(S01E10) So what, trying to get a kidnapper behind bars gets me shot? Who in the hell are we working for? - Dan Vasser
His line may as well have been, "So what, we have an interesting eight episodes capped off by an excellent ninth and tenth show, only to get hit with rumors of being canceled after this season? Who in the hell are we working for?"
That would be NBC Danny boy, and I'm none two thrilled that Journeyman probably won't be showing up on the schedule when spring rolls around.
I understand that this is a business and that good shows die on a regular basis if they aren't getting the numbers. I understand this all too well (ahem, Arrested Development), but it doesn't make it any less aggravating when it happens.
I hate that I'll have invested twelve hours of my life into this show when it's all said and done but that I'll never have any real closure to this story. It's frustrating but I guess all I can do is accept it and try my best to enjoy what's left. Right?
I guess I could latch onto whatever Jericho-like campaign inevitably springs up to try and keep the show on the air, but if people aren't watching the now, I have little confidence that they'll magically decide to watch it later just because 10,000 zealous Internet fans mailed NBC execs 20,000 pounds of Aspirin. (You know, because Dan gets a headache before each journey).
Anyhow, tonight's show got off to a roaring start. Dan immediately found himself on the receiving end of a gunshot wound administered by last week's nemesis Aeden Bennett.
Apparently, Aeden was a little bit pissed that Dan was responsible for his six years in the clink when all he was trying to do was give some little girls a safe life - by keeping them locked up as hostages. Something is incredibly wrong with that logic.
I was a little surprised that Dan didn't see this retaliation coming after Hugh clued him in to the fact that Aeden was already released on good behavior. I guess occasionally even a reporter with good instincts can fail to see the obvious.
After being shot, Dan journeyed back to 1980 and that's where we learned why Aeden was such a screwed up character. His mommy didn't love him and his daddy treated him like a caged animal. I guess in some twisted way we were supposed to sympathize with Aeden's character. I can't say I felt all that much pity for him. He was a successful real estate developer living a luxurious lifestyle. His abduction of little girls seemed more like a sick fetish than the product of an abusive upbringing.
Outside of not really buying into Bennett's character flaws, I liked several things about this episode:
- The scene where the paramedics questioned Starbucks ("is that a massage parlor?") and looked confusingly at Dan's iPhone were pretty amusing.
- I liked the fact that the antibiotics Dan received in the hospital during 1980s ended up being ineffective against his Staph infection from 2007. Nice touch.
- I liked that the rogue (and now dead) FBI agent uncovered Dan's trips through time. It almost sounded like the FBI has some sort of covert unit that knows about people with Dan's condition and actively pursues them. At least that's what I took from the agent saying, "They always need money. That always trips them up." I'm curious to know if this will come up again in future shows. Oh that's right. There probably won't be any future shows. #&*(Q!
- I loved when Livia confronted Jack in the elevator to let him know Dan had been shot. The look on Jack's face was priceless.
- Finally, I'm just relieved that Jack finally has some sort of confirmation that the whole time traveling thing is really happening to Dan. Since they're brothers, I'm wondering if Jack has ever experienced any phenomenon similar to what Dan's been experiencing. Again, more speculation that I'll never have an answer to. Why do I even bother having these questions? I'm also curious if Jack knowing will adversely affect the dynamic between the brothers. The time travel thing was a huge point of contention that the show fed off of on a regular basis. Would the show be as interesting with that dynamic missing?
Outside of that, I learned several important things from tonight's show:
- If one were to travel back in time, never ever deviate from the road. Ignore the fact that the road is completely subjective - just don't do it.
- Never leave important phone numbers on your fridge. If you do leave important phone numbers on your fridge, it's a really, really bad idea to leave your schedule on the fridge right next to the numbers.
- When you've been shot in the arm, it's probably a bad idea to try and ram down a door with your shoulder.
- Now that I think about it, if my mom put ketchup on a slice of bread and called it pizza I'd have probably turned out pretty screwed up too. I take back what I said earlier about not buying into Bennett's character flaws. He was completely justified in locking up kids.
- Seriously, I'm making my daughter lunch everyday for the rest of her life lest she turn out to be a homicidal maniac. To be on the safe side, I'll also never keep her locked up in a bathroom.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
11-27-2007 @ 9:04AM
Dave said...
This show has hit it's stride. Last night's episode was teriffic. We got some answers and more questions. There was growth in many characters and the plot kept moving forward. Naturally, it's time to cancel.
I could comment more about it, but what's the point?
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11-27-2007 @ 9:21AM
lauch said...
