No Ordinary Family

Being a fan of superheroes and shows/movies based on them, I decided to give "No Ordinary Family" a chance and needless to say I was entertained. The show is lighthearted but there are some dark moments in it that really made it intense and kept my attention until the last few minutes of running time. The acting was for the most part above average, but it's the sense of intrigue that really makes the show; showing a family in crisis that are struggling to find common ground and I think that's one of the main themes in the show that makes it work. Heroes did this to a considerable degree but failed miserably in it's later seasons and I hope the show doesn't suffer that fate. The special effects were remarkable, thankfully not too much as to be a wannabe X-Men as I believe that less is more. But the highlights was the fight between Michael Chiklis's character and the guy who can disappear and faze through solid material. I'm just dying to see the next episode and the wild ride in the world of this (Ex)troardinary family.

I might as well as just get this out in the open right now: "No Ordinary Family" is one of the best shows I've seen on TV in recent years. No, I'm not being hyperbolic. I mean, it really is that good. It was a show that kept me thoroughly entertained, and on the edge of my seat constantly waiting for the next big surprise (and episode).

And therein lies the problem: "No Ordinary Family" is not an Ordinary TV Show and therefore, it was just too unique to last beyond one single season with an open-ended cliffhanger climax before it was unceremoniously canceled by NBC, presumably for reasons related to poor ratings.

Due to my work schedule, I was unable to meet the demands of staying up late at night to watch "No Ordinary Family" while it was still airing regularly on TV; I'm actually quite unable to do this with many TV shows I want to see because of my schedule. Hence my review here is based on the season-one DVD, which I've spent the last three days getting caught up on (TV-on-DVD is a real life-saver).

It angers me that genuinely unique (if not totally original) TV shows are a rarity these days, especially in 2012. It happened when my favorite TV show within the last several years "Heroes" was unceremoniously canceled two years ago (and I was a huge, loyal fan of that show, by the way), and it happened when "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" was canceled the year before. I think that when it comes to this sort of television - and I'm sure I'm not alone on this - Americans just have too short attention spans to even be able to handle "No Ordinary Family," which while not too intelligent or sophisticated, is at least entertaining, gripping, and watchable.

In speaking of the show's merits, it has many. Essentially, "No Ordinary Family" is a play on modern-day comic book superhero mythology. It borrows trace elements from the aforementioned "Heroes," as well as the animated Pixar hit "The Incredibles" (2004), and adds in a lot of humorous comic book references and family dramedy dynamics to make it stand alone on its own two feet. It's all done in light, fun, good humor and it's not pickled in angst or nostalgia (imagine if Christopher Nolan was behind this series - personally, I'm glad he wasn't because his so-self-serious intensity would have killed any and all fun to be had here). And it also boasts some impressive, movie-quality special effects on-hand here, as well.

As a superhero fan and comic book reader, just being a superhero fan and comic book reader are just two of the reasons why my curiosity caused me to wander around to "No Ordinary Family"; it's a delight to watch the show and its self-knowing characters work with and around contemporary and traditional comic book lore to make every episode count in some way toward the bigger picture.

This series had me hooked from the word "go". It gets off to a bit of a slow start, but quickly finds its proper footing halfway through the first season.

Things begin with a plane crash in the Brazilian jungle. The four bickering members of the Powell family, on a family trip, miraculously survived, but are forever transformed by the event. Of course, the experience has caused them to bond closer to each other than they were before, but they've also unexpectedly gained superpowers. So the once-normal, boring, and "Ordinary" Powells are thus turned into an "Extraordinary" family of super-powered super-folks:

• Family patriarch Jim Powell (Michael Chiklis), a police sketch artist, gains superhuman strength and durability, like Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible from "The Incredibles" and Ben Grimm/The Thing from the Fantastic Four (in a strange little irony, Chiklis portrayed the latter in the two live-action "Fantastic Four" movies), and uses these abilities to battle crime on a daily basis

• Mother Stephanie Powell (Julie Benz, of "Dexter"), a noted research scientist and driven careerist - the rest of the family was accompanying her on a scientific expedition when their plane crashed in Brazil - acquires superhuman speed and a rapidly increased metabolism (which allows her to heal almost instantaneously from any injury)

• Teenage daughter Daphne Powell (Kay Panabaker) develops telepathy, meaning she can read minds, which later evolves into "pushing," being able to "push" thoughts into people's heads; both abilities allow her to increase her social standing/status a little bit at high school

• And teenage son JJ Powell (Jimmy Bennett) acquires higher cognitive functioning, which basically makes him a super-genius able to instantly understand and comprehend post-graduate-level mathematics, learn new languages almost immediately, and understand & comprehend complex machines and structures; I really wish I had this ability for my high school math classes.

