Fall Picks 2015 - Quantico on ABC

Quantico - ABC - Premieres 09/26/15 -“It's Grey's Academy meets How To Get Away With Treason."

A diverse group of recruits has arrived at the FBI Quantico Base for training. They are the best, the brightest and the most vetted, so it seems impossible that one of them is suspected of masterminding the biggest attack on New York City since 9/11.

I am huge ABC fan, they have made of really good choices the past couple of years with How to Get Away with Murder, Scandal, Revenge and Once Upon A Time so I tend to give them a little more credibility when it comes to new ideas. This is a stretch and the writing really needs to be excellent to pull this one off. A plethora of familiar but unknown actors the show centers around FBI recruit Alex Parrish, played by Priyanka Chopra, who is somehow framed for the biggest terrorist attack in American history. Who framed her? Someone from her class at Quantico.

 Starring: Priyanka Chopra, Jake McLaughlin, Aunjanue Ellis, Yasmine Al Massri, Johanna Braddy, Tate Ellington, Graham Rogers

Check out the trailer below and come back on Monday, 09/27 for my review of the pilot.

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Limitless on CBS Runs Steady and True

Limitless - CBS - A man named Brian Finch develops superhuman abilities after taking a mysterious drug called NZT in this adaptation of the 2011 film starring Bradley Cooper, who serves as executive producer of the series reprises his role as Eddie Mora in the pilot.

Let me state first, I have not seen the film so my opinion is based solely on the pilot of the show. That being said, I have a huge smile about this series, hooray for great writing, pacing, cinematography and acting. Starting off the series with a murder mystery, Brian Finch is a guy with lots of pies in the sky and dreams of rock n roll stardom. Now he 28 and realizing the pies are falling all around him and after a mystery illness strikes his father, Brian starts to review his life. Confessing his worries to an old band mate, his friend offers to give him a 'jump start'.

When the pill takes effect, a voice over dialog starts, describing what he is experiencing. This, is usually annoying to me, however someone watched Burn Notice and figured out the ins and outs of making the voice over effective.

Brian WOW's his temp job and then goes home to find the root of his father's mystery illness. Then he crashes as the drug wears off. Desperate to continue to help his father, Brian goes to the friend who gave him the pill and finds him dead. He also finds a pill, but is caught at the scene of the crime by the FBI. The chase begins to find the real murderer and more NZT.

I loved this show start to finish, and I am looking forward to the next episode. The only hesitation I have at this juncture is for Jennifer Carpenter, the annoying sister in the Series Dexter (at least that is how I remember her), and once again I am finding her annoying as the lead FBI agent handling Brain.. She is so stiff I am hoping she loosens a little into the character. This is going to be a fun show and the only thing holding it back, for me, is this actress.

Great job on the pilot, passing the baton and cleaning up the back story of the movie was seamless, also leaving it fairly open ended for additional mischief in the future. I like it!
Looking forward to the next episode! 

If you missed it the first time around, here is the link to CBS or look for it On Demand through your local cable provider.

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Fall TV Picks - Blindspot Hits the Mark and Minority Report Lacks the Majority

Blindspot - Premiered on NBC, An unidentified woman with amnesia is found covered with tattoos, and the FBI soon realize that each mark on her body reveals a crime to be solved. This new NBC series premiered right after The Voice and I am gonna say off the bat WOW. The show begins in Time-square with a unmarked duffel bag. A tag attached to the bag says “For the FBI”. The street is cleared, and the bomb squad is called. A very nervous bomb technician approaches the bag and as he reaches out the bag moves, he jumps back and the zipper to the bag slides open…

From that moment the questions, intrigue, drama, and pace doesn’t stop. Jaimie Alexander, as Jane Doe, is brilliant in her portrayal, giving us a full range of emotion-confusion, anger fear and helplessness all shining back into the camera with every scene. Her plight and the mystery automatically pulls you in and does not let go. Her male opposite, FBI Agent Kurt Weller is played by Sullivan Stapleton, a virtual unknown from Australia, who does a fantastic job of keeping that cool cop exterior but also revealing the slow break down of his defenses when it comes to Jane.

All of this is playing as we move seamlessly from one scene to the next. There is no illogical coincidence in this show everything, and I mean everything happens for a reason. Even Jane Doe’s instinct to protect a beaten wife thus exposing her martial arts skills. Reminiscent of Jason Bourne in many ways, the characters are driven into the plot two fold, by their own need for answers and their desire to stop the bad guy.
First episode out I am hooked and looking forward to next week!

Minority Report - Premiered on FOX yes this show is based on the 2002 Tom Cruise/Stephen
Spielberg film. Per FOX television, The series is set in Washington, D.C., it is 10 years after the demise of Precrime, a law enforcement agency tasked with identifying and eliminating criminals… before their crimes were committed. To carry out this brand of justice, the agency used three precogs – “precognitives” Dash, Arthur and Agatha – who were able to see the future. Now, in 2065, crime-solving is different, and justice leans more on sophisticated and trusted technology than on the instincts of the precogs.

Despite the interesting premise and heavy-hitting producers I am less than impressed with Minority Report. Bombarded in the first scenes with technology overload, the dialog is sub par, characters are predictable and cardboard. All of that being said, I always give a show three chances. The pilot has set the stage, and the characters. I will wait to see how the chemistry plays out.
First episode out and I'm not holding my breath…

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