Alphas

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Did anyone else catch the first episode of this new SyFy original series on Monday nights? The 90-minute debut was July 11, but it’s being repeated (and it's probably online, too). We caught it last night. It’s about a clandestine yet dysfunctional government sponsored team of operatives with special abilities. The pilot set up the premise and introduced the characters, but there’s still a whole lot to be revealed. Even if you can’t watch the first episode, you should try to tune in for the second. This show has the potential to be the new Heroes (good first season Heroes, I mean).

[Doctor Hmmm?]

I liked the pilot enough to give it a few more episodes.  I especially liked that they tried to come up with some unusual abilities (or different twists, anyway).  Nothing we geeks haven't seen before, but something a little less common than Flying Guy, Fast Guy and Read Your Mind Lass.

[PowerBook Pete, the Mad Mod]

I'll watch another couple of episodes, too.

[Rich Lane]

I'm giving it a shot now.

 

[Jeff of Earth-J]

We recorded last night's episode (#2) but didn't watch it. Will comment when we do.

[Doctor Hmmm?]

I watched "Cause and Effect" last night and liked it even better than the Pilot.  Two bonus points for the creative team: 1 for coming up with a cool "alpha ability" that I don't recall ever seeing before (at least in quite this way -- I think Fringe did something similar a while back); and 1 more for thinking it through far enough to suggest an interesting and plausible psychological impact of such an ability.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Doctor Hmmm? said:

I especially liked that they tried to come up with some unusual abilities (or different twists, anyway).

I agree. for example, the new character introduced last week (Marcus?) is like a cross between Bullseye and the Mad Thinker (with a little Two-Face thrown in), and his powers are depicted like J.J.'s from No Ordinary Family.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Three episodes in and they're still providing plenty of exposition for new viewers to pick up on. Each episode has been self-contained so far, but they're also laying the groundwork for what I assume will be the seasonal arc: "What goes on at Binghampton?"

[Jeff of Earth-J]

Coming soon: Summer Glau.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

I think I can predict where the overall arc is heading: sooner or later, the “good” Alphas are going to switch sides. We’ve seen evidence all along of them turning a blind eye to whatever is going on at Binghamton; last night we learned that the “bad” Alphas are fighting for the right cause (Alphan rights) but using the wrong means (terrorism and assassination). Whether this switch occurs sooner or later may depend on ratings, but from what I’ve heard, Alphas is catching on.

The characterization is very good, with last night’s episode being Gary’s turn to shine.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

My wife's favorite character all along has been Gary, and I guess he's mine, too. I'll bet he's a lot of peoples' favorite.

 

Mild SPOILERS follow.

 

The featured Alpha last night had a power without a comic book precedent that I can think of: a literally adictive personality. The character was on a killing spree, making friends then rejecting them, causing them to die from withdrawal.

[Jeff of Earth-J]

One thing this show does well is to stockpile good characters (who may be actually "good" or evil) for later use. Last night's episode introduced two: ST:TNG's Brent Spiner played one, and the red haired Australian woman from Lost played the other. [MILD SPOILERS FOLLOW] It's tough to call whether she's "good" or "bad"; more likely she'll always be gray, but may alternately take turns as ally and antagonist. [END SPOILERS]

[PowerBook Pete, the Mad Mod]

Both Rebecca Mader and her LOST character, Charlotte Lewis, are British.