Season One Discussion

[Jack Malone]

'M:SCU' - 1x02 Review: 'Foundations' 

First and foremost, I just want to say that I've noticed you cleaned the script up a lot since the last time I went to read the episode. It reads a lot clearer, the descriptions are a lot neater and less bulky, and it's just a huge improvement made on your part that you should be really pleased with and happy about, so well done!  

The episode had a really interesting premise. I thought it was a really clever decision to introduce us to the character of Heather in the beginning of the episode and allow us to see this very well put-together woman, and then immediately juxtapose it with her apparent 'suicide.' The cold opening was great in and of itself but just the structure and purpose behind that really stood out to me. Of course, there had to be more to the story than a bunch of meta-humans offing themselves, and as the episode unravels, we learn that it's clearly more a case of murder. I find it strange how these characters deal with special cases like this all the time, and are aware of meta-humans, superpowers and the meteor infected, but there's still scenes where they claim this suicide is 'impossible.' It's kind of something I'd expect on a regular cop show, not something like MSCU, but I digress. 

I really enjoyed the incorporation of the Isis Foundation, and especially the character of Angela. She seems very comforting and calm as a character, and Todd definitely needed that kind of person around him after what had happened. So I loved their scene together. I wasn't a fan of the 'shock-factor' twist in having Maggie show up and accuse Angela of being the one responsible for murdering these metahumans, especially when her logic behind it is instantly disputed when Todd mentions the fact that she is Jewish and wouldn't wear a cross in the first place. It's little things like that where it can make the main character appear less intelligent than they actually are, and while I appreciate having a big 'oh my god' end to an act to bring us back after the non-existent commercial break, it wasn't fully supported as a logical step to make. 

Now, the twist that it was King all along was a great pay off. Despite comic book knowledge, I thought it might be Angela's daughter, Rachel for a minute but then of course King drugged her and you instantly realised it was him. I think he was a little camp and a little crazy, but in a really entertaining way. I loved that confrontation with him and Rachel where she unleashes her power on him and he can't stop referring to her as evil, and descends even further down the rabbit hole of craziness. 

There were a few things I didn't like in this episode that I think is worth pointing out. There didn't seem like much of a purpose to reveal 'Willie' as Roy Harper other than name-dropping someone from the comics. While I'm extremely interested in his dynamic with "Officer T," and he has this lost soul vibe that I find particularly interesting, it just threw me off that he was all, "I'm Roy William Harper." I guess if he's sticking around for the season, it'll be fine, but it just felt a little forced (kind of like Joseph Gordon Levitt being revealed to have his first name be "Robin" in TDKR). In a similar light, Lana's role in the episode felt irrelevant. I feel like that whole scene could have been cut because all it did was recap the events that took place in the episode, and didn't offer much resolution or even further conflict to make the scene really click and feel like it belonged in the episode. 

Now, with those two things out of the way -- I really enjoyed a lot of the characters in this. Wally West has an interesting voice and character that works really well in this format. His scene with Danny was a stand-out for me, and felt like something out of a true crime procedural. I love the work you put into establishing characters as well. For example, with Beth, you add in her religion so effortlessly without it feeling forced. You do really well when it comes to your main cast, I feel. That also extended into the character of Maggie, who has this kind of high school/college teacher vibe that I can only relate to that kind of role because of my own experiences, and it's the fact that she can be intimidating, and she can be harsh and to the point, and business, business, business, but you get the sense that she really cares about you. I felt that the whole time she interacted with Todd. They had a bit of a strained dynamic, but that made it all the more interesting. And I also like the fact that we got to see some of Maggie's life outside of the office with Toby. I just think your main cast really clicked in this episode overall  

In terms of the other antagonists, I did enjoy the subplot with Daniel Brickwell. I'm also a sucker for big bads being revealed as mere pawns, so I enjoyed the intergang twist at episode's end, and the whole mystery surrounding 'starlight' is very intriguing. You're peeling back layers that I'm looking forward to reading in future episodes.  The only bad guy I'm skeptical about is Sebastian Blood. I feel like MSCU has an over-saturated-in-DC-Comics-references vibe where you have Willie being revealed to be Roy Harper, you have Daniel Brickwell, Rachel Roth, Lana Lang, and then Sebastian Blood, and it's all just a bit too much, especially for episode two. But I have no idea where all these will lead, and maybe things will start to connect and feel less crowded as the season progresses! 

