Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. [review time]

I can't even begin to describe how much I enjoyed the pilot of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. — but I did manage to put into words how much I disliked The Avengers. The disparity between quality and hype is at its greatest with The Avengers. Some will argue that other contenders include Inception and The Dark Knight Rises, but the IMDb ratings don't lie: Inception has an has an 8.8, making it number 16 of the greatest films of all time (if only for mass appeal), Dark Knight Rises has an 8.6 (number 57), and The Avengers has a measly 8.2, and sits at number 168. But we can all agree to give this award to Avatar (7.9) and quit bickering.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., on the other hand, hasn't created -that- much hype so far (I guess with Thor 2 coming and Avengers 2 on the radar, the fanboys are well sated) and is head and shoulders above the quality of The Avengers, at least in the first episode.

From the first, I liked the tone they set. Pretty classy. The first fight scene has opera (or some shiz) in the background. There's a nice mixture of humour and gravity to this pilot, where the agents form up a motley team of qualified yet mis-matched troops to be a kind of "welcoming committee" for new super heroes who don't understand their powers, much like The Company or the World Superhero Registry (lol).

I'm excited about the cast so far. Cobie Smulders looks amazing as Agent Maria Hill; her character comes across as a far bit less useless than in the film, and I hope she becomes a frequent player. I'd never seen Chloe Bennet (Skye) before, but immediately fell in love with her, and I'm sure Brett Dalton (Agent Ward) and Ming-Na Wen (Melinda May) will grow on me... The other two members of the cast promo shot you've seen everywhere (including above) are genius duo Fitz & Simmons, played by Iain De Caestecker and Elizabeth Henstridge respectively.

They definitely tried for Whedonesque humor.

"I don't think Thor's technically a god."

"Well, you haven't been near his arms"

When a (beloved?) long lost character steps out from the shadows to reveal he's still alive: "Sorry, that corner was really dark and I couldn’t help myself. I think there’s a bulb out." And scene.

"Next to people skills she drew — I think that's a little poop."

It got tempting to write down every silly joke, but I decided on restraint. Just prepare yourself for some good moments, folks.

And prepare yourself to be reunited with old friends!

There are a few Whedon favorites I hadn't seen anywhere else yet: Charles Gunn! and Shepherd Book! I hope J. August Richards and Ron Glass make it into the series for more than just the pilot, because I'm super excited.

In comparison to The Avengers, the pilot for S.H.I.E.L.D. had a -satisfying- resolution for its conflict, none of that Hulk-smashing Loki bullshiz. It's a eucatastrophe Tolkien would be proud of. At the most pivotal moment, when it seems there is no going back and no way to win, a saving grace changes the course of history; previously established as imaginable yet impossible, this solution will only work once (okay, the eagles saved the citizens of middle earth more than once, so the old man's a hypocrite, but his theory works. A good eucatastrophe makes for a good ending to any story).

I'm off to watch the next episode. Cheers!

What does the Perfect Pilot Accomplish?

Before we dig in to a series of pilot episode reviews, let’s take a look at the criteria for a perfect first episode.

Exposition:

“Don't you just hate exposition?” is a line (from Charmed) that really stuck with me, probably because it struck me in the heart and the wound just won’t heal. What do you mean, you hate exposition? Hate bad exposition, not the backstory-telling itself!

Even when you’re not looking for the exposition, bad story-telling will hit you over the head and ruin the show, and the pilot episode is where this is most likely to happen.

Too many dialogues between characters that don’t really need to talk about said backstory; speeches that are clearly only for the audience’s benefit; flashbacks with voiceovers; and any over-zealous narration, really, immediately kills what could have otherwise been a good pilot. It’s a lot to ask for a writer/director to come up with new and exciting ways to tell us the backstory, but the best rule of thumb is to just let it happen slowly. We don’t need to know very much about our characters and their world in the very premiere. 

I, and most audience members like me, would much rather be left in the dark, than spoon-fed. It insults our intelligence.

Introduction to the Series:

For me, there is a difference between the exposition and the introduction, particularly 

in a television pilot, where the viewer is likely to sit to the end, but whether he or she watches anything beyond that first episode is entirely determined in that approximately 60 minutes. The unaired pilot of Stark Trek, for example, lets the viewer know what kinds of, pardon the language, crazy shit is going to happen in this series in a time when space operas on television were pretty revolutionary. The aliens with the big heads in Star Trek’s pilot, The Cage, really tell the audience a clear message: If you think this is cool, watch on. If this is a little weird for you, go back to M*A*S*H.

The conflict:

If the conflict is resolved by the end, I have no reason to watch the second episode. It may sound obvious, and may be inspiring of far too many extraneous cliff-hangers, but keep this in mind: if all of the conflicts are resolved, it means, inherently, that the show will be episodic. I have little problem with episodic shows, save that I can’t re-watch a single episode of House (for some reason all of the details stick with me, removing any enjoyable tension from a re-watch), but really, why tune in next week unless I’m worried about the state of the story world? If the protagonist is already near completion of his or her quest, I’m bored now. I came out to see a fight!

