Beyond

I just finished watching season one and I have to say that I rather enjoyed this one. It's not perfect by any means but it was captivating and a great binge watch.

This series definitely had a Syfy channel feel to it and I mean that in a rather negative way. I used to be a Syfy channel fan when it first kicked off but they chose a more bubble gum Sci-Fi route for most of the new programs so haven't watched much lately. This Syfy channel feel along with some sloppy directing were among my top annoyances but it was pretty decent otherwise.

On the positive side, top of the list for me was the fresh and diverse Cast and the great job they did. Burley Duffield (Holden) was annoying at first as he ran around like a confused fool for the first three or four episodes but that played out well for later when he finally snapped out of being such a wuss and properly took the lead for the show.

Swedish actress Dilan Gwyn was probably my favorite of the bunch and she should have a very successful career ahead of her. Other fantastic performances came from Jeff Pierre, Eden Brolin, and a long-time favorite of mine from his Hal Hartley 'Trust' days, Martin Donovan. Oh, and special mention for Peter Kelamis who was an awesome villain.

The Sci-Fi itself was also not that bad. It certainly wasn't groundbreaking or mind-altering but was enough to keep me interested. I look forward to season two, provided there is one.

In Fort Reed, Kansas, Holden Matthews wakes up from a 12 year coma after a motorcycle crash where he was chased by his best friend Kevin's older brother Jeff. He apparently returns with latent superpowers after crossing over from a different Realm. His younger brother Luke is now in college. There is the mysterious Willa and the dangerous Man in the Yellow Jacket who are interested in him. There is a vast conspiracy looking to harness his new powers. Charlie is another who woke up from a coma with special powers.

This Freeform sci-fi show struggles for two seasons and never really settles into a good flow. The young lead Burkely Duffield is a bit stiff with a deer in the headlights look. Oddly enough, that actually fits the character. I'm less impressed with Dilan Gwyn who plays Willa at various levels of irritation. Eden Brolin has the most fun playing the sarcastic Charlie and she has great chemistry with the lead. Sadly, she joins the show at episode five and they didn't figure out adding her character as a main character until the second season. This show really took too long to figure out the group chemistry. It's too bad because all the parts are there. The Man in the Yellow Jacket is a great villain. The premise is intriguing. In more assured hands, this show could have been good but this never truly found its footing despite getting a twenty episode run.

Like other reviewers, I was quite pleased to discover a new series to start the new year with. The description sounded enticing, "a young man wakes up from a coma after 12 years and discovers new abilities" so I decided to give it a go.

Tim Kring, the man behind Heroes, is one of the producers and for anyone who watched Heroes there will be similarities. A twenty- something develops strange powers and finds himself being hunted by a powerful organisation for unknown reasons. However, unlike Heroes, the characters mostly stay disappointingly one-dimensional and the story is predictable enough to be slightly boring.

The cast is competent and some of the ideas are interesting, but it feels like the show is aimed at a YA market, sort of like a Baby Heroes, and while there are some decent moments I never really got that "Wow" moment after the first couple of episodes.

It's a pity, because some of the characters have real potential and if they were willing to push it a bit and take more risks by aiming for a more mature market I think I would have liked the show a lot more.

As it is, I give it a 6/10 for good effort, but not good enough. Watch if there is nothing else on or if Heroes was too edgy for you.

westworld...game of thrones..we can safely say in this day and age that the quality which can be achieved in the TV medium can be amazing,truly awe inspiring stuff.Being able to connect with the viewers through likable characters with fleshed out personalities and flaws,first class acting delivered by titans in their field.

then there's the 'arrow' style of TV production...colour by numbers,cookie cutter,play it safe TV.shows that stretch out story lines to pad out a lack of story.side stories that never lead anywhere.TV where all the teens have perfect white teeth,no acne,siblings who look nothing alike but fresh off a catwalk,mediocre acting that makes you feel nothing...vacant,slightly dead inside,coma TV.

now,don't get me wrong,I'm not saying 'coma' as in 'it'll bore you to sleep'.there has probably been a group of TV producers/executives who've done market research for this just to make sure it excites to just the right level without pushing anything so as not to rock the boat...the whole thing just stinks of 'formulaic' (even the mysterious assassin was done better and way more sinister in 'utopia')

basically..the shows a pass..in the same way that 'the dome' was a pass...'arrow'..'the flash' and all the other one dimensional shows that leave you pondering absolutely nothing except plot holes and inconsistencies. i don't know about you guys but I'm tired of giving formula TV 'a pass'...the bars been raised...its shape up or ship out time...go hard or go home

"Here I come to save the day!" Is the song of a super hero created back in 1942. It's Mighty Mouse's theme tune.

And so roll out nearly every super hero since then basically singing the same old tune.

It's nice to see something different. I'm on the 8th episode, season 1. Does it have bad guys? Check. Are you sure you know who the bad guys are? Nope. Could they all be bad guys or all be good guys who's motives are at odds? Check.

As for formulaic? At 10% the audience must know what a successful outcome looks like. I don't even know now. At 25% the hero must buy in to the plot. I'm not even sure he's bought in at this point...

Lastly, if someone wakes up one day and has super powers? Well, the natural course of action is to save the world. "With great power comes great responsibility." and "Here I come to save the day!". One question I asked as a kid and ask now? Why? Where did that come from? I agree, it's the moral high ground but would you really do it? I mean, actually? Or would you sit there and wonder how you could turn this power into a money spinner so you can give up your meaningless job that your supposed to be oh so proud to have?

Guess he's not really here to save the day and, so far, would definitely prefer to live a normal life.

As for the women? Well, if I was 12, slipped into a coma and came out at 24? Well, yeah, girls would be high on the list of 'things to do'.

This is coming across as trying to be more realistic, as apposed to: "I'm doing this for my dead Uncle!" (Spiderman) or "Dead parents!" (Batman) or "Dead world!" (Superman) or "Dead mum!" (Meredith Quill). I call it "The dead dog syndrome." - always cracks me up when that heart felt moment pops up in the latest comic to movie cross over... and my brain says: "DEAD DOG MOMENT!!!" Are all your parents alive? Is so? You got NO HOPE of getting super powers! Ain't how it works buddy!!! Lolz! So as I said, nice to see something different.

Talked to one guy and he pointed out he prefers Marvel to DC because in Marvel, even when the world is in imminent danger, the hero always has time to crack a joke and make light of the situation. DC is far to dark for his liking. And, you know, I respect that. Hey, we all come to entertainment for our own reasons... but lets just say I won't be recommending Beyond to him.