No more Revolution

I won’t be watching Revolution any more.  There’s so much that’s bad with the series, and especially this week’s episode, “Soul Train” (what a stupid title, but this is Eric Kripke, who’s know to title episodes after songs and other pop culture references), I can’t even begin to list all the things that annoy me.

Charlie (Tracy Spiridakus) and Miles (Billy Burke), the Bickering Mathesons

As it is, I was barely watching anyway, what with fast-forwarding through any scenes of Charlie, because 1) the character is so whiny and 2) the actress is horrible.  Any scenes of the “wandering Bickersons” are equal fast-forward fodder. At any given time, two, or three, or four of them are bitching about something.  This might be ok, except the arguments are so contrived, and worse, they’re always about the same thing.

Sadly, now that Aaron is back with the wandering herd, the promising story of figuring out how the magical amulet works is kaput.

The crap with Danny and Neville is just as tiresome.  Every week, Danny escapes, only to be caught again, usually within the next two minutes.

I had hopes that Captain Neville would be an multi-faceted character, but it appears he’s nothing but a sadistic bully.  Even his back story of the mild mannered insurance agent can’t redeem him after senselessly beating Danny to a pulp.  (It’s also fantastic that within the span of one scene, Danny’s supposed bleeding and broken nose was bruise-free.  This must be a trait he inherited from his mother, who looked as calm and lovely as ever immediately after having been tortured last week.)

The only thing remotely interesting is what happened to Grace and who is Russell; but not interesting enough to sit through all the other crap .

It boggles my mind that this show is a hit.

Catching up, part 1

(A quick and dirty look at 3 new series since I’m way behind.)

I have a problem.  I don’t like shows which present insurmountable odds, i.e., a vastly superior, seemingly unbeatable foe.  It’s one of the reasons I couldn’t watch Battlestar Galactica.  No matter how much progress the humans made, the Cylons were always a threat.  I know it makes for good drama, but it makes me edgy and uncomfortable.  I don’t watch television to be uncomfortable.

To varying degrees, that’s what Revolution, 666 Park Avenue, and Last Resort do.

What is Sci Fi?

What do you think?

With the new tv season in full swing, I decided to take a look at a couple of highly recommended (by Television Without Pity) shows which have already premiered.  Now I’m trying to decide if they’re sci fi or not.  TWoP classifies one of the shows, Revolution, as sci fi; the other, Last Resort, as simply drama.

Wikipedia defines science fiction as the genre of fiction that depicts imaginary but plausible content.  While fantasy and the supernatural are not technically considered sci fi (because they’re not plausible), several web sites/people/groups include them under the sci fi umbrella because 1) they are based on an alternative reality, and 2) the genres often overlap. Also, a lot of the fans of one genre are fans of one or both of the others.

I understand TWoP’s classification.  Revolution depicts an imaginary future, in which no electrical or motorized power exists.  In Last Resort, the technology and geography exist today; but the political environment is so fantastic, it’s hard to call it simply fiction.  Both shows begin with huge mysterious events that have long-term, possibly permanent ramifications.  The question of why these events occurred will likely be the overarching theme for at least the first season of each series.

For now, I’m going to include both of them here at SciFi Chick(s).  Do you agree?  Take the poll.

On final note:  the Washington Post wasn’t as generous with their praise as TWoP.