So obviously, they need to keep their powers a secret but as the series progresses, they try to learn the source of their powers while also battling all sorts of crime high and low. Eventually, powerful forces will cause this family to use their special abilities and bond together as one to face an even more dangerous threat to humanity. Also along to help them are Stephanie's perky comic book fan-girl lab assistant Katie Andrews (Autumn Reeser) and George St. Cloud (Romany Malco), Jim's twice-divorced best friend who is also an assistant district attorney and also establishes their base of operations in his garage.

As I stated earlier, this is a great, fun, funny, action-packed superhero TV series that doesn't take itself too seriously; it's all good fun. But also to reiterate my points from before, people seem to have increasingly diminishing attention spans, which more than likely led to this show's premature demise after only one season. This last part made me especially angry upon learning the truth about its fate.

In short, it was too fun, and too "Extraordinary," to last.

8/10

No Ordinary Family was one of the shows critics liked and one to watch for this season. Now, I'm not a big fan of TV. I don't watch much TV, and what I do watch I don't tend to follow faithfully. In fact, the last time I did follow shows faithfully were 24 and LOST. I'm a sucker for superhero shows, following Heroes pretty faithfully as well. So, No Ordinary Family intrigues me.

Missing the pilot and catching the second episode, I don't think I've missed anything. However, I have enjoyed what I've seen. The show is entertaining. And if Heroes was the superhero super group (X-men, Avengers, etc.), then this is the Fantastic Four of TV. It would also be comparable to The Incredibles, as many have compared. It's a good angle and it adds depth to an otherwise stale genre. Not so much for TV, but with so many superhero stories flooding the entertainment market, this more family friendly fare adds a little something to the field of TV.

The added element of family also seems to give it a little bit more life. Where as Heroes didn't last very long due to overblown stories and too many characters, Family could last long enough if it takes care to stick to it's core of the family and their problems. Essentially, this is a family sitcom without the comedic focus and with super powers. It's a good combination, even if you're not particularly a fan of the genres. The acting is quite good on the part of Julie Benz and Michale Chiklis as the parents. The kids are adequate, playing the typical teenagers with teenage issues. Autumn Reeser is cute as Mrs. Powell's lab assistant and Romany Malco is humorous as the best friend of Mr. Their adequate for entertainments sake, but also a bit cliché, which is disappointing.

The villains are also a bit of a disappointment. Whereas, for comparison, Sylar was a fairly complex villain, the villains here not only have superpowers as well, but are fairly cliché and evil. Hopefully this will change and more interesting villains will appear. But for now, the family dynamic and entertaining super power antics are fun enough to watch. How long they stay fun is a matter of time to tell. This is one show, though, I'm willing to keep watching for the time being.

This was actually one of better show's on paranormal/superpower ability's I have watched in a long time, and that I was able to watch with my family . ABC shame on You.

If Desperate housewife's got what 4 seasons and it is so freaking clear that it is horrible show this should have gotten at least chance for second season.

Is it because it's about family? I donno but ABC has made some pretty bad choices in history and I am quite sure it will repeat.

Shame. I think I am not going to watch anymore of their shows ever coz I always get disappointed when I realize they are canceled.

I'm a huge Marvel fan, and I found myself fascinated with the Pilot. As the other reviewer mention it feels rush, but that is always the problem with pilots, so I tried to see past that and enjoyed it already knowing what to expect from a pilot episode.

The acting was great, the visual effects were great, maybe in the theaters they would've looked fake but for a TV show they were topnotch, the writing was 'meh', but it has the potential for improvement.

Can't wait to see if they can grab all the potential the pilot showed and turned it into a classic. Hopefully it won't end up like Heroes.

And I wouldn't say it's a mix between Heroes and The Incredibles, IMO it's actually more like The Incredibles meets Fantastic 4.