OK, a few additional thoughtsâŠ
The second storyline (âmeanwhile, back in the lab!â) is really dragging this show down. First, it takes away from the âleapingâ narrative for the week. Subsequently, we donât give a shit about Ben or the people whose lives heâs fallen into. Since this was the heart of the original series- we connected with Sam and felt that he cared about the people around him- itâs taking the soul out of the whole concept. Feels like a V8 engine missing 5 sparkplugs.
Also, the writing on this second element is really terrible. Because theyâre limited in the amount of time they have to spend here, it really feels like theyâre just trying to jam two stories together, connectedness be damned. For instance, the most recent episode had the following climactic sequence back in âreal timeâ: âHey, the antagonist is at a house! Look, the door is unlocked. Wait, thereâs a rug out of place and a basement hatch under it. Wow, thereâs a lot of science-y stuff here, we should take some back with us. Hmm, the antagonist is calling me. Oh no, this place is booby-trapped and starting to blow up! Quick, try to grab something and get out! Whew, we made it out with a hard drive just in time! Hurry, letâs go back to the lab before any other person comes to see whatâs happening.â If you watched it, youâll know that it took longer for me to type that than the actual âactionâ was being portrayed on the screen.
Iâm sure that the actors involved are quite talented, but theyâre not being given anything to work with. The writing feels like something youâd see in a terrible CBS procedural spin off⊠this past week, it felt like the âCâ storyline from âCIS Tulsaâ.
Finally, a thought from a friend of mine (huge QL fan): âIâm really glad that theyâre working to diversify the cast and the plots/situations, but itâs terrible that theyâre still using such terrible stereotypes. Both of the super-smart characters are Asians. The African American is a weary guy whoâs seen some things (a low-rent Murtaugh). There are three white characters- a sassy gay guy, the villain, and the girlfriend. Just lazy writing. No reason for me to be curious about them or interested in what theyâre trying to doâŠâ