I could go on and on about how networks cancel shows all the time, but it'd be a waste of breath. I've decided that the shows that I feel are really good actually are only watched by a very small percentage (in television exec terms) of people, and that those same people are people that networks don't care about.
When I first started watching the show, I was convinced that this would be some sort of Quantum Leap clone, but as the show has progressed, it has decidedly stood on its own. The last two episodes have had me sitting on the edge of my seat. You just know that their marriage is in trouble, yet you see how strong she really is and how much she really wants to figure this out. You see the flawed yet close relationship of Dan and his brother, again, torn apart by his time travel, only to be pulled closer once Jack figures it out. I think it's so incredibly cool that Jack is constantly torn between loving his brother and doing anything for him and thinking he is crazy and wanting to get him help. He sees the crazy stuff, but deep down, it's his brother...(Reed Diamond is a great actor and plus he's "Homicide:Life on the Street" alumni - and that was just a great show)
It started with such a simple straightforward idea of time travel, but it's evolved, through great acting, into a complex web of relationships.
And I hope it doesn't get cancelled.
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11-27-2007 @ 9:22AM
Rogphi said...
This Show Is without doubt Must See TV, well acted with Character development and good story telling! Really No suprise that People prefer to watch Caruso take his Sunglasses on and off while spitting out the worlds worst One liners! Caruso Wishes He was Half the actor Kevin Mckidd is!Well done America You must be proud!
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11-28-2007 @ 4:44AM
Will said...
Rogphi-
I was going to say the same thing you did about Caruso and his sunglasses and bad one-liners. I don't get how people can watch that same crap week after week. The original CSI is still fairly good (though I rarely watch it as I'm watching Supernatural in that time slot) but the other 2 suck.
I will be really pissed if they cancel Journeyman but it would be par for the course. Every season there's one new show I like above all others; this year I thought it might be Cane. While I do enjoy that show, Journeyman has really been THE ONE I'd hate to see go. While it's good news for fans of Life-and I know people for whom it is their favorite new show-and I enjoy it, if it were cancelled it really wouldn't bother me. Not so with Journeyman.
I was kind of sad to see them kill off the FBI agent.At least it looked like they did that. He obviously knew something about Dan's travels; that was an interesting twist, up til last night I just thought he thought Dan was either planning or had something to do with a crime.But his statement about the money shows otherwise. It would have been really interesting to see where they went with that, but perhaps, as someone else already suggested, the writers saw the handwriting on the wall (no pun intended) and wrote that way in ase of cancellation. Well, I say we-the fans-changed CBS's tune with Jericho, why not Journeyman. I know I'm signed everything I can find online to make my opinion known. Can't hurt anything.
11-27-2007 @ 9:23AM
Ryan said...
Last night's episode was fantastic! Absolutely fantastic. I can't form any real coherent thoughts.
As for the show getting canceled, I prepared myself on this possibility a long time ago so I'm more or less at peace. THIS episode made the investment worth it.
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11-27-2007 @ 9:44AM
J. Schnable said...
The even greater shame in the pending cancellation is that this is one of the few (new) shows that has the potential to go incredibly deep with the plot. Many early critics may have panned it for being a "Quantum" rip-off, but now we're really seeing where things are starting to deviate. Perhaps the writers should have been a little more up-front about the differences early on.
As for last night, I couldn't help but think that the killing of the FBI agent was just to make things easier to wrap up in a few episodes. Perhaps there was never an intention to use his character longer, but he clearly knew more than we know about Dan's time travel.
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11-27-2007 @ 10:02AM
honey said...
I have never loved a show that was "sure to be cancelled," but there's always an exception to every rule. Kevin McKidd portrays a fantastic accidental protagonist - a man who is trying to be normal, but who falls into the realm of extraordinary. Last night's episode had me overjoyed with excitement, but the whole time I was also praying that it wouldn't get cancelled. NBC needs to keep this show, because I'm getting sick and tired of seeing game shows and reality tv every five seconds. I think I might actually write a letter to NBC asking them to keep Journeyman alive - I never thought I would be that kind of tv lover...
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11-27-2007 @ 10:03AM
jb said...
i just sent off a very stinging email to nbc explaining my bitterness towards them regarding this pending cancellation. I am so tired of them doing this stuff. When will they realize that the ratings system needs to be updated and dvr viewing incorporated. I am sure im not the only one who tapes journeyman and watches it on a tuesday night or some point during the week. im sure if there was a way to show how many dvrs taped it combined with those who watched it, they would see a spike.. but oh well.. sadly another awesome show **cough cough SURFACE cough cough KIDNAPPED cough cough** will be gone soon. what a shame really...
