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RSS'Bionic Woman': Identity crisis
Well, there you have it folks, the last Bionic Woman for quite some time. Tonight's episode was the last produced before the writers' strike, so even if it survives the winter months to air new episodes (a prospect still up in the air, unlike other NBC shows), this is all we have for the foreseeable future. And since the show clearly didn't plan for this episode as a possible season finale, roughly two dozen things hung in the air by episode's end. You can't fault Bionic Woman for the lack of a satisfying cliffhanger, but you can always blame it for the lack of a satisfying episode. And tonight's episode? Middling at best.
There was one shimmering, shiny moment, however, in which I actually sat on the edge of my seat, unable to comprehend the possibility the show was offering. Did any of you, like me, come to the conclusion midway through the episode that Jonas had sent Jaime to Montana in order to be killed? Because the show sure as heck strongly, strongly, strongly suggested this with Jonas' reaction to the death of his hired sniper. "Finally!" I thought. "We'll learn that the defanging of Jonas was all part of a ruse in order to lull both the audience and Jaime into a false sense of security! We'll learn that the ridiculous notion that the head of the Berkut Group would send his top investment to a freakin' spa after a mere few weeks on the job is just a front to lower her guard! And when this all fails, we'll have Jaime working with Sarah Corvis in order to take down the Berkut Group! Hooray!" (Well, I said everything but the "Hooray!" But I did bust out the Running Man dance move.)
Well, turns out that was all just a fanciful dream I cooked up in my overactive imagination. Turns out that Jonas is a dishwashing, defanged boss. Turns out he did in fact decide to force Jaime to take a vacation in response to Antonio's death. Turns out that the head of what should be the most hard-core, black-ops sector of the United States government thinks it's OK if Jaime tells her sister the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the bionic truth about her real life. I know Copy Cop bosses more terrifying and strict than Jonas. Between his general malaise, an on-staff psychologist who seems more unhinged on a weekly basis, and the fact that Jae has nothing better to do than train Nathan to avoid getting sucker punched by his abusive older brother, you have an organization that loses my respect a bit more each episode.
And that's a problem, right? If you can't believe in the organization that controls law and order in that show's particular universe, then it's hard to take the threats they deal with very seriously either. Did any of you honestly worry if the North Koreans would obtain those nuclear secrets? Jaime all but blurts out her undercover status when she calls Victor on being a faux accountant, and rather than accelerate his plans, he leisurely makes calls on an exposed deck. Unreal. Jonas should have ordered the cavalry to keep those plans in the United States, and instead he only brings along Nathan. Victor should have a security team of twenty at his beck and call, and instead hires three guys. If they treat the situation this flippantly, why shouldn't we?
Never mind the fact that the entire tension around the main action piece of the episode (getting Victor into Berkut's hands) centered around getting it all done before Becca leaves the spa. That's right, folks: the time is ticking...ON HER FACIAL! (I can't believe the promo monkeys at NBC didn't actually use that as an actual promo for this week's episode.) This would be all well and good if the show didn't actually want us to care about nuclear secrets getting in the hands of the North Koreans, but I think they do want us to care. And that's been an ongoing problem for the show: figuring out how to back away gracefully from any attempt to resemble a hard, sober sci-fi show like Battlestar: Galactica without overshooting entirely and ending up like a cross between The Terminator and Passions.
Clearly they are cribbing from other shows, trying to see what sticks. This type of empirical approach is evident by both the shows they echo (Alias, Chuck) and the shows they straight-up insert into the show (Heroes, The A-Team, and I'll be damned if I didn't think of Ally McBeal when they all sulked at the bar). It's interesting to watch a television show essentially workshop itself on a weekly basis. I mean, I know stage plays do this all the time. And of course, many shows we see on the air now changed greatly from initial conception. But television shows don't often change this radically WHLE ON THE AIR. Remember that whole bit about the Anthros family? And how they set up Will's dad as a major baddie, and Will himself as potentially evil himself? Doesn't that seem like years ago? Surprise: it was only seven episodes ago. Unbelievable.
Perhaps no other show can actually benefit from the writers' strike more than Bionic Woman. Perhaps the staff of Bionic Woman can brainstorm while on the picket line and figure out what they want this show to be. At this point, to quote the playwright Tom Stoppard, "Consistency is all I ask!" I don't NEED the show to be anything but entertaining. If they can pull this off with campy humor and Ocean's 11-type action and atmosphere, great. If they want to go gritty, I'm on board. But they absolutely, positively, have to choose a direction. Obviously, elements of humor dot the gravest of dramas, and pathos works well within comedies, but not in the mishmash that this show doles out on a weekly basis. And if you think I'm rooting for this show's demise, you're absolutely wrong. I'd like to think there's some great television to be produced by this show. Let's just see if they even get the chance to prove me right.
Are you sad, happy, or indifferent about the show's impending hiatus? What has stood out the most during these first eight episodes? What suggestions would you give the show in order to improve if it comes back?