Anyway, I'm sorry for being silent for so long. I've had some down time today, and I was stalking theVPN as per usual, and couldn't help notice a lack of diversity in the reviews on the site for a while so I decided to sit down and get invested in the show, and I hope I can read and review episode three sooner rather later.  Sorry if this review is completely nonsensical. I'm working on two hours sleep. I just hope some of it makes sense, and wanted to let you know that I'm looking forward to catching up and leaving more reviews for you

[Jack Malone]

"Ricochet" Review

I think this is the first overly mixed reception I've had reading an episode of M:SCU. I don't like writing overly negative reviews, and so I hope I can be both constructive, and balanced in the feedback I'm offering. 

First up, the entire episode felt like a convoluted way to write Lex Luthor for an episode. The reason I say this, is because so many things felt inconsistent, and out of character for him, in terms of the Lex Luthor we knew on 'Smallville,' and the Lex Luthor we'd read in the comic books themselves. I guess there's an argument to say he was planning to infiltrate the SCU so that he could keep tabs on them, which was a really nice end of episode reveal, but it wasn't treated in that manner. And not in the sense that Lex is just great at lying, or that Lex could have held this facade because it's Lex Luthor, but in the sense that the episode spent so much time trying to tell us one thing, that the reveal at the end doesn't feel like it encapsulates all his actions in this one episode. So with that, I'm left to believe that the Lex who would normally solve situations like this internally, is involving the SCU (out of character).

More than that, Danny becoming a body guard for him, claiming it's his job when that wasn't what he was hired to do, enraged me a little. The same as when he scoffs while Luthor was talking in a scene, and Maggie bit back, but in a really disrespectful, clearly unprofessional manner. I feel like Maggie is smarter than talk shit about Lex in front of Lex, or have this attitude in front of Lex, especially when she does suspect he killed Lionel, and now Tess. I feel like it makes her wiser not to go off at him, or make subtle jabs, and would command more respect from me, as an audience member, to go, "Maggie would usually bite back at someone talking to her in this way, but she's smart not doing it because THAT is Lex Luthor."

I feel like Lex often had to be torn down in order for the other characters to stand up, and that's a component that made Lex feel less like himself. Usually there's a power play, or someone on the same level, and if they're not, Lex takes advantage of it. He just felt diminished a little in this episode, and I hope that, if he is a crucial component of M:SCU, there's more of an attempt made to keep Lex as the same character we knew, and not diminish either parties (M:SCU characters / SV Characters).

The second biggest gripe I had with this episode involved the antagonist, Owen Harkness/Mercer, and the information given on the character of Tess Mercer. While I commend an attempt to fill in more of a beloved character's back story from 'Smallville,' it didn't feel like it served a purpose. I can only really regurgitate what Brady said in his review, but if there was anything that should have been done to build a character from 'Smallville,' it would be something for Lex. Tess only helped establish a one-off villain's back story. I think Brady's suggestion to have it be just someone in Lex's past would have worked much better, and helped really solidify Lex as a presence on the show, and really make that final scene with the big reveal so much bigger than it was.

For me, I was confused during the three scene build up. First, it was said "Owen" was his real name, but Harkness wasn't. But then in the next scene, Harkness was revealed to be his father, so then I was confused at how he wasn't still Owen Harkness. And then we learned it was Owen Mercer. Instead of building a layer on top of a layer to make the audience gain new information with each scene, they were more conflicting, and more disconnected in a way, that only went from confusing, to more confusing, and then a sense of clarity that still made you have to go back and re-read the last two scenes because of how things just didn't make sense. Also, there was so much exposition needed to fill in that back story, and nothing really came of it. All it did was solidify a one-off villain of the week to make us understand his reasoning for targeting Lex. But because you wanted to infuse that reasoning with Smallville history, it took so much longer, and needed so much more information dumpage for the audience, that it - again I use the word - became convoluted. Instead of a back story of, "He was in an orphanage that Luthorcorp shut down the funding for and his life was shit because of the Luthor name," or anything that wasn't based around in, one, connecting this show to Smallville, or two, filling in back story for a beloved Smallville character, things just felt like they took longer to get solved, and nothing really served an over-arching purpose or really played into the central result of the episode, which seemed to be Lex infiltrating the SCU base and now being able to watch them closely.  

Also, it managed to drag Tess through the mud quite a bit. I understand she had a tragic back story, but now that she's dead, filling in heaps of elements, recounting how she got beat, and naming an orphanage after her where she was basically abused even more... it just made me really sad. I guess that could be something you wanted to evoke in the audience and mirror the tragedy that was Tess' life, but because it didn't do anything but make a character more ingrained into the Smallville history, I didn't like it so much. 

