Shooter

A series pilot today is everything. it is like the weekend box office results for a movie. It has to hit. That is the new reality in TV. There are just too many options. That said, hang in there. The pilot was not Mr Robot. That was one of the best pilots ever.

I was going to bail but recorded the series on DVR and episode 3 hit the target! That was good TV. I want to see a loner trying to evade getting caught. This is The Fugitive w/great gun skills.

I was critical of trying to recreate the movie and how this would be done. I did not like the female FBI agent casting at first. It was political (black female), but the actress (Cynthia Addai-Robinson) pulled it off. Her acting skill changed my mind. The little girl is excellent as well. Casting is everything. I am still not convinced about the lead of FBI agent (Isaac Johnson) role. New face, but in TV that face needs to convince the audience immediately they are who they are. All to say when his scenes take place, I disconnect just a bit. Same with Ryan Phillippe. I wasn't sold on him, but he plays the role as needed. I think because they play the Bourne movies non-stop, I/we are tired of Mr Everything, the persona of someone who is a rebel (detached from his core unit) but super skilled in every way, able to out think law enforcement at will, a McGyver ability to escape any place at any time. This is old news today. Stallone perfected this in Rambo. It is 2016. Time to re-think this role.

I hope this series remains highly intelligent. There is no excuse for stupid. It all comes down to production and storytelling. Timing and pace. Music that connects.

For myself, I like specific scenes. I loved the mini-mart scene is Ep 3 and how it was performed. Producers should ask the audience what scenes they rewound their DVR's at--that scene you had to see over again. Again, no excuses today for not doing your homework! All you have to do is recreate the greatest scenes from similar genres. Make them your own, but find those "gold" moments and give them to us.

I don't believe I spoil any of the show in this review.

I almost didn't pick this show up because of the bad overall reviews I had seen after its first season.

But lo and behold I found myself with some spare time over the weekend, so I binge watched it in the background while I worked on some fun computer stuff.

It just goes to show how unreliable professional reviews are as a whole, because this show is good television.

The acting is well done, the story is well laid out, it's consistent, and it has a well done ending to the story.

I always know I really liked a show when I wan't to watch more after the final episode, but at the same time I'm happy with how they wrapped everything up. Shows that end up on that list always end up being re-watchers for me.

Bob Lee Swagger is a great character. Ryan Phillippe does a great job bringing him to life and keeping him sane. His southern accent gets a little "extra" during that last 3rd season, but the quality of the writing really makes it a non issue.

While all the other actors do a very good job in this show, I really feel like I should bring up Shantel VanSanten playing Julie Swagger. All too often these types of shows end up ruining their female leads. A prime example is The Blacklist's Elizabeth Keen played by Megan Boone. At some point a decision is made to completely rewrite a character to inject conflict with one of the show leads. It never pans out and it's one of the quickest ways to ruin a show in my opinion.

Julie Swagger stays badass from the very beginning, she never changes, and I appreciate that. More shows should take that kind of care with their female characters.

It's a great show, I'm trying not to spoil any of it. If you've passed it up for a while like I did then do yourself a favor and give it a watch. It's poor professional reviews aren't warranted.

This seems to be promising. A little of "the contractor, with Wesley Snipes", a bit of "murder at 1600", and other similar movies have been set on the stage, but nevertheless this is now a series, a TV show and it can go into a interesting direction. Although it is hard to say after the first plot, how it really will end up. Anyhow, I will wait for the next show and see if it is worthy my higher scores. One at last, there are a view top shows out there, meaning top writing, acting, scenery, music, etc. (some like Banshee, although it might be not everybody's genre), anyway, this first show is a little poor on these parts, but as I said it has the potential to become much better. We will see.

S1: First season was somewhat okay, they sure don't know much about shooting though. I guess i would recommend you to watch that for what it is. 6.5/10

S2:But if you like me, give your best to watch it to the end, you will learn that in the middle of season 2, you start to ask so many questions. And your focus starts fading away from the show. When i started last episode i thought: It's finally over.

S3: I don't know why I'm still watching. So much of this show makes no sense. How can they do what they do, without ever getting in to real trouble with the law? I'm 5 episodes from the end, and i cannot wait.