I will find examples of this in pilots, for example Doctor Who almost fell prey to a resolved conflict, but for a few examples I will largely say that early Angel and late Buffy suffered from some very boring episodic episodes that ended with no movement forward.

At first I found myself wondering why Angel needed a spin-off if all he was going to do is roam LA saving one victim at a time with no character development and no arching plot. Boring! The show did not pick up for me at all until Darla… happens... in Season 2. Buffy lost me at a crucial moment in Season 6 where, despite Season 5 being the absolute climax of a show that would air another 2 years, the story stopped suddenly.

In fact, Lost did the same thing for me mid-season when I just wanted the freaking hatch to be opened already.

If all of the plot strings are tied into a tight, artfully tied bow, the audience gets very bored. Even if we must defeat the first of many evils, solve the first of many crimes, complete the first of many quests, leave just one conflict open for me, please.

The characters:

There had better be a character I love, and a character I hate, if you want me to keep watching. Although I didn’t love the premiere of Once Upon a Time, I loved Emma and hated Regina the evil Queen.

Remember the Firefly pilot? If you remember clearly enough to your first viewing, you should be able to recall really hating Dr. Simon, and a little bit hating Mal unless you don’t really care about Inara, the Shepherd, and sometimes even Kaylee, Zoe and Wash… yeah he’s pretty much mean to the whole crew, including Jayne, who you also will not really like at this point, so no one minds when Mal puts him in his place… but it’s hard to watch when he does the same to Inara and Book. Who do we like in the Firefly pilot? Probably only Wash, to be honest.

Yes... yes. This is a fertile land, and we will thrive. We will rule over all this land, and we will call it... This Land.

A boring cast will kill a good pilot, and hatred is just as good of a reaction as love in the early stages.

When Episode Two is better:
It doesn’t mean the pilot has failed when the second episode is more engaging, entertaining and lovable. In fact, it often takes a few episodes to get into any television show. Lost and Star Trek have the near-perfect pilot, but some do not.

I can, and will, easily argue that some very good shows have sub-par priemeres, such as Doctor Who and Firefly. I can, and probably will, even say that about the Game of Thrones premiere. Once Upon a Time, which I already reviewed, did not wow me from the first glance either. Take a look at my first reaction to the Once Upon a Time premiere: for me, that review is nearly scalding – I don’t normally make a habit of watching things I don’t like long enough to review them, and the Once Upon a Time pilot probably got more heat from me than most anything I’ve discussed on Musings by Starlight before.

That said, a mediocre premiere is not the end of the world, or even that of viewership. The Thing You Love Most is the second episode of Once Upon a Time, and it killed me, repeatedly – laughed, cried, forgot who I was and the fact that I was really planning on not enjoying this series in the least.

The second episode of Doctor Who is a lot easier to swallow once you’ve gotten to know Rose and the Doctor, and even though The End of The World (Ep2) is even more estranging than Rose (Ep1), it’s easier to get swept up in the story and forget all of your qualms, particularly that classy part of you that hates laughing at nerdy jokes in public and thinks it’s too cool for aliens.

Everything has its time and everything dies - Doctor Who, The End of the World

I have covered a lot here and I hope to have stroked the fire enough that you will leave me a comment. The argument has been opinionated and I’m sure I’ve said something you have disagreed with, so let me know! I need some guidance on what to discuss as I review pilots over the next few weeks.

Oh and also, what are some other criteria for the perfect pilot? I definitely missed some.

Thank you for reading, and please leave me a comment!

Your favourite Sci-Fi stars in Joss Whedon's Dollhouse

It's always nice to see your favourite stars turn up time and time again in your favourite shows, and if you pay any attention to Joss Whedon's series' at all, you'll have noticed he has favourites too. Actors he enjoys working with turn up in many of his projects, and Dollhouse is no exception. It's a pretty good reason to watch the show. But it's not even just Buffyverse, Firefly and The Cabin in the Woods I'm going to be focusing on here. There will be special guests from other sci-fi projects as well. I've been keeping my eyes open for them!

Eliza Dushku as Echo

We first got to know her as Faith, another slayer and badass foil to Buffy, and part of what made the show worth watching. Now Dushku plays Echo, or Caroline, a lost girl whose memories and self have been removed by the Dollhouse and replaced by whatever they want to program her with. It's kind of like in the Matrix when Neo downloads kung-fu skills into his brain. The question is how Caroline came to be a doll, or as the company calls her an "active", or programmable empty zombie-like adorably clueless being that fulfills... desires. And solves mysteries. And pulls off heists. And pretty much anything else you pay her to do. It's a nice bonus that she's pretty. You can also check her out on an episode of season 4 of Big Bang Theory. Let me know in a comment if you've seen her in any of your other favourite sci-fis.

