Over There

[shmeep]

New Bochco, everyone!!!

Who caught the pilot last night? If you missed it, it will be shown three more times on FX, Saturday, Sunday, and Tuesday nights. This makes me wish even more that Blind Justice had been aired on cable. Not only do viewers have numerous opportunities to be drawn in, but the odds of cancellation are much less and nothing is bleeped or blurred.

I had been looking forward to and dreading this show simultaneously. It seemed that it could be too politically sensitive for comfort. Fortunately, I didn't feel that way as I watched. I was immediately drawn into the lives of the soldiers as they left their respective homes and went to Iraq. As usual, Bochco has brought together a memorable ensemble cast.

The only problem I had was that there was too much action too soon in the series for me to comfortably follow what was going on and who everyone was. Even so, the dialogue was amazing and I really like the characters. I can tell I'm going to fear for them every week.

My favorite line came when the lovable character Bo was going around asking everyone how they got their nicknames. When a female soldier, who is just slightly on the portly side, asked him, "Aren't you going to ask me why they call me 'Double Wide'?" he looked scared for a moment and then said, "No Ma'am" and left.

[doobrah]

Yeah, I watched it, and had the same reaction you did. BJ should have been on cable.

It had the same DP --Kramer Morganthau, and Mike Post did the music again (and better). This pilot reminded me in many ways of the open of BJ with the quick cuts, grittiness, sepia, confusion, etc.

I am interested in the origin of doublewide's nickname -- ;D

I wonder whether they can keep up the frenetic pace. Did you notice in the coming attractions that the amputee told his wife that he's going back to his squad and word to the effect, "I will make this work." Hmmmm... seems like I've heard that before...

All in all... I thought it was pretty good.

[shmeep]

doobrah said:

I wonder whether they can keep up the frenetic pace. Did you notice in the coming attractions that the amputee told his wife that he's going back to his squad and word to the effect, "I will make this work." Hmmmm... seems like I've heard that before...

I doubt if it will always move at that pace. From the looks of things, it appears the show will delve deeply into the personal lives of the characters as they are at war as well as into the lives of the families back home. I love this approach! I also love that we get to see what happens to Bo! Usually, once a character is wounded, that's it! They're written off. I was starting to think Bo was just a Red Shirt (classic Star Trek reference to the characters who always seemed to die around the main cast, easily recognizable because they usually wore red uniforms) and was relieved to see in the previews that we're going to get to see a lot more of him in the future. I really liked his character and I think it's very realistic that he wants to go back because that is the attitude of many of the wounded soldiers.

[maggiethecat]

Hmmm.

Maybe my expectations were too high, given that this was from the legendary Mr. Bochco . . . and, while there were good moments, I was -- gotta say it -- underwhelmed. Maybe they were just trying to cram too much into 45 minutes. The attack on the mosque just seemed to go on way too long, given the time constraints and what they were trying to do, and that's a fairly large cast to establish in one episode.

Or maybe it's just that, by definition, most of the cast is green and untried and not the greatest actors yet? Eric P., who used to be on ER, was to me the most successful, probably because his character is older and he has a strong personality to begin with. I think the characters will become more interesting as the show unfolds and each one of them gets more than about three or four minutes screen time per episode. So far they seem to have been chosen to fulfill a contrived kind of ethnic/personality mix, sort of like the bomber crews in old WWII movies: the green young kid you know is going to "get it," the one who thinks (clue:glasses), the crusty sargent, the sensitive one (clue: writes music), the comedian, etc.

But there was very little in it that suprised me, that took me unawares, which, I think, is what you want in a show like this. The MINUTE you heard that kid say he had a football scholarship, you kust knew he was going to lose a leg. And damned if he didn't.

I'll still be watching, of course. But from what I saw last night (and knowing that comparisons are odious), I can't say that htis show came anywhere near the high level of the last Bochco show, either in the writing or the acting.

I do think, however, that Steven Bochco is damned smart to go around saying that the show is
"not political." But any attempt to portray war in an honest and unflinching way is, by definition, anti-war -- so the politics are implied. And when a character refers to Iraq as "Downtown Shitville" (my favorite line), that tells you a lot!

