S1 Discussion

[Matthew James]

Discuss the first season on Winchester here

[Brian Melanson]

REVIEW: 1x01: The Beginning in the End

Winchester was a show that has been around for a long time. And while it has gone through so many changes, I am happy that you finally found the right story to tell for yourself. After reading the pilot, I am a bit mixed. Let me start with the positives. Maya and Tracy. I loved them, they brought life to the pilot and really made me interested in the storyline. They really bring you into the story and give life to the said story.  Tracy digging in and trying to find out who Jake was and then how she is determined now to solve the murder of her friend.  That's a great way to drive her story, give her the reigns of this murder mystery.  I'm really excited to see where she goes in the future. 

Maya was also great.  It was cool to see her seem like she's hiding something.  I have a feeling it has to do with Shane's disapperence and that will again, be great to see unfold going forward.  Is she really involved in this?  Is she the one that lit the match?  Probably not, but it's just fun to think like that.  I'm excited for the Tribune side of the story, it's a different take on a murder mystery.  It's not cops and detectives.  It's teenagers trying to understand why their friend was in that house in the woods and why he went missing.  

Now for the parts I'm mixed on.  I can see that Jake is going to be your main character.  While Jake does have the potential to become a good character, right now to me, he does not seem like the main character.  He just seemed very one dimensional.  It seemed like he was like "oh bad things happen" and was just there while the supporting characters drove the show.  I think going forward, you should have Jake really get involved in the mystery.  Now that he's involved in the Tribune, maybe that will help bring out more of his characteristics and have him get involved in the overarching mystery.  Right now, Jake just isn't all there for me, but there is potential.  You just need to tap into it, have Jake be the character we want to root for.  I did like how you planted the seeds for his story.  That makes me happy because it means you guys will be tapping into that soon or later on down the road.  Jake just needs to be expanded on because the potential is there. 

Overall, I am still mixed on the show.  But I am interested to see where the story goes.  You have started to set things up.  My thing is, just improve small things like Jake and I honestly think the show could soar.  Good luck in the future!  I'm looking forward to see where the mystery takes us. 

[Jack Malone]

REVIEW: "The Beginning In The End" 

This show has a lot of really great potential, and I think this first episode was a huge indicator of just how much potential it really has going forward. You gave us a taste of the world, of these characters, of certain dynamics (both in how they are now, and how things might progress), and bundled it all up in a pretty exciting murder-mystery twist at episode's end that makes me excited to tune in and follow along each week. 

First up, I wanted to talk about your main protagonist, Jake Farrell. He carried this sort of mysterious past to him when he was first introduced, with the Principal talking about him not doing what he did at his last school, and the whole nature of him relocating in the first place, and it was eventually revealed that he lost his father and that, like his father, he's prone to throwing himself into fights to defend the "smaller guys" that are being picked on. I thought this all defined him really well — especially his encounter with Pete Jensen, and his protection of Charlie Matthews. It was that scene that really offered us a great character moment that I was sort of craving to see from him.  

With all of that said, I was mostly disappointed in how the character was handled and came out of the premiere thinking he was the weakest link. He didn't really have a strong perspective, or even a strong presence — more times than not, he was sinking into the background and sort of observing the story as though he wasn't an active participant in it. The "suspension" on his first day felt a little unrealistic, and immediately threw him out of the High School, which diminished the High School as a setting for the show. And even though the premiere set up the idea that he was a "super star reporter," I kind of wish he had to earn that position on the Tribune at episode's end in order to enhance his story, because then we might have been able to latch onto his perspective, and maybe even root for him a little. Ultimately, I think he just suffered from the show having really great supporting characters that are probably more fun and interesting for you guys to write, and from a plot that A) Dismissed him from the show's setting pretty early on, and B) Didn't really involve him. It was almost like you could pluck Jake out of the whole show, and nothing significant would really change, and that's a shame. 

I kind of wish this was pitched and went through those regular stages of a pick-up (even though I understand why it didn't happen that way), purely because it was the only real big issue I had with the premiere and I think it'd have been so easy to fix if it had been pointed out. And I'm not really sure how to offer a constructive response to it because it does look like with Jake acquiring the position at the Tribune -- he'll now be involved with the plot, have a perspective to offer, and can thrive with the rest of the show. I'm hoping that's the case, and that's where things are headed. 