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Zap2it Twitter Talk 
Note--the following comment is meant to be sarcastic and is not to be taken seriously. To wit: Bionic Woman is still on? Note--the preceding comment was meant to be sarcastic and was not meant to be taken seriously. To answer the questions in boldface: indifferent; that what could have been one of the best new shows of the season crashed and burned like a moth frying on a bug lamp; kill Becca, kill Becca, kill Becca, get Jaime some sensible shoes. Oh, and bring back Katee!
I think this show needs to beg Ronald Moore to bail out David Eick's blundering attempt at running this show. This show suffers from an obvious lack of leadership. It's a patchwork quilt, and it's showing all the seams. A strong hand at the helm would have kept the tone consistent and would have ironed out the worst implausibilities in the writer's room. I still want this show to do well, I loved the 70s Bionic Woman, and I think Miguel Ferrer is awesome, even with the lame stuff they give him to do here. Michelle Ryan has grown on me somewhat, but she's still a little on the generic side. Becca doesn't bother me too much, but they need to escalate something pretty quick, because right now it just seems like being the Bionic Woman is just a day job for Jaime Sommers. I guess I can't bash the show too much though, since I've stuck it out this far. That's more than I can say for the arguably 'better' show Pushing Daisies.
I had high hopes for this show and it really could have been something unique and great if they had gotten it right. I hung in with the bad writing, weird plots, and multiple identities for the first handful of eps, but couldnt do it anymore. All I can say is that I'm pleased with the direction that Ben Silverman and Co. are taking with the few shows they have announced in development for next season. It's time for NBC to get back to what they always offered: quality, distinctiveness, and creating trends rather than following them. The one good thing the writer's strike could provide is an opportunity for NBC to take a breather, refocus, and come out swinging next fall.
I couldn't agree more with you Ryan. This show has so much potential and yet they can't seem to get it together. I really like your theory of Jonas actually planning on killing Jamie. That would have been a great twist and could have given the show a real direction. Becca is really a cute chick, but her character and that plot line just don't belong in this show and they need to do away with it. they don't have to kill her, just bring the Dad back into the picture. I've hung in there with this show a lot longer than i normally would and if they do bring it back i hope they can finally decide what kind of show they want this to be.
One of the few things I think that does work is the "defanged" Jonas. If he'd been the shadowy, immoral character he seemed to be in the pilot, then I'd just see him as another cliched conspiracy-boss. As he's depicted now, he's unpredictable and likeable, yet still capable of being cold-blooded. He reminds me a lot of Arvin Sloane (probably the intent), but at the same time the dynamic between him and Jaime reminds me in a positive way of Oscar and Jaime in the original series ... one of the few leftovers
I am concerned that the writers have abandoned the arcs established at the beginning. People have a fetish for arcs and to drop them will turn people off faster than anything else. Sackhoff apparently told a SF convention she wasn't coming back, for whatever that means.
I like the show as a whole, but it does need to tighten things up, and decide if it wants to be an arc show, an action adventure drama, an X-Files/Alias clone, or a sisters drama. It can't be all things at once. Even though they can't reference it, my suggestion is for the writers to read Martin Caidin's Cyborg novel -- there's plenty of material related to Steve Austin that could be adapted for the new Jaime. I was actually half-hoping she'd take the sniper shot.
I still like the show and it's the only new series on US network TV that I'm watching these days (none of the others held my attention). But I personally don't expect to see it back. If it does come back, my prediction is Jamie and Becca's dad will appear and we'll find out he's connected to Berkut in some way ... and he'll be played by Lee Majors. Bet on it.
I agree after a very pilot, the episodes have not been very good. What's worse, last night was actually one of the better episodes. One thing I liked last night is that Jamie actually appeared to have Super-powers or at least super-parts. In the way she took out Victor's security and the bad-guys with no problem; she was even ripping off car-doors. Compare this to past episodes in which she has a hard time taking out one normal guy.
Also stop getting cute with the show writers; Come on Jamie's a registered member of the 'Green Party' and now she's considered shooting a guy, gee audience do you get that Jamie is going down a dark path??
Gave this show many chances in the beginning but it is really terrible, how can anyone watch it??
I felt this was one of the best episodes this series has produced to date. No, it wasn't a completely cohesive episode, but it showed the potential of what this series could, and should, be. Let's hope they will get the chance to make this series live up to this potential.
This was one of the most anticipated shows this season with much going for it: a strong media campaign, an established background loosely based on the '70's series, and a talented if relatively unknown actress.
But, this series never had an overall, consistent vision or tone. It was first dark and serious, like the 'X-Files,' then it became a bit of 'Alias' with all the girl angst, and finally tried to be campy when they brought in the guy from the CIA as her sidekick. Every episode's 'standalone' and there's no story arc to keep viewers coming back.
I would've never guessed that 'Chuck' would get renewed while this is still in limbo.
When you have a revolving door on the offices of the production heads, as this show does, it's no wonder that the show is all over the place. Question is whether they've chased off all their potential viewers already.
I just hope it doesn't drag down my favorite and recently renewed new show, "Life", which comes after it. Seeing that Life's ratings actually are above BW's, it looks right now like it's not!