What's on TV these days

Considering that some of the best writers at the moment are working for TV and that it seems to be the place where everybody wants to be (actors, writers, directors), I took the whole afternoon to check some of the new series out now (which means that I avoided writing for all those hours, telling myself it was for a good cause: TV research... damn :) ).

So here's my thoughts about:

No Ordinary Family (ABC), the pilot.

I didn't like much the premise and I'm not sure what the target audience for this show is, probably the parents watching TV with their own kids (wait, does it still happen?) but anyway... After a plane crash, an ordinary family acquires super powers, sort of Heroes/X-Men and tries to adjust to their previous normal life with it.

Michael Chiklis is still good, although not at the same level of The Shield, and so is Julie Benz but for some reason I'm not impressed.

It's not original enough to make me curious to see what happens in the next episode and the fact that one of the baddies disappears at will, like the black guy was doing in Wolverine, makes things even worse.

I would have preferred to see only the family with the super powers, otherwise it becomes another Heroes (which I liked during the first two seasons), mixed with X-Men. One thing is getting inspiration from other series, another is cutting here and there and pasting the pieces together.

With that kind of cast and that kind of money, they could have done much more. I haven't seen The Incredibles, but I think they are going in the same direction with this series.

Not sure I'll watch another episode, not intriguing/engaging enough.

Undercovers (NBC)

The only reason why I gave it a chance is because of J. J. Abrams and because I thought Alias was brilliant. This series is basically Alias starring a married couple of retired agents that go back into action because their normal life at the restaurant is not exciting enough.

The action is all there, the adrenaline, the chasing, everything but while in Alias there was some drama/credibility to some extent, this time around they are pushing a little too much the comedy and it doesn't work for me.

I mean, am I to believe CIA agents are always cracking jokes and trying to be funny? With the kind of lives they are living? Always lying, running for their lives, chasing the baddies around the world to save it? I don't buy it.

So yeah, again, not sure I'll watch another episode. The tone is wrong, not the execution.

Nikita (CWTN)

I had to force myself to watch this because I loved so much the previous La Femme Nikita, I thought I was going to smash the TV.

Instead, I was surprised. The story uses the same names I'm familiar with but the dynamics are completely different. Nikita is out of what used to be called Section 1 and she's out for revenge and to take it down. In a way, they are starting from where La Femme Nikita but steering in a complete different direction.

While Peta Wilson added an incredible fragility to her character that made her unique, Maggie Q looks more like a robot to me. I don't see her emotional side, at least not in the episode I watched. Still, it's intriguing. The pace is great and made me curious to watch again, which is the best thing a TV series can do, glue you in for an hour or so once a week.

The only one I thought was going to be a torture to watch, was the best.

With heavy weights like Boardwalk Empire, Eastbound & Down, Dexter, Mad Men and House, the bar is really high. It's going to be tough to come up with some original material that's valid.

On the other hand, if the producers out there are not willing to risk, probably that's what writers are required to do: go back to the past, see what was cool back then, shake it, remix it and use it. I just read they want to do Wonder Woman LOL

It better be good though, these days they only give you two episodes and then they cancel the show entirely, if they don't get the results they want. (Fox canceled Lone Star, ABC canceled My Generation)