Now I've gotten all that out of the way, I absolutely love Tracy Vargas and Maya Raymond. I think they were the most fleshed out characters in the premiere, and gave us a lot of personality, and energy in their scenes. With Tracy, I liked her subplot of trying to figure out who Jake was, and it was such a great scene when she reached that conclusion that he was a good kid, and that they should bring him on board. And I like that we saw her embark on that little investigation. I definitely came out of the episode thinking she was a perfect female lead for the show, and she's who I'm most excited about seeing as the story progresses. As for Maya, she definitely carried the most scars from Shane's disappearance, and it was nice to see her fight for him, and for his position on the Tribune. She made that whole conflict really land the way that it needed to, and her back and forth interactions with Tracy were a highlight of the premiere for me. 

Charlie Matthews was another favourite in this episode, for me. It was heartbreaking to see that he not only gets beat up and bullied at school, but that he has to go home and experience that from his father, as well. And I think there are so many layers to that too -- that his father is just like the kids at school that see him as a loser, that he's trapped in two environments that just belittle and berate and strip away at everything that he is, and to juxtapose those two things with him catching up with Jake, and having this lighthearted moment was really powerful. It sort of positioned their potential friendship as a source of light for Charlie, and along with Tracy and Maya, he's a character I really want to see more of as the show progresses. 

Another thing I thought was handled really well was the whole storyline involving Shane Wise's disappearance. I was really impressed at how you carved this particular plot point out because it wasn't just about launching this murder-mystery for the show, but it served as a compelling conflict, and an interesting way to introduce us to Jake, who would essentially be filling the hole left by Shane in the world of Tracy and Maya. That, paired with hints of who knew him, who was looking for him, who cared, who didn't -- you've already built a platform for this mystery to really climb. And I think if you didn't nail the starting point on this mystery then the show/season would have greatly suffered, so I'm really happy to see how well it was handled. 

As for the brief conflict with Pete Jensen, I found it to be a little forced. Something I've come to really despise in High School dramas is the often dramatised, and forced character beats / plot points that stem from stereotypes/tropes, and Pete kind of embodied so many of them. He was pummelling a kid, which went a bit too far when it went from throwing someone against a locker to strangling the life out of them. He talked about getting other people to do his homework, and offered this sort of "stick with me and we won't have a problem" type shtick that also just felt very on-the-nose to me. And then to progress that into him throwing a punch at Jake -- it just came off as very forced, and lead to that very strange mismatch of punishments with Jake getting suspended, but Pete getting a detention. As I said, I liked Jake stepping in and defending Charlie, and that was all well and good, but I hope as the series progresses, you find a line between something naturally progressing, and forcing it to happen because the plot you crafted needed to suspend Jake. 

Some other really quick things: 

-- I really liked the portrayal of the Principal. His dialogue was really captivating, and written really well. I'm sure he might cross paths with the students in an antagonistic way (in the sense that he's an authority figure) but I welcome any and all of it because he was a great addition to the cast, and someone I look forward to checking in with in the future. 
-- It was a little weird that Annie was described as someone who wants to be her kid's best friend, but she spent most of the episode sort of angry at Jake, and grounded him, and was quite short with him, haha. I just thought how she was in the beginning of the episode better suited that description, and then she sort of switched with the plot. But regardless of that, I liked her dynamic with Jake and hope we see more of the softer/calmer/nicer side in the future. . 
-- The scene between Jake and Conrad was a really great touch. I'm excited to learn more about Jake's father, and as its positioned, I'm sure the more we'll learn about the father, we'll get even more of an idea of who Jake is, too. 
-- I really liked the Tracy/Jake dynamic that was sort of forming in this episode. Excited to see where that goes!
-- Jake pocketing the phone was an interesting twist, and I wonder what he's going to find on it!
-- There were a handful of SPAG mistakes throughout the episode that could be spotted with just one more careful read through before you post. I don't like to comment on SPAG stuff, because I tend to just carry on reading despite it and it happens to all of us, but I thought I'd point it out in this first review because there was quite a lot of it and it could be something to focus on before airing new episodes.

All in all, I'm pretty excited to follow this series. As I said, it has a lot of great potential and even though there were a few things I was mixed about, or had issues with, I don't think it's anything damning that can't be fixed as the series develops and figures itself out along the way. Congratulations on the show launching, and I wish you both the best of luck and hope you deliver a great first season of 'Winchester!' 