But back onto the antagonist in Owen Mercer, there were some things I didn't quite understand. He said he only wants to harm Lex, and there's an entire scene basically showing us how he's not a bad man. He didn't mean to kill Otis, and when he has Danny captured, he talks about delivering food, and not laying a hand on him. Then all of a sudden, he's rigged the place to blow, he threatened Danny, and it just felt like a complete reverse of what we learned about him in the first half. I think those things made him unique, and was interesting, and so to flip it for plot convenience was a little irritating. 

Anyway, while all of that stuff left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth just for this one episode, I again have to say that all the MSCU components are enjoyable. I particularly liked the scene where they're analysing the boomerang because you get all the individual characters, and their roles, and their perspectives, and their back and forth banter is a lot of fun to read. Wally West continues to have a really interesting voice and presence on the show. I particularly loved the moment of him commenting on the elevator being too slow, it's a nice nod to the comics. Danny also received a lot more focus in this one, I felt, and while he very much just forced himself into a lot of the moments he was "on screen," he reads as such a good guy that I'm almost inclined to perceive him as the central protagonist. 

Overall, I think if you focused less on trying to tie things into 'Smallville,' and building episodes based on references to that show, and instead gave us more episodes of the MSCU characters, and their journeys, then things would click in a much better way. As I said, I much prefer the scenes of the team working together and solving a case, as opposed to each episode needing some big comic book reference that drives everything, or some big Smallville twist that shapes a deceased character's backstory. Maggie, Danny, Wally, Toby, Beth, Todd, etc, they're all characters I feel we should be learning more about and seeing more of, not just in their respective jobs and role in the SCU, but also outside of it, you know? Let's see Danny with his wife and kids, let's see Toby at Daily Star, let's see characters at a bar at the end of the night, talking about how the case got to them, or what have you. I'm excited to see this show develop past the point of it's origin (A smallville spin off) and rely more on the array of characters you've taken literally from one to three episode guest stints and are evolving and showing in their own series, as well as the others you've crafted and plucked from the comics. 

I don't think the other two episodes were so heavily trying to connect to Smallville or the comics or anything that overpowered everything else, so the rest of the season involves more of the former than the latter. I'm looking forward to catching up. I'm sorry for my not-so-happy review, but that's how I felt with this particular episode, and so it's all I can offer. I'm hoping I enjoy the next one more!  

[Jack Malone]

"Trust" Review

It's hilarious to me how the previous episode made me crave certain things such as wanting to see more of the MSCU characters than anyone else, to see the cases spreading into their private lives, to see Maggie and Toby at home, to see Danny with his wife Suzie, and this episode completely delivered on all counts. This was a much stronger episode, maybe my favourite so far in the season. 

First up, a really interesting premise. I think Danny is growing to be a favourite from the main cast, and the fact that he's had this shady background, and it kind of haunts him a little... it just makes things more interesting, and I'm glad that, four episodes in, you've decided to really address it in a way that hopefully looks at it, reminds the audience of it, and then moves on. I think we can all gather he's a good man, and maybe people can use his past against him in the future, but I feel like this was a good episode to really lay it to rest and establish him as a good man, and a good cop. I really loved seeing him with his wife, Suzie, and I love that she helped save the day in the end. He certainly didn't marry a damsel in distress, and they seem like a really strong, loving family. So that was a huge highlight for me.

Something that surprised me in this episode was the conflict for the Toby character. I really liked her scenes with the editor, and how the drama came very organically. As a reader, on just the fourth episode, I'm not taking into consideration that she could be perceived as bias, and that her relationship with Maggie could affect her job in such a way, and it just opened more and more layers that I really enjoyed reading, and following along. I think, on the down side, I'm not a huge Toby/Maggie fan. I didn't understand how Toby could be so mad about her lying to her, but then a simple kiss just makes her forget everything. I'm open for more interactions to really sell them to me, but at the moment, I'm not really invested in their romantic future because it doesn't seem the healthiest, or the most stable. But, Toby, as a character, really stood out in this episode for me  

I think for any constructive input, I would say with a show like this, maybe don't reveal the "bad guy" to us before all the characters have figured it out. It was a little hard to read an entire act of characters throwing around speculation and coming to a realisation, when we knew, from the end of the previous act, "whodunnit," haha! I feel like, structurally, the episode would have been more shocking if we had them figure it out, THEN had Yardley knock Wally out, and run off. But it was still fine, just a suggestion I felt would enhance it a bit more. 

