(S02E01) As the show began, I couldn't help but feel like I was seeing an old friend. You know, that friend who went away for a semester and you missed because he was always entertaining. I know I wasn't the only one grinning like an idiot as the the new season of Jericho began.
Esai Morales sure has come a long way since he played Ritchie Valens' big brother. Seeing him in another leader role reminds me how good he was on NYPD Blue. Taming Sipowicz is going to look like a piece of cake compared to this job.
The recapping of events was a little ham-fisted with the scene in the hospital. Did Blueberry Bob suffer a head wound? I appreciate being brought up to speed but I think the news report could have easily done all that.
Part of the reason I love this show is because the premise seems fairly fantastical and yet it's clear that this kind of thing could actually happen at any time. Consequently, the fallout (as it were) of the attack leads to decisions that no one would ever consider having to make. While I understand Jake's thirst for revenge, it's clear that Maj. Beck is doing the right thing. He's there to keep the peace and help rebuild the country. Turning a blind eye while Jake, Eric and everyone else with a grudge gets their revenge on New Bern is the best way to sabotage that rebuilding.
Making Jake the new sheriff is an idea that has been a long time coming. When the sheriff was killed in the first episode, I had to be one of many who saw Jake wearing the star. Although, to be honest, it's taken so long, I had forgotten all about it. The great thing is that now we get to see Jake wrestle with his need for vengeance and his duty to uphold the law.
It's nice to see Sprague Grayden back in town. I, honestly, thought that she was gone for good. Now we get to see that love triangle we all loved so much last season. Seriously though, with Heather acting as the liaison between the towns, it won't be long before she and Jake have a difference of opinion. Could this all be a part of Beck's master plan? Is he setting the town of Jericho up for failure so he can institute the kind of martial law we saw in the other towns?
I've never been a fan of the turbulent love affair between Stanley and Mimi but it's nice to know that as annoying as Mimi is, she is still quite business savvy. Why anyone would trust Jennings and Rall is beyond me. After all this town has been through, the last thing they should be doing is trusting some corporation with matching outfits.
I thought we had seen the last of the battling Green brothers but it seems that isn't the case. Eric is still trying to be the favorite son even after their Dad is dead and gone. This song is a bit overplayed for me.
One thing I never tire of seeing is the straight up, bad-assedness of Robert Hawkins. The conspiracy is my favorite part of this show and watching Lennie James come closer and closer to unraveling it is a lot of fun.
I can't end this review without mentioning the casting of George Newbern as the the President of Cheyenne. I mean New Bern? Come on.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
2-12-2008 @ 11:21PM
Joe said...
Having seen the first 3 episodes, your post here is just setting yourself up for the fall.
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2-13-2008 @ 12:00AM
Adam said...
I have to agree, the start of the show was like coming across "an old friend" once again. Maybe I've been removed from the show a little too long, but it almost felt like a little bit of steam had been lost. A better term might be mystery. Now, it seems like everything is getting all hunky dory and back on track, sucking away all the "isolation" mystery and suspense out of the equation. Hawkins always had a mysterious vibe to him, but that feels like it's gone now that we know all that we know. I'm still a fan of the show, but I hope it picks up speed here in the next few episodes.
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2-13-2008 @ 12:04AM
VP said...
God i love this show. Hopefully it will last beyond the seven episodes. I need to go back & watch it again because i was only paying half attention to it.
I am with paul on most issues: Hawkins & the plot is what gets me. I need more of hawkins each week. Enough with the struggle between eric & jake. We have seen it way too many times.
Joe, can we please keep the comments relevant to the episode at hand. You watched the rest on the internet? Good for you.
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2-13-2008 @ 12:04AM
nattyff said...
i saw them too, and frankly i was a little bored...
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2-13-2008 @ 12:33AM
Shark said...
Good episode, loved the peanuts in the hospital scene at the beginning. Nice shout out to the fans who brought the show back.
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2-13-2008 @ 12:38AM
Cyantre said...
I didn't make the connection when I saw the episode, but now it makes perfect sense. That was a nice little touch.
2-13-2008 @ 2:02PM
iamhoff said...
I missed that too. Very cool.
2-13-2008 @ 12:54AM
Cyantre said...
Everytime I see Timothy Omundson (Phil Constantino) I see him as Carlton Lassiter from Psych. During the interrogation scene I was almost waiting for James Roday (Shawn Spencer) to come out of the kitchen and have a "psychic" episode revealing who actually started the New Bern war. =P
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2-13-2008 @ 1:10AM
Ann said...
Did you notice too when Jake called his friends, Rangers?
TOO COOL!!! That's what JERICHO fans are called.
DIDN't like what Eric said to Jake about their dad.
DID like Mimi's talk with the girl from Jennings & Rall about Stanley's taxes.
MOSTLY MISSED Johnston Green. (GERALD MCRANEY)
I'd give the episode 4 out of 5 nuts!!!