[Alex Matthews]

Very happy to see such a positive and quick response to the airing of the premiere! 

Jan 20, 2018 21:50:36 GMT -6 Brian Melanson said:

REVIEW: 1x01: The Beginning in the End

Winchester was a show that has been around for a long time. And while it has gone through so many changes, I am happy that you finally found the right story to tell for yourself. After reading the pilot, I am a bit mixed. Let me start with the positives. Maya and Tracy. I loved them, they brought life to the pilot and really made me interested in the storyline. They really bring you into the story and give life to the said story.  Tracy digging in and trying to find out who Jake was and then how she is determined now to solve the murder of her friend.  That's a great way to drive her story, give her the reigns of this murder mystery.  I'm really excited to see where she goes in the future.

I'm glad you took to them both so quickly, Brian. We worked long and hard to make sure everything felt organic and flowed well, especially going into this whole 'murder-mystery' angle. I will admit to having my doubts about it when Matthew first pitched the concept, but I'm a big fan of both "Riverdale" and "Veronica Mars", so they were healthy inspirations for the story. Tracy is a huge part of this storyline - she is the driving force for it at the moment, but it is something the core team all becomes vested in. How and why will all be revealed later on...

Maya was also great.  It was cool to see her seem like she's hiding something.  I have a feeling it has to do with Shane's disapperence and that will again, be great to see unfold going forward.  Is she really involved in this?  Is she the one that lit the match?  Probably not, but it's just fun to think like that.  I'm excited for the Tribune side of the story, it's a different take on a murder mystery.  It's not cops and detectives.  It's teenagers trying to understand why their friend was in that house in the woods and why he went missing.  

Maya is a lot of fun for both of us to write. She's jaded, cynical and has plenty of layers beyond being the 'bitchy editor' she may come across as at first. 

Now for the parts I'm mixed on.  I can see that Jake is going to be your main character.  While Jake does have the potential to become a good character, right now to me, he does not seem like the main character.  He just seemed very one dimensional.  It seemed like he was like "oh bad things happen" and was just there while the supporting characters drove the show.  I think going forward, you should have Jake really get involved in the mystery.  Now that he's involved in the Tribune, maybe that will help bring out more of his characteristics and have him get involved in the overarching mystery.  Right now, Jake just isn't all there for me, but there is potential.  You just need to tap into it, have Jake be the character we want to root for.  I did like how you planted the seeds for his story.  That makes me happy because it means you guys will be tapping into that soon or later on down the road.  Jake just needs to be expanded on because the potential is there. 

Jake is ostensibly the male lead, yes, but as we were writing and plotting, we both decided this is much more an ensemble series. I hope as the season continues, you'll see and understand that he has his reasons. He's also very much the 'new guy', so he'll bring a different perspective to things, as you'll see, and as his own personal journey over the season grows and develops, hopefully, he'll meet your expectations...

Overall, I am still mixed on the show.  But I am interested to see where the story goes.  You have started to set things up.  My thing is, just improve small things like Jake and I honestly think the show could soar.  Good luck in the future!  I'm looking forward to see where the mystery takes us.

Thanks for the feedback, and fingers crossed a) you'll keep reading and reviewing, and b) you'll see what you hope for!

[Alex Matthews]

Jan 20, 2018 23:16:18 GMT -6 Jack Malone said:

REVIEW: "The Beginning In The End" 

This show has a lot of really great potential, and I think this first episode was a huge indicator of just how much potential it really has going forward. You gave us a taste of the world, of these characters, of certain dynamics (both in how they are now, and how things might progress), and bundled it all up in a pretty exciting murder-mystery twist at episode's end that makes me excited to tune in and follow along each week.

Hey Jack, glad to have you popping in and leaving your thoughts! Glad you seem to take to it so well!

