FlashForward: "Gimmie Some Truth" 10/22 - Grading & Discussion

[Greg Cox]

This is going to be a character driven show, as we've found out. I think it's impatient of people to want to already know what caused the flash forwards ASAP. This show is going to be drug out through at least 22 episodes... so deal with it.

Indeed. This isn't a miniseries. It's intended to run for years and years. It's not about immediate answers.

Boy, can you imagine the internet response to THE FUGITIVE back in the sixties?

"What's with all these filler episodes? He just goes from town to town, helping boring people we never see again, without getting any closer to clearing himself. What about the One-Armed Man arc? They need to deal with that every episode!"

 

[Starbreaker]

I know some people who bailed out on Lost... ok, a lot of people on this board because they didn't explain everything by the end of the second season. I mean, this is arc-based storytelling, not Star Trek. Self contained shows are the crime dramas now.

 

[firehawk12]

This is going to be a character driven show, as we've found out. I think it's impatient of people to want to already know what caused the flash forwards ASAP. This show is going to be drug out through at least 22 episodes... so deal with it.

Indeed. This isn't a miniseries. It's intended to run for years and years. It's not about immediate answers.

Boy, can you imagine the internet response to THE FUGITIVE back in the sixties?

"What's with all these filler episodes? He just goes from town to town, helping boring people we never see again, without getting any closer to clearing himself. What about the One-Armed Man arc? They need to deal with that every episode!"

Well, the remake of The Fugitive was cancelled after one season, so there's your answer.
Funny that it premiered along with CSI and one went on to become the biggest thing ever though.

 

[Middle Earther]

^ I don't mind character driven shows and gradual development: It's just that I'm already tired of the characters in this particular show.

For example, I really found the whole lesbian thing unrealistic - it seemed too "fake" to me. I didn't really sense any chemistry between them.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Funny how the dull old DC politics are more interesting than the soap opera back in LA. I kinda liked this one. The karaoke bar was cute...the agents are developing a nice rapport.

The lesbian relationship felt natural and not contrived (Heroes, I'm looking at you). Let's see a show with the guts to do that with two guys (and not make the proceedings overly chaste.)

But the musical choices continue to be terrible. Who's idea was it to use Dylan - and an overly familiar song to boot - in a shootout scene?

For example, I really found the whole lesbian thing unrealistic - it seemed too "fake" to me.

Watch Heroes if you wanna see "fake."

 

[Trekker4747]

^ I don't mind character driven shows and gradual development: It's just that I'm already tired of the characters in this particular show.

For example, I really found the whole lesbian thing unrealistic - it seemed too "fake" to me. I didn't really sense any chemistry between them.

Turn in your man card, now.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

This is about the time that you can see a trend in ratings, if it's definitely lockin in stability. Looks like FlashForward will be in for the duration - it'll make it thru the first season anyway:

9.82 million viewers and a 3.0/ 9 among adults 18-49 at 8 p.m.

Previously:

09.24.09(SP) - 12.47 M - 4.0/12
10.01.09 - 10.73 M - 3.7/11
10.08.09 - 9.00 M - 3.0/9
10.15.09 - 9.07 M - 3.1/9

 

[Middle Earther]

Funny how the dull old DC politics are more interesting than the soap opera back in LA. I kinda liked this one. The karaoke bar was cute...the agents are developing a nice rapport.

The lesbian relationship felt natural and not contrived (Heroes, I'm looking at you). Let's see a show with the guts to do that with two guys (and not make the proceedings overly chaste.)

But the musical choices continue to be terrible. Who's idea was it to use Dylan - and an overly familiar song to boot - in a shootout scene?

For example, I really found the whole lesbian thing unrealistic - it seemed too "fake" to me.

Watch Heroes if you wanna see "fake."

Two men? Torchwood? Hello?

Jadzia's kiss on DS9 was done better than the phony - "Oh, here we go and pretend" kiss on this show. Most of it is I find most of the characters flat on this show.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

Two men? Torchwood? Hello?