Overall, a really strong episode of MSCU. I think this is my favourite so far. It focused primarily on the main core cast of characters, had an interesting storyline for Danny that really branched out and off into other characters, causing conflict for them, and all really came together in a way that the other episode's haven't so far that just felt really well put together, and really solid. Well done! 

[The Doctor]

I have to say, I may not have been reviewing SCU, but I have been keeping up with it and the most recent episodes prove that this show has earned the Second Season.
I'll give a more comprehensive review for the entire season when the finale drops

But all in all good work Alex

[Antwan Eley]

Just finished reading the pilot and it really was a good solid episode. It was a nice reminder of how much I enjoyed Smallville in the good old days and really I can see myself getting into this series as if it was really on television. Have to say that I love Wally already and quite interested in seeing how he will develop in this series and if he becomes The Flash. I really like the partnership between Maggie and Danny. And I always have been interested in Whisper in the comics so can't wait to see her and Intergang work as a villain. This really felt like an episode of CSI only dealing with the supernatural and i really like the vibe. And the nudge to the Isis Foundation and meteor freaks. So can't wait to read more of this season. Really good episode. 

[Brady Brown]

REVIEW: 1.05 "Noise" & 1.06 "Loyalty"

I'm just going to combine these two episodes into a mini review, because I ended up reading them back to back and wanted to give me thoughts out ASAP! I think the ideas for the cases you have are actually really interesting (someone who uses sound as a weapon), so I'm looking forward to seeing what you've got coming up for the remainder of the season and into the next one. Also, when the cast of characters are interacting to try and solve the case, it's another really strong aspect of the show that remind me of what I look forward to and love in my favorite cop dramas.

That being said, I think for these two episodes, it was something that I wasn't getting enough of. I think there was a lot of things happening off-screen that were being told to us, and we were just kind of thrown into the mix without even knowing what was going on. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't remember anything being hinted at that Wally had a gambling problem (and if there was, then I think there should have been part of that in this episode) because he seemed incredibly out of character here, especially when Danny was trying to console him. It really came across as rude and made me not root for Wally in whatever was going down with him. Another suggestion I have is to actually show the SCU figuring out these clues, examine evidence, and show us their reactions and their process to learning about certain things, because a lot of times in the episode a member would just show up and explain everything that they found out off screen. Which leads me to another suggestion - show, don't tell. It's a really hard thing, but there was so much exposition in these two episodes that it became overbearing. I know this is an episode you wrote years ago, so I don't know if it still applies to current ones, but let the audience figure out/infer things on their own. It's much more interesting that way. Say your dialogue out loud and see if it's something you ro a person you're talking to would say.

Like I said above, the cases themselves were actually really intruiging. I liked that we got a tie in to Kitty's past in 1.06, and it added some great depth and drama to her character. I hope that continues for the other members of the SCU. I'm also a fan of the over-arching story of starlight. I always like it when things carry over into episodes, even if it's just small, it really adds to the world of the show. Finally, something I really liked was the focus we get on the outside lives of the squad members. I know I mentioned not being a fan of how Wally's gambling was executed, but it still added something to his character that I can appreciate. I hope that's something that finds a really cool balance in the future: lives in and out of the precinct.

I hope my suggestions can help moving forward (and if this is something you've already applied to your current writing, then great!) and I look forward to finishing off season 1 soon!

[Alex Matthews]

Hey, Brady! Nice to see some new reviews!

Yes, I totally take on-board what you said about 'show, don't tell' - you'll hopefully find that the later episodes do have 'CSI'-style cutaways - in fact, I know straight away that ep 7, "Terrific", has at least one funny one with Wally! Unfortunately, procedural-driven shows, even one like "M:SCU" does need exposition, but it was/is something I try to 'show' a lot more going forward.

As for Wally's gambling, that is kinda my bad - in my head canon to relate the shows back to "Smallville", which showed that Bart Allen has I.D's in certain other Flash names, I developed the idea that "Loyalty" b-story revolved around, that the pre-Impulse Bart ran up loads of debt in Wally's name, and he resorted to gambling to pay it off, and got addicted. The idea of Wally owing enough money because of those debts to get himself beaten up, I think that simply came from a) wanting to flesh out some of Wally's history and show him as more then a simple comic relief character, and b) experimenting more with having 'a' and 'b' story-lines. I guess I kinda saw it as paralleling the audience's discovery of it alongside Maggie's. I hope you liked how Maggie went to bat for him though?

As for the personal lives, yeah, it's definitely something you see more of in later episodes!