And speaking of Lost...

Last week saw the debut of the new J.J. Abrams show, Fringe. After just one episode, but an extended one at that, I'd say I'm definitely interested enough to keep watching. I'm a bit concerned though that I was most impressed with the way they did the graphics telling you where you were. For example, often when a show changes location, some text will appear in a bottom corner of the screen saying "Blah Blah City, Blah." On this show, we get some very David Fincher type effects with the text being rather large and very much in the shot. Sometimes, the camera moved through it, sometimes over it, etc. It looked really freakin' cool.

The show revolves around an FBI agent who, by the end of the first episode, is forming her own sort of task force to use "fringe" science to investigate certain crimes. There's a nasty sort of corporation and something called The Pattern that we will be concerning ourselves with down the line. Joshua Jackson (Pacey from Dawson's Creek) makes his tv return and is pretty watchable.

I'm curious to see what the show does with the premise. Abrams has said it's not The X-Files, but the influence is there. It's filmed really well and the action sequences look great. For the most part, the story and characters work. But, it was obvious in the first episode that one character had to exit to make way for the requisite romantic tension between Jackson's character and the female lead. And, Jackson's dad is a bit off so some of the humor could wander into annoying comic relief if not watched.

My only other concern revolves around just how much disbelief you need to let go of to watch. Seemingly, the show is somewhat set in the present. I have no problem with the idea that there are medical and technological advances around that most people don't know about. But, in a show where we are going to be asked to work with "fringe" concepts, the reality needs to be really grounded. And, showing us a woman with a replacement limb with fake skin, that when the skin is peeled off reveals a metallic, Terminator-esque arm and hand covered in a see through layer of clear "muscle" in a completely "Oh, I see you've noticed my crazy ass arm" sort of way sort of pulls me out of the show and into a sort of groan moment. I think they could have left that reveal until a few episodes in, especially since that chick has something to do with The Pattern.

I guess we'll just have to see how it goes. There aren't too many shows to get excited about this season, which means I might actually read more. Now there's a thought.