I mean, a show I'm willing to watch (and that my cable system even gets.)

 

[Capn Flukie]

I liked this episode, starting to warm up to the characters a bit. Esp Janice.

This is the second program this week that had a John Lennon song for a title, the other was House's 'Instant Karma'. Hm.

 

[thedude]

I thought it was good, possibly the best since the pilot... I'm glad the "FlashForward" count is down to 13. Last week at 15 was nuts for the people who play the FF Drinking game... although 13 is still a little crazy. God help the people that play the game with "FlashForward" and "blackout."

 

[Skywalker]

I thought it was good, possibly the best since the pilot... I'm glad the "FlashForward" count is down to 13. Last week at 15 was nuts for the people who play the FF Drinking game... although 13 is still a little crazy. God help the people that play the game with "FlashForward" and "blackout."

You think you've got it bad, I play the game with "the."

 

[Count Zero]

Man, their fake president is boring. Where's Obama? I'm sure he'd get to the bottom of this in no time.
I liked the Washington scenes, thought that Janice and her lover didn't have any chemistry and that the shoot-out at the end was pretty unrealistic.
Was it fake Kerry that ordered their assassination?

 

[tomalak301]

BTW, that was another thing. They couldn't get a black guy to be the president? They mention Sarah Palin but they have to get a white scruffy looking guy (Who kinda looks like GW Bush) as the president instead. Talk about unrealistic.

 

[Aragorn]

Who's Clemente? Have I missed something?

Clemente is new to this episode. But she's your typical stereotypical career-minded, self-interested, gung-ho politician who, unfortunately, exists in real life too.

Man, their fake president is boring. Where's Obama?

Yeah, Obama as an adulterous President. That would definitely fly over well. Plus you're only allowed to paint one political party in a bad light on ABC and it's not the Democrats (see: changes made to "V").

Since President Peter Coyote is in his second term, that means he took office in 2005.

 

[Count Zero]

But Stan could have blackmailed him with something else, like his Kenyan birth certificate.

 

[dru]

Girl on Girl seems to be a running theme for sci-fi series this year.

That's a bad thing?

Typical lipstick lesbian cliche from a genre show. If it had been two men, people would've been squeamish.

 

[DevilEyes]

Girl on Girl seems to be a running theme for sci-fi series this year.

That's a bad thing?

Typical lipstick lesbian cliche from a genre show.

So what are you saying, that no genre show should be allowed to have lesbians in it? Or if it does, it has to make sure that they're as unattractive as possible?

But yeah, they could have been braver and made Janice a man, and her storyline would not change at all! He would still be gay and pregnant in his flashforward... Oh wait..

If it had been two men, people would've been squeamish.

People? No, if it had been two men, all those women/teenage girls who write slash fanfics would have been overjoyed.

There's a good reason not to allow any homosexual storylines/scenes in genre shows, we may risk people drooling over it! Ts, ts!

Come to think of it, we should not allow any heterosexual love/sex/makeout scenes, for the same reason. Some people drool over those, too, you know. Or at least one should allow love scenes only between exceptionally ugly people.

 

[Temis the Vorta]

BTW, that was another thing. They couldn't get a black guy to be the president?

Harry Lennix would have been a good choice.

So what are you saying, that no genre show should be allowed to have lesbians in it?

No, but next time a mainstream show does this sort of thing, it should be two guys.

There's a good reason not to allow any homosexual storylines/scenes in genre shows, we may risk people drooling over it!

Why do you think they do the lesbian scenes?

Come to think of it, we should not allow any heterosexual love/sex/makeout scenes, for the same reason.

The difference is that hetero scenes are less likely to come off as crassly exploitative. And let's get down to the real issue: they won't do guy-on-guy action because the males will get grossed out and change the channel, whereas girl-on-girl doesn't offend women enough to make a difference. That's crass and annoying, though the network comes off less badly than the audience...

 

[Borgminister]

It is why I didn't continue watching Torchwood.

Well that and I got bored with the show, but that was one factor.