So yeah, still reserving COMPLETE judgement and hoping it gets better.

[shmeep]

maggiethecat said:

Maybe they were just trying to cram too much into 45 minutes. The attack on the mosque just seemed to go on way too long, given the time constraints and what they were trying to do, and that's a fairly large cast to establish in one episode.

I agree that the attack seemed neverending! I felt myself zoning. This was worsened by the fact that they all looked so much alike in their helmets that they all became a blur.

And yes, the cast is too large to establish on one episode. I know they're all stereotypes so far, but I think I was liking them mostly on potential. Whether or not they live up to it remains to be seen, but if I'm not forced to watch thirty minutes of attack to twelve minutes of character development again, I still feel hopeful.

But there was very little in it that suprised me, that took me unawares, which, I think, is what you want in a show like this. The MINUTE you heard that kid say he had a football scholarship, you kust knew he was going to lose a leg. And damned if he didn't.

True. I knew the leg had to go from the moment he mentioned that scholarship too.

Still...my hope is that this pilot set everything up and now the storytelling can begin. I won't try to compare this to any other show because it isn't like anything out there. I'll ride it out for a few weeks and see if it it can hook me. I am prepared to like it and there are many promising aspects.

[lmoney]

Yes, I watched it too. This time I would not make the same mistake I did last time. I recorded it. Just in case I end up loving it, I didn't want to go around begging everyone for their DVD's! My 1st impression was -- Is this Black Hawk Down? The editing, the scenery, even the characters to me seemed to be taken from Black Hawk Down. ( Maybe I had to much Ron on my mind?
It was a tad predictable, like eveyone else mentioned. The football scholarship and at the end when everyone was riding in the truck talking about their nicknames. You just knew it was bad news. At the same time, it was classic Bochco, and I saw lots of similarities to BJ. The chaos at the beginning, the drama even the cast ( Who else got picked up from ER?).
We even now have an injured soldier, who will have to put his life back together. Will he be a man if he can't fight in the army? Seems I've seen this before, but I loved it then and I'll love it now.
I'll definately watch and record again- I may be hooked before I know it.

[doobrah]

lmoney said:

Yes My 1st impression was -- Is this Black Hawk Down? The editing, the scenery, even the characters to me seemed to be taken from Black Hawk Down. ( Maybe I had to much Ron on my mind?
At the same time, it was classic Bochco, and I saw lots of similarities to BJ. The chaos at the beginning, the drama even the cast ( Who else got picked up from ER?).
We even now have an injured soldier, who will have to put his life back together. Will he be a man if he can't fight in the army? Seems I've seen this before, but I loved it then and I'll love it now.

Absolutely (!!) reminiscent of Black Hawk Down. I remember thinking that, too, while watching. The chopper in the sky, particularly.

But yeah, definitely shades of BJ throughout. Ahere's been a lot of talent on ER over the years, and I don't remember Eric Palladino being given a lot of opportunity to do much as a secondary character there. Good to see that he can carry a show, but I'm still very partial to RE.

[shmeep]

doobrah said:

But yeah, definitely shades of BJ throughout.

Dare I say it? I even noticed an "Absolutely."

[maggiethecat]

Not that there's anything we can do but grind our respective teeth, but . . .
"Over There" is being termed a raging success with 4.1 million viewers on F/X. That's 2 million fewer than "Blind Justice" at its lowest ratings. Grrrrr. How much do we wish BJ could have been on F/X where the ratings would have been respectable enough to give it a second season, and Dunbar could have come out with a good healthy "S**t!" every time he bashed into a desk?

Then again, BJ was waaaaaaay too expensive for cable. "Over There," despite the clever editing, does have a distinctly low budget look, and the young and inexperienced cast had to come cheap.

I should have posted this in the Rants section!

[shmeep]

maggiethecat said:

"Over There" is being termed a raging success with 4.1 million viewers on F/X. That's 2 million fewer than "Blind Justice" at its lowest ratings. Grrrrr. How much do we wish BJ could have been on F/X where the ratings would have been respectable enough to give it a second season, and Dunbar could have come out with a good healthy "S**t!" every time he bashed into a desk?

