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'Reaper': Bite the hand that rocks
Last time on Reaper...um, er, uh, OK, I'll admit it, I had to go and look it up. It's been roughly fifteen years since the last original episode of this little gem of a show aired, and honestly, I had to do some research in order to take over the weekly recaps here. When it first aired, I enjoyed its mix of humor, mythology, and interaction between Sam and the Devil. And while the show still contains all of those elements, the insanely long wait between episodes dulled tonight's outing as we, the viewing audience, scrambled to find our bearings once again.
It's still Christmas time in Reaperland, so you know this episode's been collecting dust for a while now. Sam's still dating Cady, who may be the offspring of the devil, or merely the 21st century version of The Wonder Years' Becky Slater. In the middle of a pre-Christmas smooch-a-thon, she comes across the necklace Sam bought for Andi, thinks its hers, and hilarity ensues. And by "hilarity" I mean "Sam once again turns into Captain Tactless in front of anything female."
It's amazing that Sam has all this attention from both Andi and Cady, in that he seems singularly unable to utter the truth around either of them until they are royally peeved with him. Come on, Sam, he who does not learn from history is doomed to have his two potential love interest face off in a Buy More Work Bench with one of them telling creepy stories about slashing tires of old romantic competitors. Everyone knows that.
But no, Sam's too busy trying to nab this week's escaped soul (Philip Carmona, a creepy cannibal) while preventing another soul from being damned (Ryan Milner, a creepy Jamie Kennedy). Good to see Jamie Kennedy taking a break from his busy schedule of doing absolutely nothing to do a cameo this week as an aspiring rock star that catches the Devil's fancy. It's not like my first name needed any more sullying, but he pitched in and took my first name down another notch. That being said, I'm kinda envious of the umlaut.
Kennedy's presence actually reflects one of my favorite aspects of the show: it's almost intentionally low-budget vibe. If Chuck is A-level production values, Reaper is the lovable B-movie playing two towns over. It's not a matter of which show is better, as that's a judgment call. But Reaper embraces that B-movie sensibility, right down to Ryan's patently ridiculous severed hand. But even if Reaper will never have Chuck's slick presentation, it never tries to have it, either, and the embrace of the aesthetic makes the show all the more endearing.
I enjoyed this week's vessel (mystical spear gun), but enjoyed Sam's super strength even more. In the pilot, Sam actually seemed to acquire demon-like powers, but as the weeks went on, the show seemed to forget this. I hope this week's appearance of SAM SMASH! is a portent of the show's original conception of Sam's role as demonic bounty hunter. Lord knows he needs all the help he can in wiggling his way out his contract with the Devil.
All you Sock fans got an extra heaping helping of your favorite over-sized character not named Hurley, as he exhibited his usual wit and his yet-to-be-seen Oedipal issues. It's yet to be seen if Hurley will move beyond the man-child that he is after leaving the nest, but I'm sure Ben and his two pairs of pants will have less fear of pellet gun attack in the near future.
Did you enjoy the return of Reaper tonight, or has too much time passed for you? Is Cady demonic or just plum batty? And who do you think wins in a steel cage match: cannibal soul or fire soul? Leave your thoughts below!
Ryan also posts every 108 minutes over at Boob Tube Dude.
Buy More, Work Bench, same thing. ;)
And I must say, after a literally stressful time watching Smallville (don't get me started), I really enjoyed getting to see this show again. I think it's really improved in the last couple episodes before the strike-break, and this episode continued that trend.
I actually really like Cady, and I hope Sam doesn't break up with her next week, 'cause I'd love for her to stick around as long as possible. Her story to Andi about the tire slashing had me giggling.
Also, fire soul would completely win the cage match-- he could set cannibal soul on fire way before he'd get the chance to chow down!
Sara | Mar 13, 2008 11:05:22 PM | #Sara: Ugh. I had the whole Chuck/Reaper thing on the brain and messed that up. Will fix.
Ryan | Mar 13, 2008 11:13:11 PM | #lol. I thought the buy more/ work bench goofs were intentialal...and hilarious. I liked last night's episode. I tune in to see Ray Wise. I just LOVE him as the devil! As for Smallville or should we just call it the longest Stride infomercial ever. ugh. That was bloody painful. Whore thy name is Smallville.
lostalias | Mar 14, 2008 9:19:18 AM | #oops I meant to type intentional above.
los | Mar 14, 2008 9:19:59 AM | #I loved this show. I didn't realize how much I missed this show until I watched last nights episode. It had everything to keep me watching and sooo look forward to the next show.
Marilyn | Mar 14, 2008 9:38:46 AM | #Ryan,
How come you are not watching Smallville? It was a new episode last nigh. So were a couple of episodes last month.
Great Show!
I want more...
No DMV Gladys????? *sob*
Dave | Mar 14, 2008 10:52:31 PM | #Although a lot of time passed since the last original ep, Reaper remains a model of consistency. Very entertaining show, and the comparisons to Chuck are fair: IMO They're the only two new shows that hit the ground running and actually displayed an identity from the outset. Constrast that with, say Bionic Woman ... nuff said.
And I know this isn't the Smallville board but ... Very disappointing ep. Bad writing, and the actors looked like they were sleepwalking. Or maybe they were embarassed at being pimped for chewing gum!
Z-Wulf | Mar 15, 2008 2:50:47 AM | #I give you props Ryan for doing 2 recaps that are not only on the same night, but in fact in the same timeslot.
To me it's time to get rid of Josie. Sorry, but whenever she appears on the show - aside from the first couple of eps - it feels very forced. Unfortunately for Valarie Rae Miller, her part also feels like filler. I feel really bad for her b/c she was essentially sadled with the same bad luck on Smith and Dark Angel - in terms of how her characters were used.
I didn't really like what direction they took with Cady in this episode. I really liked how she was used in the last couple of eps prior to this one, but in this ep it seems like they made her into stalker chick b/c she seemed to be liked more than Andi is/was.
Rishi | Mar 15, 2008 3:33:19 AM | #I, too, missed DMV Gladys. She is one of the "small" elements that make Reaper so satisfying. They do not need to overdo her role, either. One or two clever lines at the end-of-the-show postscript is just right.
Ron | Mar 15, 2008 8:25:30 AM | #I've been watching Reaper since the pilot and always found it entertaining and a nice diversion from the usual docs, cops and lawyer-themed shows the networks throw at us every fall. It was also on many TV critics ‘top new shows to watch’ list at the beginning of the season.
Does anyone know whether Reaper has/will receive a full season order? Or second season?
It appears The CW network is just 'burning off' the last few episodes of the original 13 order. Airing the eps on Thursday's at 9pm against LOST (instead of its usual Tuesday time slot) is an indicator to me that The CW doesn't care about this show beyond the initial 13 eps. In addition, The CW is showing older repeats of Reaper on Tuesday’s at 9pm. What is up with that?
Just wondering, this is the way that the CW planned it prior to the strike being settled. They wanted to give it a larger audience by having it follow new episodes of Smallville. It is a better timeslot right now since Grey's isn't airing (Lost is getting only ~2/3 of Grey's audience) and CSI is in repeat mode.
Rishi | Mar 15, 2008 4:26:56 PM | #Thank you Rishi!
Just wondering | Mar 15, 2008 4:55:04 PM | #
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