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'Journeyman' ratchets up the pressure
Once again, the family drama proves to be most compelling element on Journeyman. I almost got a little queasy watching this episode, because Dan gets yanked out of time at the worst possible moment -- when he's watching over his son in a crowded place. You can see him panicking when he realizes he's about to be pulled away, and there's nothing he can do. And oh, poor Zach! All of a sudden, he's alone, surrounded by strangers. How terrifying.
Don't you know that you are a spoiler star.
Katie is pretty scared too, even though she knows what happened. And it's pretty clear that she's never going to let Dan be alone with Zach ever again, if she can help it. That puts to kibosh on the father-son trip to a 49er's game that Dan had planned. Again -- poor Zach. All he knows is that all of a sudden, his dad seems to be leaving him, like he doesn't even care.
That's why I was almost glad when Zach got to see Dan yanked out of time. Now, at least, he knows it's not that Dan just doesn't care. Now that he's seen his dad's "magic," he's more secure about Dan. He knows it's not about him. There's a reason daddy goes away. And he's ok with it.
Alas, Dan and Katie still feel like Jack either couldn't or wouldn't handle it as well. They keep not explaining, which means Jack keeps suspecting the worst. That may include believing that Dan knocked off a liquor store and pistol-whipped the owner into a coma -- something that happened the night of Katie's benefit, when Dan appeared carrying a gun. Oops.
Dan's assignment this week involves a 30-year-old hijacking, where a mysterious guy knows only as Dylan McCleen stole $100,000 from a plane and parachuted to freedom. Dylan had never been identified, but now Dan is meeting up with him in the past -- and Dylan's very cranky about it.
After a lot of searching, Dan finds out that Dylan was actually a Special Forces guy named Captain Ritchie who had been wounded in Cambodia. He stole the money to help the family that sheltered him get out of the country, but he lost touch with the father before he could help. Dan finds the guy, reunited the two men, and Ritchie manages to get the rest of the family out before they become anonymous victims of the Khmer Rouge killing fields.
Back in the present, Jesse the blogger-turned-newspaper-reporter is helping Dan research the "story" of Dylan McCleen. He finally figures out that Ritchie was the culprit -- but Dan tells him he's wrong, Ritchie was cleared, the story's dead. Somehow I doubt Jesse is going to buy that for long.
Important info:
- Physicist Elliot Langley, that tachyon expert who called Dan in the past last week, stops by for a visit, and he's cryptic as hell. He must know, or have some idea, what' going on with Dan. And he gets a little spooky when Dan tells him about the protagonist of the "novel" he's writing about time travel -- "Are people taking advantage of him? .... They should -- a person wielding that kind of power would be very valuable -- right?" Hmmm.
- Langley's speculation about what could be causing falling through time for Dan's "hero" -- "Spontaneous symmetry breakage? Perturbation of the local dark energy density? God?"
- When Dan finally reunites Ritchie and his protector in the past, Dan and Ritchie trade jackets -- and Dan discovers a whole bunch of hijacked money in the pockets. On the upside, now he's got old currency he can use in the past (and occasionally in the present). On the downside, now he's passing around stolen money. That can't be a good idea -- especially not when he's a suspect in a liquor-store robbery that took place the night of Katie's benefit -- you know, the night Dan was seen wandering around town with a gun.
- Dan's paper faces what every other paper in the universe is working against now -- falling circulation, budget cuts, staff reductions, the works. Dan's job is in danger, and I'm not sure he realizes it. But that may be why Hugh was so excited to hear Dan was on a blockbuster story, and so disappointed when Dan said it fell through.
Highlights, tidbits and other thoughts
- I loved the farmer's market scene, especially the look of intensity on Katie's face when she spots "Cheese Guy," and everyone takes off running. Even better was Jack's line, as he'd just been confessing about his "lethal" diet -- "So cheese is ok, just not cheesecake?"
- Kevin McKidd really sold the urgency when he knew he was going to be pulled away while he was alone with Zack. You could tell that was his worst nightmare. The same with Gretchen Egolf, who does suppressed panic really, really well.
- Reed Diamond is also rocking it. The look of disappointment and resignation on Jack's face when he tells Katie she's "made enabling an art form" is perfect.
- Hey, the guy who plays former blogger Jesse is Gabriel Tigerman, who played Andy on Supernatural! I love him!