Then again, BJ was waaaaaaay too expensive for cable. "Over There," despite the clever editing, does have a distinctly low budget look, and the young and inexperienced cast had to come cheap.

I know. Very frustrating. But keep in mind that everything is relative and that, had Blind Justice been on FX, it might not have done even as well as Over There did, although it would have had a better shot at renewal and it would have been nice to get the occasional realistic expletive.

I know The Closer is getting around 7 million viewers on TNT (good show, by the way) and that is considered unheard of for a show on basic cable.

And you're right, Blind Justice was far too expensive to be put on cable.

I do like the trend of cable channels coming up with quality original series that are often better than what the big networks are offering. That has to bring up the quality across the board (one would hope). The Dead Zone, The 4400, The Closer, Rescue Me, Over There, I watch them all and they are all great and are all on cable. I'm happy to finally have some options.

[doobrah]

There is a neat Q&A with Bochco in the August Esquire mag (Springsteen on the cover) where he talks about the difference in being on cable versus broadcast. He mentions that during NYPD Blue he could get away with "scumbag" ... don't understand why they bleeped it in BJ (twice!).

If you watch "Rescue Me", there's also an article with Diane Farr (Laura the firefighter) about what it's like to do a sex scene on TV. It's pretty funny.

[kytdunne]

So far, am liking this one, although it can be very intense to watch.

Missed the middle section of the Pilot, but liked what I saw; second episode even better. Liked the replacement soldier a lot. And the Sgt. edged to my good side. Going to take a bit to figure out what to think of most of the characters.

Presume Bo will get back in the squad given that we do have soldiers who've made it back; and that's a good thing to have more widely publicized.

Kyt

[shmeep]

I meant to say something about this earlier in the week and just didn't get to it. Oops.

I'm really liking this show. I'm with you, Kyt. Intense. And the replacement soldier was a great touch. Loved his knowledge of what was really happening and how it all panned out at that roadblock.

And I'm happy to see Judith from Joan of Arcadia alive again and married to Bo. I thought her acting was quite good.

I am reserving judgment on the rest of the cast until we're given more to go on, but the second episode was, in my opinion, far superior to the first. I didn't find myself zoning as I tried to figure out what was going on, so that's always a good sign, huh?

I don't know if this will ultimately make my "must watch" list, but it's keeping me entertained over the summer.

I'm looking forward to Prison Break, starting on Aug 29, I believe. That looks really good.

[doobrah]

Did anyone else notice "Leticia" was in last night episode? She was in the spouses support group and waspushing the stroller when she encouraged the guy to come back to the meetings....

I recognized her whiny voice before I realized it was her.

[shmeep]

doobrah said:

Did anyone else notice "Leticia" was in last night episode? She was in the spouses support group and waspushing the stroller when she encouraged the guy to come back to the meetings....

I recognized her whiny voice before I realized it was her.

I DID notice that! She's kind of hard to miss. I half expected her to say "They're arresting me now!" in the middle of the meeting. *sigh* If Bochco is going to re-use his old favorites, why couldn't Ron show up from time to time? Or even just some of the other guest stars? Why pick the only one who couldn't act?

I thought last night's episode was okay, but I was a little confused at the end. I mean, I got that the colonol promised not to kill anyone but that they were bombing the farm anyway and that the farm was being guarded by someone with a gun so...that seems to indicate that the Iraqi lied even though the colonol said he was too proud to lie. So it was a trap for the Americans and they didn't fall into it? Or...I'm just a tad bit lost so if anyone can help me, that would be great.

I was moved by poor little Eddy awakening to an empty house because Dim's wife was out a'whoring. That one little tear as he fixed his own breakfast almost undid me. Also, we got to see how much Dim loves that little step-son when he told the colonol that if someone said they were going to hurt Eddy, he would give up information. I'm liking Dim a lot. Good character. Many of the others are still hard to know at this point.