'Last Resort': Initial Reaction

'Last Resort,' ABC's most recent entry into the action-adventure serial, launches with an intelligent and thrilling first hour.  It does what the best of pilot episodes are supposed to do: has the audience counting the days (or hours) until the next episode.

Until then, we will just have to watch the pilot episode, titled "Captain," a couple more times.  Now, I've never been a fan of pilot episodes. By this I mean, for the shows that I watch, I rarely (if ever) consider a pilot to be among the top episodes of any given series.   This is why I always find it odd when first year programs submit their pilot episodes to be considered at the Emmys (I don't know if this it what Homeland did).  If the pilot were considered the best episode, then the entire show would be a down hill experience after its opening act.  No, as mentioned above, a pilot's job is to serve as a hook to reel in viewers for the next installment.  And Last Resort's pilot definitely succeeded in that regard.

NOTE: This is not a review of the show.  This is an "Initial Reaction."  The following are the elements of the first hour of Last Resort that caught my attention and have stuck with me.  I do speculate on the future of this show more than I have done in past Initial Reactions.  This is because I don't want to give out too many spoilers since some will be reading this before they watch the episode.  "Captain" is available on Hulu prior to its Thursday, September 27th premiers (8pm EST) premiere.


With that said SPOILERS still appear in this post.

Fall is Here: Time for New and Returning Shows

 What to Expect from this Blog in the Coming Weeks

The best time of year for TV fans is almost here.  The traditional launch of a new TV season usually begins in Autumn.  This mean the old Networks are going to be launching a whole new slate of programs, most of which will be cancelled before the mid-season break.  Fortunately, there are plenty of cable favorites that are returning as well including Homeland, The Walking Dead, Boardwalk Empire, and Dexter for those who still care (I'm looking at you brother Jimmy).  Sorry, Mad Men won't be back until next Spring.  I won't be writing up on all these shows.  After all, according to Entertainment Weekly's cover of their Fall Preview issue, there will be 104 shows this fall.  104!! Too many for one man.  But based off what I've read from some critics and my own personal taste, there are definitely a fair number of new shows that I will be writing about in the coming weeks.  After the jump, a truncated calendar of key premiere dates.

UPDATE: Joss Whedon Developing S.H.I.E.L.D. at ABC

Marvel, ABC, and Whedon Play It Safe with S.H.I.E.L.D.

My first post on this blog a couple of weeks ago concerned Joss Whedon's new contract with Marvel Studio.  More specifically, the TV component of this contract.  I was excited at the possibilities of the Marvel Universe coming to the small screen (ABC).  One possible show I especially want to see made is an adaptation of the Runaways comic created by writer Brian K. Vaughan (Y: The Last Man, Ex Machina).  Unfortunately, Runaways the TV series is a no go for now.  The studio, network, and director have decided to go the way of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Joss Whedon should Runaway(s) back to TV

Marvel's The Avengers made a little dough at the box office this past summer.  Nearly 1.5 billion dollars.  Many people felt that a movie that assembled Iron Man, Hulk, Thor, and Captain America was guaranteed to make all the money in the world.  Truthfully, the film's incredible financial and critical success received a nice bump by the man who was hired to rewrite the script and direct the epic project: Joss Whedon.  It's likely that a fair percentage of those who saw The Avengers on opening weekend didn't even know who Joss Whedon was.  I know there are a lot of people out there who would find such a thought utterly insane.  Because for those who have been lucky enough to experience his work in television, with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly (and its concluding film chapter Serenity), Joss Whedon is a god of pop culture.  Actually, he was a god of cult pop culture.