- Dan meets his father in the past, and we learn that Daddy left the family when the boys were young, and that he was obsessed with work long before he left them. Also, I think he was played by Joel Gretsch -- Tom Baldwin on The 4400. But I'm not positive, because I was distracted by the impressive 70's mustache.
- The 1975 newsroom was pretty spectacular -- smoke-filled and clamorous with the clacking of typewriters. Remember typewriters? Ah, the good old days.
- Dan makes his dad miss the assassination attempt that Sara Jane Moore made on Gerald Ford. 1975 was a bad year for Ford.
- Dear music supervisors: Bad Company's "Shooting Star"! You rock!
- Jack reveals that he's figured out he wants to have kids -- and Katie reveals his perfect woman as "someone who'll order in Chinese with you and watch South Park." Jack: Call me!
Yes, that was Joel Gretsch.
The part I kind of missed, the 100K. Was that ransome for hijacking the plane, were they "marked bills". Otherwise, why would there be 100K on a plane?
Dan't troubles are neverending, especially with the police..yikes...and ratings..big yikes.
It looks like next week Dan may run into himself. That should be...well, lots of things.
Corey | Oct 22, 2007 11:09:17 PM | #If they know that he can time travel at any random time, why was he alone with the kid in the first place??
eahilbert | Oct 23, 2007 12:08:49 AM | #eahilbert: Silly mistake when you give someone unconditional love. Still nice that Dan can sense when he's about to leave. (And that was a cool moment when his son walked in as he was shouting for Katie... and dropping the ball before the commercial break.)
Journeyman is really growing on me, but I loved shows with "the savior" premise. I've almost forgotten that such shows don't last too long. (Or maybe that's my Maniac Monday mood that's letting that slip.)
pakopako | Oct 23, 2007 6:52:28 AM | #eahilbert -- Originally, Dan and Katie were together, but they got separated.
Sarah | Oct 23, 2007 8:04:19 AM | #"Hey, the guy who plays former blogger Jesse is Gabriel Tigerman, who played Andy on Supernatural! I love him!"
I'm so happy Jesse is back on another episode, I shrieked pretty loudly when I spotted him a few episodes ago, whenever that was. I miss Andy, but it's good to see Gabriel working. He's a funny, funny man.
I'm really pleased with Journeyman - it's just getting better every episode, really finding its stride.
Journeyman continues to be interesting. I wish that the police weren't tailing Dan. I am glad that Zach knows that Dan doesn't intentionally abandon him. Katie is so strong I like how she is trying to protect her husband. I really don't like Jack. Livia is still very unhelpful. I hope they explain her part more soon.
Penny | Oct 23, 2007 9:16:55 AM | #If they know that he can time travel at any random time, why was he alone with the kid in the first place??
eahilbert
You may have missed when Katie mentioned to Dan that they were careless. In other words, they had a momentary lapse in judgement. They are still adjusting to this whole phenomena that is basically altering their way of life.
Tania | Oct 23, 2007 9:30:27 AM | #I've grown fonder of this show as it's somehow managed to survive wretched ratings (it's still on after five weeks? Amazing!) and has continued to become more compelling each week. While I originally scoffed at the whole time travel idea, I like how it's being played as both plot device and (in some ways) as a social commentary. Whether they do it on purpose or not, the writers have shown that what we remember as "the good old days" (even if it was just 1987, and not that long ago) weren't that great, and things aren't so bad now after all. Few people of a certain age who read or write blogs know too much apart from history books of what "Captain Rich" had to go through both in Vietnam and afterwards, nor can they fathom what it would have been like for a Cambodian refugee to come to the United States with the hope that their family would follow...only to discover that they were the sole survivor, and that everyone they loved was wiped out by the Khmer Rouge. 1975 was so long ago, even for me (I was six then), and a lot of what made the 70s so horrifying to live through has long since been lost to the black hole that is my memories. So, even if Journeyman doesn't make it, I give it proper credit for making the past what it really was, not what we would like to think it was. Yeah, seeing Tom Baldwin as a 70s reporter was hilarious; I kept expecting to see Maia pop up and say "You're gonna miss that interview with Gerald Ford, y'know." (The 4400 reference, to those not in the know.) Finally, even though I've not learned the kid's name yet, but the boy playing Zach did an outstanding job in this episode. He went from quiet joy that his father was helping him with the '49ers sign to heartbreaking disappointment when Dan told him he probably wouldn't get to go to the game. Very good acting ability in one so young. And I loved the way he dropped the baseball on the floor when his father vanished before his eyes. Lots of little things to like about this episode, and I really want to see how the writers handle Dan potentially meeting his past self.