I "get" that it is a time-honored tradition on IMDb that the first reviewers of any new series are usually fans in the making who have fallen in love with the show and want to sound the trumpet for others to follow.

This is not one of those reviews.

What this IS is a review that will tell you what the show was trying to do and why, in the opinion of this reviewer, it is not succeeding as well as intended.

First, let's start with the REAL backstory.

1. A top-tier fiction writer named Stephen Hunter over a long period of years penned a series of books about a character he created, one Bob Lee Swagger, a tall rangy ex-Gunnery Sergeant with a deep southern drawl, probably one of the greatest snipers on the planet, and a true American hero. (Some of the book reviews called Swagger "the greatest" American hero in modern fiction.)

2. The character was a surprise smash hit, much like the Bourne character in the popular series of movies was equally a "surprise" to his original creator.

3. Hunter was so overpowered by the strong response to Bob Lee that he actually tried to hobble his character through the series of later novels (Bob aged quickly, he was wounded, beaten, crippled, etc.). Hunter even tried to phase Bob Lee out completely and start a brand new series based on Bob Lee's son. None of that worked. His fans to this day still cannot get enough of Bob Lee. He is, and will always be, a wonderful read.

4. Hollywood came knocking but found the character as written did not fit their "star mould." So Hollywood re-imagined the core story (from the first book in the series) with Bob Lee as a much younger, shorter, big city type hero, no accent, and cast Mark Wahlberg in the lead. The movie was a mild commercial success but fans of the original hated it and believed it could have been so much better if the original template had been followed.

5. This new TV series re-imagines the already-reimagined character from the Hollywood version. Now Bob Lee is very young and graceful, already married (not so in the book) and, as portrayed by Ryan Phillipe, something of a pretty boy and a smartass at the same time. Bob Lee's "friend" at the FBI, Nick Memphis, has also been re-imagined -- from a man to a woman. In other words, the current story and the characters driving this series are less about the original Stephen Hunter character, and more the kind of thing you would expect from focus groups. Clean. Politically correct. And just a little boring.

To be really clear -- there is nothing inherently wrong with trying to make something better, assuming of course you do not end up making it worse in the process. And that is the problem.

Assuming for example that the hit TV action series BANSHEE is currently the "gold standard" for a male-oriented action show, SHOOTER in contrast comes in weak on story, weak on writing, weak on casting, weak on acting, and weak on direction.

Even the music -- a constant drone through the entire first episode meant to convey suspense -- is annoying.

As I said, first reviews are usually one fan trying to hook another.

This is not one of those reviews.

This show might become better with age, like wine. But the omens and portents suggest otherwise.

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** REVIEWERS' ADDENDUM 12/28/16 **

Films and indeed film reviewers ultimately have to live in the real world. Revisiting my original review and the other critiques, I can see two opposing points of view forming. A large number of IMDb members (presumably other lifelong Swagger "fans") seemed to have agreed with my viewpoint. Another group seems to desperately want to look at the actual product solely on its own, and simply ask whether or not it meets minimum standards of entertainment (even though the plot arc for the whole season is already known if you read the book or saw the movie); and seem especially annoyed that we the viewers keep insisting on more...? If I didn't know better, I would venture that my original POV represents the "populist" position, ie, that fans who have supported the author and his character for decades actually DESERVE a production which respects their wants, hopes and aspirations. The other group seems to represent a more "establishment" POV saying, hey, the money guys, the guys who do the deals and make the decisions, went ahead with the safest and most politically-correct product, designed to appeal to everyone and yet offend no one, and most likely to appeal to the broadest audience in later syndication. And so maximize revenue. This is the way TV deals are made -- and who are YOU to suggest otherwise? Populists on one side. And the establishment on the other. Ironic isn't it? --- this bland series finally gets the blood boiling, and yet none of the action shows up on the actual screen? ((Designated "IMDb Top Reviewer." Please check out my list "167+ Nearly-Perfect Movies (with the occasional Anime or TV miniseries) you can/should see again and again (1932 to the present))