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2-13-2008 @ 2:04AM
Jim said...
I'm so glad this show's back. We even had a couple of special guest stars in Mimi's breasts. I hope they become recurring characters.
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2-13-2008 @ 3:09AM
Will said...
Man, I'm really suprised at the posters who didn't care for this episode. I thought it was GREAT! Really well done and I don't think the mystery element is lost at all. It's certainly changed direction but I think it's still very interesting. I actully liked this premiere better than Lost's and I'm a huge fan of Lost. (Not trying to get off topic, but I've been underwhelmed by Lost so far.) I've never really liked Stanley, but I could watch Mimi all day. I've love Alicia Coppola (spelling?), more of her please. Jake is great and Hawkins is always entertaining. Overall, I really enjoyed the whole thing. I'll be watching it again before next week, I missed a little bit of the part with the news broadcast (nature called, you know.) The only thing I didn't like was Constantino getting away with starting the war. I want him to pay for that, but having Jake kill him won't do. But I hope that somehow, he gets his due!
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2-13-2008 @ 3:52AM
Gordon Werner said...
I am especially happy that Universal HD aired EVERY episode back to back from last saturday night and all last sunday ... I had forgotten a lot of the show ... and it helped segway into the new season.
Personally, I liked it ... and I think that there will be just as many problems with the new "Allied States of America" as there were when they were all alone.
The only difference is that there is at least the potential for hope.
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2-13-2008 @ 5:10AM
Franklin said...
Jericho's second season is quite subversive and politically disturbing, and especially relevant in this election year. The show doesn't state it, but the Allied States of America is representative of right, neocon, fundamentalist wing of the Republican mindset and policies. This series has evolved into a dramatic commentary on the divisiveness of America over the past 8 years.
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2-13-2008 @ 11:48AM
Puck said...
I don't know if you can go that far, Franklin. We don't really know much about the new government yet other than the President looks like a 12 year old and the bald dude from DHS is in power somewhere.
Lets not forget that kooky extremists exist on both sides of the aisle.
2-13-2008 @ 6:38AM
fred said...
Man I'm happy this show is back !
I watched & realy liked the first season, and I was thrilled when I learned thata second seaosn, as short is it may be, would be coming back.
But ater having seen this episode, it's even better ! Yes, things have changed on the show, it's different. It used to be about Jericho only, about its survival, and now that have info, food, energy, connection with the outside...
Now it's not as much about the survival of a little town, but of the entire country, now it's about surviving nuclear attacks. Yes, the show has evolved in this new season, but it me it's all for the better !
It's stronger, it's faster, it's just better, and I can't wait for what's coming next ! It it keeps being that good, it definitely has to get a third season...
http://tvoholic.com/episode-reviews/jericho-reconstruction/
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2-13-2008 @ 7:20AM
Alicia said...
At least now we know what happened to the tank...
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2-13-2008 @ 2:24PM
jaerisk said...
yea Hawkins is bad ass, if this show doesn't come back how bout he and Jake travel the states and beat down the baddies, heck throw in Maj. Beck. The bad assery would increase by 110%.
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2-13-2008 @ 9:06AM
Susan Burns said...
I too was grinning the entire episode as I was one of the people who made phone calls, wrote letters, and helped to bring the show back.
You can tell it is only a 7 episode season because of the quick resolution between Jericho and New Bern. I would have liked to see more of the primitive conflict between the two cities.
I too see Lasiter every time I see Constantino, and it's wierd. It's really wierd with their series overlapping right now.
I can't wait until next week and hopefully our #s will be decent. I do agree with where they placed the show. It fits better with the Unit and NCIS.
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2-13-2008 @ 2:12PM
iamhoff said...
I, too, was grinning like an idiot for the exact same reasons. Who knew I'd actually get thru to Nina Tassler at CBS on the phone? I completely agree that the ep was very fast paced. All that's going to do is make me want more. Stanley was kind of a goober, but I did like seeing Mimi get her business smackdown on with Jennings and Rall. Loving the new conflict with Jake (revenge vs. upholding the law), and the anticipation of more (more Jake vs. Eric, Jake/Emily vs. Jake/Heather, etc.), and I find it interesting that Hawkins has his wife that much more involved in things. I seem to recall last season that she became aware of everything, but that she was trying to avoid involvement. She looked pretty damn involved last night! It's also going to be really interesting to see how the "new governments" work out. Who are the good guys, who's got the edge, when is the civil war coming? And has anybody figured out who all is missing from last season? Obviously Johnston is gone. Jake's mom is supposedly out at the ranch, but is she still cast? Stanley's sister is MIA, as is Dale and I think Hawkins' kids. Anyone else?
Cannot freaking wait for next week!
2-13-2008 @ 9:43AM
liv said...
It was great to see the show again and I loved the peanuts - it was a great shout out.
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