Dark Disciple | Oct 23, 2007 12:15:48 PM | #I'm really hoping for this show to work. I was lucky enough to meet Reed and Kevin in an alley way in SF on a business trip a couple of months ago - they were shooting the 2nd episode - really nice guys. Anyway back to the story line - they really need to expand the story line - that worried wife thing is grinding on me - and the concerned brother -they have to bring these to a conclusion - I can't take three more episodes of her upset that he's vanished as if it's new to her. Scary thing was I wished them good luck in the alley way - I said " good luck with scifi on network television" - and they all laughed and new what I was talking about -
journeyman is growing on me, too.
when it first started, i told myself i wouldn't watch, cuz i didn't think they could do any more with time travel that hadn't been done with "quantum leap", "sliders", and even "daybreak"...but, adding the family element was damn good!
there is ONE thing that is starting to grate on me about many of the new shows out: SECRECY!
i can totally get not trusting EVERYbody with a secret as big as, say being bionic and working for a secret agency, having a supercomputer downloaded into your brain and working for the government, or traveling through time and saving the world one relationship at a time...
...but, the ones that get the harshest treatment are the ones closest to them!
yeah, yeah, i know about the "i've gotta protect them" angle, but i've seen it for far too long with far too many shows. these are your FRIENDS, LOVERS, FAMILY!!
SHARE, DAMMIT!!!
bottomlesswells | Oct 23, 2007 11:58:17 PM | #Location, location, location. This show works for me because they've made San Francisco and San Francisco history and important part of the story.
I love the show. I want it to survive. And I want a spin off of the show set in New Orleans. Probably too much to ask for, but I had to put it out there.
Elizabeth | Oct 24, 2007 10:00:37 AM | #I like "Journeyman" for the most part, but I don't want to get too caught up because the low ratings (falling off noticeably from "Heroes") mean it will likely get yanked.
That would be a shame because the acting is solid and the show looks great, using SF locations to great effect (adding to the production budget no doubt - at leeast the money is on the screen)
Still don't see the purpose of Moon Bloodgood's character but she looks so fine, who cares?
Regardless of "Journeyman"'s fate, I expect Kevin McKidd will go on to big screen success.
i think gretchen egolf (the wife) is going to be big and this could be just a stepping stone for her. i wouldn't be surprised if this got cancelled and she became some big movie star.
the episodes are getting better and i think the entire cast is very talented!
Neg | Oct 24, 2007 11:45:22 AM | #I am encouraged every week to read many positive reviews for Journeyman. Unfortunately, I don't know how much longer NBC can keep it in their schedule. In my opinion, Journeyman is WAY better than CSI: Miami.
I agree with other viewers who wish that Dan and Katie would just explain the time traveling to Jack. I know that Jack would be skeptical at first, but Dan can prove it to him, like he did to Katie in the pilot episode. The writers want to build tension between the brothers, but Jack has been out of the loop for too long (5 episodes).
I'm another fan of The 4400 who recognized Joel Gretsch's name in the opening credits. I kept thinking that Tom Baldwin and Diana would be investigating Dan's powers and trying to give him the Promicyn inhibitor! ;-)
Paige | Oct 25, 2007 10:17:19 AM | #Quantum Leap was my favorite show of all time and it was great. Journeyman is getting better, but I just can't believe someone will embrace the job when nothing is told to him. I really dislike Livia's character, but she is nice to look at.
One correction: Sliders wasn't about time travel, it was about traveling to parellel dimensions in "what if" situations. Hate the way it ended though, but a great series nonetheless.
Jason | Oct 25, 2007 1:23:06 PM | #I absolutely love this show, but I am a realist so I know it's going to the SciFi channel. I love the family element and the MUSIC is rocking, too!
It's really too bad shows like this one never make it on the network, but I have to say, they are giving it one hell of a ride.
And the Livia character is really getting on my nerves. Does anyone else think she is tracking her ex to be with him in the future?
Alina | Oct 30, 2007 6:01:15 PM | #
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