Tahmon Pinkett (Helo!) as Agent Ballard

It completely kills me to see Helo from Battlestar Gallactica in every episode of Dollhouse. And you will hear me refer to him primarily as Helo, because that's who he is. Remember his, "Frack, I'm sleeping with a cylon" face? You're going to see it again. He's just so good at it, why let that talent go to waste? Adorable. He's been on Stargate SG-1 and Dark Angel as well. Less to the point, I noticed he was on Castle with Nathan Fillion, another Whedon fave, so kind of a cool co-incidence.

Amy Acker as Doctor Saunders

This pretty peppy girl you've come to know as Winifred Burkle on Angel (a Joss Whedon production) is barely recognizable as Doctor Saunders, a sad and scarred employee of the dollhouse who is tormented by her loyalty to the corporation, and by whatever mangled her face. She's conflicted, and a little grouchy. You'll also see her in an episode of Alias, one of Supernatural, and in Whedon's The Cabin the Woods next to this man:

Fran Kranz as Topher Brink

He might be relatively new among Whedon's favourites, but the character isn't new at all. He's your young, nerdy, hillarious genius a la Warren or Andrew from Buffy. But now he's in Dollhouse and Cabin in the Woods. Fun fact: He and Amy Acker are also in a newly slated Whedon Shakespeare adaptation of Much Ado About Nothing that's going to have lots of these favourites casted. And he was what IMDB lists as a "passenger" in Donnie Darko which could just mean an extra on a bus or the airplane, but knowing Donnie Darko, that could be code for some freaky time-travel thing.

Harry Lennix as Boyd Langton

If you've seen this face before, it's because you've seen the sequels to The Matrix; he plays Lock in Reloaded and Revolutions. Okay Harry Lennix has been in a lot of things but we're focusing on the sci-fi! On Dollhouse he plays Boyd, Echoe's handler, which means it's his job to protect her, and to control her. He prefers to do the former. He becomes very attached to the doll and shows devotion to her almost before the dollhouse aka his employer. Again, very adorable, once you see how docile and childlike Echo can be with her mind wiped and how Boyd treats her like his daughter when he should treat her like a bomb about to go off.

Alexis Denisof as Senator Daniel Perrin

Okay, I actually haven't seen him yet as I'm not into Season 2, but this is Angel's Wesley Windam-Price we're talking about, and I have some fun-facts about him. You could say he's a Whedon favourite based on his place in Buffy and Angel, but he hasn't done a lot else in Hollywood. But did you know that he's married to Allyson Hannigan, who played Willow on Buffy, and that he plays Sandy Rivers on How I Met Your Mother with her? Not impressed? Well here's another fun fact: You know the opening lines of The Avengers? "The Tesseract has awakened" blah blah blah "And the humans, what can they do but burn?" Guess who voiced that character, known only as "The Other". That's right, Whedon favourite Alexis Denisof! Crazy. And he'll be playing Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. So worth a mention at the least!

Alan Tudyk as Stephen Kepler

Take Wash from Firely and add some pot and an obsession with the environment, and you will get the essence of Whedon's favourites. One beloved role and cast member evolves into an even more hilarious one. Seeing Wash show up in Dollhouse was what drove me to write this post, because seeing him in a verbal battle with Helo from Battlestar Galactica was just too much for me, and I knew I couldn't be the only fan of niche nerdy things whose mind would explode after looking at this exhaustive list of crossovers. I live to search IMDB to see who has worked with whom, so you don't have to!

A couple more name-drops. Enver Gjokaj, who plays the active Victor, made it into The Avengers as a cop. Summer Glau from Firely and Felicia Day from Doctor Horrible's Sing Along Blog also deserve a mention, if only to pile excessively onto my point that this show is full of your favourite sci-fi cast members!

Of course, let me know in a comment if I missed anyone or anything. I would definitely like to make this list exhaustive and include all of the roles that connect one actor to another in a giant network of nerd fandom!

In Time, Should you waste your Time? [Review Time]

For a few to be immortal, many must die.

I really didn't want to say the same thing as everyone else about this, but it seems the consensus is entirely correct. In Time has an incredible concept which was beautifully timely (heh) considering the film came out right in the middle of the Occupy movement, and it was even well-executed from the start. There's no bad exposition here and it's not even a heavy-handed metaphor. You'll be surprised how naturally money becomes time and time becomes money. I loved the first half hour so much I watched it twice. I recommend that you watch this movie for that first half hour or so, but then you can turn it off. The timer will make you feel like you shouldn't be wasting your life away, so don't.

Angel Season 4, Awakening [musing, with spoilers]

What made this episode, entitled Awakening, so incredible is that Joss Whedon gives us an ending to all of the show's current issues tied up in a nice little bow, and then dismantles it all, and with just a single line, leaves the whole thing in a painful, ugly mess. The plots had all been resolved with a disappointingly fairy-tale ending, and I can't believe I didn't expect that Whedon would pull something along the lines of the "it was all a dream" ending, except far more spectacular.