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11-27-2007 @ 10:16AM
Drew said...
It continues to amaze me that a quality show can be canceled, while tons of crap remain on the air. I was doubtful about Journeyman after the first two episodes, but it has gotten better and better. It would be a shame for it to go before it has a chance to fully reach its potential.
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12-16-2007 @ 11:22AM
joe said...
It is a good show, well written and well acted in a time where reality t.v. has trumped quality storytelling. The worst part, with the writer's strike, is that there will not be a wrap up. Who knows maybe Bravo, Sci-Fi or USA will pick it up. Ya never know.
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11-27-2007 @ 10:47AM
jmfb5 said...
I'm not that active with organizing an internet petition...
That being said, I commented to a friend that journeyman would fit right into the SciFi channel's lineup if NBC ever pull it.
To anyone out there-Feel free to run with this.
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11-27-2007 @ 11:04AM
Aberdeen said...
I loved last nights episode and am so disappointed that it's been canceled. My fondest, wildest pipedream is that somewhere there are unaired episodes that will be released on DVD a la Odyssey 5 and Firefly...well, a girl can dream, can't she?
Such a pity.
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11-27-2007 @ 10:58AM
Ian said...
The Starbucks referenece would have been related to trhe "Starbuck" TV character of that era.
This ep showed me that the producers and writers knew already that the show was being cancelled. The FBI agent shows his hand suddenly and is abruptly killed off. Obviously this was a quickie ending to what was going to be a long term plot. Also the prior GF now says she wants to keep Dan's family together. Weird how yet again she is hoisted massively into her future and our present.
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11-27-2007 @ 11:43AM
C C said...
Last night I was in my room watching Journeyman and my mom was in another room in the house watching Journeyman. At 11:00 she opened my door and said: "THAT was cool."
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11-27-2007 @ 11:52AM
kate said...
let me preface this by saying I LOVE this show and it is by far my favorite new show on tv this season. i am going to be really pissed off if it is canceled, and i support it moving to cable if that can happen but i would never have found out about it to begin with if it were on the sci fi channel short of heavy internet advertising of that trailer. i also hope they can release some episodes direct to dvd... i don't know if there is a precedent for that.
the blowback episode, other than Jack seeing Livia in the elevator and the great final scene, didn't work for me because of the constant switching between the present day and 1983 when Dan was back there. some of the previews had hinted he would run into aedan as a little kid, and so as soon as i saw the boy crouched in the corner i knew it was aedan. and i knew that if he was able to either turn aedan's life around or prevent it from ever getting to the point that it did the entire section in 2007 (with aedan calling katie and holding her hostage etc) would never have happened so it was pointless to show it until the 1983 segment was over. that being said, i guess it was a good storytelling device.
also... dan arrived in the 1980s after he was shot. what if he had convinced aedan to go to a foster home and he had become a happy kid, and had never shot dan in the first place? how would Present Dan be affected in the 80's as the future course of events changed?
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11-27-2007 @ 11:51AM
h8rain said...
This is one of my favorite shows! I liked this episode way better than Heroes. I hope they don't cancel, but it would not surprise me. I love shows that have great writing (ie well thought out plot), and great actors. I mean they take great detail when he goes back in time, and that is something that should be praised, appreciated, and NOT cancelled.
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11-27-2007 @ 11:56AM
Robert said...
Well, now I've lost faith in NBC. I had just gotten over lost being out of commission til Feb and looking for a new show to watch. This one fit the bill nicely and had me hooked. Now, I hear its canceled....... Smart move guys?
Seems pretty rediculous to cancel a great show just as its starting to get gather a fan base, but what do we know? We are just the fans of good tv. Not the execs who (really) know what works... sigh
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11-27-2007 @ 1:40PM
Rodney said...
They never said it was a staph (Staphylococcus aureus) infection. However, given the recent publicity of MRSA infection (methicillin-resistant S. aureus), that might be a good guess.
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11-27-2007 @ 1:57PM
Rob said...
Actually,.. they did say it was a staph infection. The doctor says it when he goes to the hospital in 2007 and gives him the updated antibiotics.
11-27-2007 @ 1:06PM
muckdog said...
Love Journeyman. I'm hooked on this show. I hope they keep it. Hopefully the monday night ratings came in stronger. Especially with that Miami-Pittsburgh 3-0 rainstorm thriller.
It's frustrating to see a good show not given enough time to make its mark. (While less-compelling shows drag on and on...)
I sent NBC an email. What the heck. It was easy enough to do.
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