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guy44 · 01-14-2008, 09:56 PM

I just finished watching the first two episodes of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles on Fox. The basic premise is that Sarah and John Connor are on the lam from the law following the conclusion of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. In the pilot episode, they discover that they did not, in fact, end the Skynet threat when a Terminator shows up guns-a-blazin'. Luckily for them, a "good" Terminator was sent back to protect them in the form of Summer Glau (from Firefly/Serenity).

The pilot episode was shot like it was forty minutes of the middle third of Terminator 2 or 3: various Connors on the run, big explosions, gun play, Terminators duking it out by destroying the insides of whatever building they happen to occupy. Unfortunately, the episode lacks the parts of the Terminator movies where characters are established and they bond and Arnold gets catch phrases wrong and stuff. I guess the producers just got too caught up with their big budget and assumed we'd remember the characters from the movies.

The second episode is much better. It's essentially about establishing what it is like to constantly be on the run, forging your own identity, and never trusting anybody. There's also a very effective reference to 9/11, which makes sense considering the apocalyptic tone found in so much pop culture these days (BSG, Jericho, etc.).

The best part of the show - by far - is Summer Glau as the "good" Terminator. Glau always played bizarrely detached, naive, and emotionless well (see: Firefly), which makes for a perfect combination in this role. As a "new" model, she's also far more attuned to human nature and interpersonal subtleties than Arnold's Terminator ever was, which I imagine was a concession to the fact that we're going to have to like her character for 22 episodes a year instead of a couple of hours at a time.

I'm really unsure of how good this show will be. On the one hand, I'm afraid that every episode will follow the basic plot structure of "run from the law/Terminator fight/catch breath/minor fight/conclusion." Plus, the voice overs are painfully bad and need to stop ASAP. On the other hand, this is a sci-fi show that comes from good stock and has actually been given a major budget - something I thought I wouldn't see again for years after the disaster that is Bionic Woman. I just hope the writers can keep the show fresh, or at least good enough until Battlestar Galactica returns in a few months (what I like to call "Heroes Quality").

And maybe finally one of the great actors from Firefly will become a major star...

01-14-2008, 09:56 PM	#1 (permalink)
guy44 Somnabulist Location: corner of No and Where	Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles I just finished watching the first two episodes of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles on Fox. The basic premise is that Sarah and John Connor are on the lam from the law following the conclusion of Terminator 2: Judgment Day. In the pilot episode, they discover that they did not, in fact, end the Skynet threat when a Terminator shows up guns-a-blazin'. Luckily for them, a "good" Terminator was sent back to protect them in the form of Summer Glau (from Firefly/Serenity). The pilot episode was shot like it was forty minutes of the middle third of Terminator 2 or 3: various Connors on the run, big explosions, gun play, Terminators duking it out by destroying the insides of whatever building they happen to occupy. Unfortunately, the episode lacks the parts of the Terminator movies where characters are established and they bond and Arnold gets catch phrases wrong and stuff. I guess the producers just got too caught up with their big budget and assumed we'd remember the characters from the movies. The second episode is much better. It's essentially about establishing what it is like to constantly be on the run, forging your own identity, and never trusting anybody. There's also a very effective reference to 9/11, which makes sense considering the apocalyptic tone found in so much pop culture these days (BSG, Jericho, etc.). The best part of the show - by far - is Summer Glau as the "good" Terminator. Glau always played bizarrely detached, naive, and emotionless well (see: Firefly), which makes for a perfect combination in this role. As a "new" model, she's also far more attuned to human nature and interpersonal subtleties than Arnold's Terminator ever was, which I imagine was a concession to the fact that we're going to have to like her character for 22 episodes a year instead of a couple of hours at a time. I'm really unsure of how good this show will be. On the one hand, I'm afraid that every episode will follow the basic plot structure of "run from the law/Terminator fight/catch breath/minor fight/conclusion." Plus, the voice overs are painfully bad and need to stop ASAP. On the other hand, this is a sci-fi show that comes from good stock and has actually been given a major budget - something I thought I wouldn't see again for years after the disaster that is Bionic Woman. I just hope the writers can keep the show fresh, or at least good enough until Battlestar Galactica returns in a few months (what I like to call "Heroes Quality"). And maybe finally one of the great actors from Firefly will become a major star... __________________ "You have reached Ritual Sacrifice. For goats press one, or say 'goats.'"