TV PREVIEW; Fox gears up for a fabulous fall season
Mark Trammell, Features Editor
Published On: 09/ 8/2008
“Fringe”
“Fringe” stars Joshua “Pacey” Jackson (“Dawson’s Creek”) as Peter, the ne’er-do-well son of a brilliant-but-crazy scientist, Dr. Walter Bishop. (Given Abrams’ propensity for in-joke names, this may or may not be a reference to the android in “Aliens.”) When FBI agent Olivia Dunham — perhaps a Lovecraft reference? — and her boyfriend/fellow agent track down a suspect to a storage facility, the boyfriend is exposed to a chemical explosion, the after-effects of which she has reason to believe Dr. Bishop may be able to cure. The problem is, her boyfriend could die at any moment, and Dr. Bishop is in a mental institution for rogue “experiments” on humans that make him sound like a cross between Dr. Frankenstein and Herbert West, a.k.a. the “Re-Animator.” Enter the mysterious Phillip Broyles (Lance Riddick, who plays a similar role on “Lost,” leading one to wonder if the two are inter-connected), a man of unknown affiliations but clear control over the situation.
He encourages Olivia to pursue the not-so-good doctor, and basically gives her helpful hints on how to spring him from the loony bin. Things only get stranger from there, but I won’t ruin the fun for you, save to say the title refers to those who study “fringe” science, or the type of stuff found on shows like the “X-Files,” such as the paranormal and experiments on the dead and so forth.
There’s clearly an overarching subplot/conspiracy going on here, but what it is isn’t perfectly clear. Of course, if it was, we wouldn’t have a show, would we? “Fringe” brings to mind the mad-scientist flicks of the ’80s, particularly “Altered States” and David Cronenberg’s early work, like “The Brood,” “The Fly” and “Scanners.” Or at least the pilot does. It’s certainly interesting enough to warrant another look, and I’m curious to see how the show will function week-to-week, now that the premise is set up. Another plus is Aussie newcomer Anna Torv as Dunham, who tellingly had a role on…you guessed it, an adaptation of “Frankenstein.” She’s really excellent, and should have a bright future here in the states, even if the show doesn’t. My guess is the show will do just fine, especially given Fox’s smart gambit of getting a head-start on the competition, most of whom don’t have premieres until late in the month.
“The Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles”
Perhaps the most engaging of the shows I previewed is the returning “The Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.” After a surprisingly edgy and fun first season, the premiere episode sets up what looks to be an even better second season. A big part of that is the cool casting of Scottish Shirley Manson of the rock band Garbage as a mysterious C.E.O of a big corporation.
Many have suspected said corporation to be connected to Skynet (a.k.a. the corporation responsible for creating the unstoppable terminators of the future). I’m not saying they’re wrong…but I’m not saying they’re right, either. Either way, it adds an even hotter element to a show already near overflowing with hotness, given the presence of “300” scene stealer Lena Headey and sci-fi pin-up trifecta queen Summer Glau, formerly of the late, lamented “The 4400” and “Firefly,” as the “good” terminatrix.
Reportedly, according to the interviews on the preview disc, they will add yet another hottie in the form of a love interest for John Connor (Thomas Dekker) later in the season. Given all the butt-kicking women on display, you would think this would be a no-brainer for disgruntled female fans of the dearly-departed “Xena,” “Buffy, and “Alias,” but according to the show’s creator, it’s still a fanboy thing. Hopefully that will change this season, what with the added estrogen.
As for the premiere, it takes place in the immediate aftermath of the season finale, with the bad terminator still on the loose and the good one down for the count.
You won’t find any spoilers here one way or another, except to say the last scene is a grabber that sets up what should be a boffo second season, from the looks of things. This, my friends, is first-rate action that puts “Heroes” to shame.
“Prison Break” & “Bones”
“Prison Break” seems back on the right track after the dreary last season — though I’m not sure why it’s still called that, given they’ve spent two seasons on the run and only two in a prison.
“Bones,” which bounces back with a fun London-set two-hour premiere from a dubious big reveal season finale in which a major character was reveled to be in cahoots with a serial killer.
“Prison Break” benefits in particular from an estrogen infusion of its own via the return of the supposedly late, lamented Dr. Sara Tancredi (Sarah Wayne Callies). True, there was sexy femme fatale Jodi Lyn O’Keefe onboard last season, but she was so vicious she might as well have been another one of the boys. I don’t know about you, but she scares me a little — even more than that T-Bag guy, and that’s saying something. Whatever the case, what’s left of the core group is mostly back together — T-Bag is on route to joining them — and the initial set-up is an intriguing one, though the creators would do well to quit while they’re ahead after this season, or at least rename the show!
As for “Bones,” the core team of Bones (Emily Deschanel) and Booth (David Boreanez) is truly in the groove at this point, and with the creator promising the inevitable hook-up between the two this season, it’ll be interesting to see if the show can weather the transition. That sort of thing has sunk even better shows like “The X-Files” and “Moonlighting,” so we’ll see. Whatever the case, the premiere snaps, crackles and pops with chemistry between the two leads, who each have a potential love interests abroad in London. Maybe they’d do best to leave well enough alone and keep these two apart. Sexual tension and jealousy look good on these two.
“House”
On the other hand, there’s “House,” which benefits from an utter lack of sex altogether, save alluded-to-but-rarely-seen coupling between docs Cameron (Jennifer Morrison) and Chase (Jesse Spencer), who used to be a real couple in reality but are no longer — and act like it.
Also, something may have gone on between House (the always-first rate Hugh Laurie) and Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein), and the creators hint that may be explored further this season. Unlike “Bones,” this is a show that might benefit from some fooling around, especially amongst House and someone, as it would be interesting to see what House in love might be like, as evidenced by the appearance of the ex played by Sela Ward.
Either way, its business-as-usual this season, with House and former best friend Dr. Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard) still at odds after the death of the latter’s girlfriend, which was partially House’s doing. The show benefited enormously from the addition of new blood via House’s hysterical reality-TV-inspired hiring of new interns, and the new additions continue to flourish, especially erstwhile-lesbian Thirteen (Olivia Wilde, also a bi-sexual on “The O.C.”- hmm…trying to tell us something, Livvie?). Still, it’s a good thing Laurie is so engaging because sooner or later, the whole disease-of-the-week-that-House-is- almost-always-right-about-unless-he-isn’t-then-someone-dies-and he-pretends-to-feel-bad-about-it-gambit is gonna wear thin, which to a certain extent, it already has.
“Do Not Disturb”
Speaking of wearing thin fast, there’s the final show I screened, “Do Not Disturb.” This weak ensemble comedy has some decent casting, including the deserves-better Nicey Nash (of “Reno 911” fame), Molly Stanton (“Passions”), and Rebecca Romijn’s lesser-half Jerry O’Connell (“Stand by Me”), but not much else is going for it, despite the presence of several “Arrested Development” vets, including Jason Bateman, who directs the pilot, but is nowhere to be found on the interviews. Hmm…wonder why?
I’d be willing to give the show the benefit of the doubt at least for a few more episodes, given the talent involved, but will it last that long in today’s cancel-first-ask-questions-later day and age?
Still, given that the show is the only weak link in what is shaping up to be a primo new season, I wouldn’t lose too much sleep if I were Fox. Last I checked, they were No. 1, right? This lineup should go a long way toward keeping them on top.
Email: kscopefeatures@yahoo.com