First up, I wanted to talk about your main protagonist, Jake Farrell. He carried this sort of mysterious past to him when he was first introduced, with the Principal talking about him not doing what he did at his last school, and the whole nature of him relocating in the first place, and it was eventually revealed that he lost his father and that, like his father, he's prone to throwing himself into fights to defend the "smaller guys" that are being picked on. I thought this all defined him really well — especially his encounter with Pete Jensen, and his protection of Charlie Matthews. It was that scene that really offered us a great character moment that I was sort of craving to see from him.
With all of that said, I was mostly disappointed in how the character was handled and came out of the premiere thinking he was the weakest link. He didn't really have a strong perspective, or even a strong presence — more times than not, he was sinking into the background and sort of observing the story as though he wasn't an active participant in it. The "suspension" on his first day felt a little unrealistic, and immediately threw him out of the High School, which diminished the High School as a setting for the show. And even though the premiere set up the idea that he was a "super star reporter," I kind of wish he had to earn that position on the Tribune at episode's end in order to enhance his story, because then we might have been able to latch onto his perspective, and maybe even root for him a little. Ultimately, I think he just suffered from the show having really great supporting characters that are probably more fun and interesting for you guys to write, and from a plot that A) Dismissed him from the show's setting pretty early on, and B) Didn't really involve him. It was almost like you could pluck Jake out of the whole show, and nothing significant would really change, and that's a shame.
I kind of wish this was pitched and went through those regular stages of a pick-up (even though I understand why it didn't happen that way), purely because it was the only real big issue I had with the premiere and I think it'd have been so easy to fix if it had been pointed out. And I'm not really sure how to offer a constructive response to it because it does look like with Jake acquiring the position at the Tribune -- he'll now be involved with the plot, have a perspective to offer, and can thrive with the rest of the show. I'm hoping that's the case, and that's where things are headed.

Hmm, I can see where you're coming from on this. Like you say, he has this 'mysterious past', and it means he's got a lot of baggage. He's not afraid to take a stand after what he's seen, but yeah, maybe the suspension wasn't the best idea. That being said, Ep 2 and 3 does have some points in it that will hopefully show you he 'earns' his position.

Now I've gotten all that out of the way, I absolutely love Tracy Vargas and Maya Raymond. I think they were the most fleshed out characters in the premiere, and gave us a lot of personality, and energy in their scenes. With Tracy, I liked her subplot of trying to figure out who Jake was, and it was such a great scene when she reached that conclusion that he was a good kid, and that they should bring him on board. And I like that we saw her embark on that little investigation. I definitely came out of the episode thinking she was a perfect female lead for the show, and she's who I'm most excited about seeing as the story progresses. As for Maya, she definitely carried the most scars from Shane's disappearance, and it was nice to see her fight for him, and for his position on the Tribune. She made that whole conflict really land the way that it needed to, and her back and forth interactions with Tracy were a highlight of the premiere for me. 

I personally love writing strong female leads, something I know you're pretty good with as well, Mr. Malone Tracy is a counterpoint to Maya in some ways, and hopefully Jake will show that he's got something from the two sides they represent. Ep 2 has some flashbacks that detail more about how Maya and Tracy first came to work together on the Tribune, so you should enjoy more of what you've liked here.

Charlie Matthews was another favourite in this episode, for me. It was heartbreaking to see that he not only gets beat up and bullied at school, but that he has to go home and experience that from his father, as well. And I think there are so many layers to that too -- that his father is just like the kids at school that see him as a loser, that he's trapped in two environments that just belittle and berate and strip away at everything that he is, and to juxtapose those two things with him catching up with Jake, and having this lighthearted moment was really powerful. It sort of positioned their potential friendship as a source of light for Charlie, and along with Tracy and Maya, he's a character I really want to see more of as the show progresses. 

Loving the Charlie-love! He's definitely a character whose been shrouded in darkness for so long, he's almost forgotten what hope can look like, and Jake's recognition of that is hopefully the beginning of a new friendship for the both of them. 

Another thing I thought was handled really well was the whole storyline involving Shane Wise's disappearance. I was really impressed at how you carved this particular plot point out because it wasn't just about launching this murder-mystery for the show, but it served as a compelling conflict, and an interesting way to introduce us to Jake, who would essentially be filling the hole left by Shane in the world of Tracy and Maya. That, paired with hints of who knew him, who was looking for him, who cared, who didn't -- you've already built a platform for this mystery to really climb. And I think if you didn't nail the starting point on this mystery then the show/season would have greatly suffered, so I'm really happy to see how well it was handled. 

I'm glad you're enjoying this, and to be honest, one of the things I've loved about joining "Winchester" and working with Matthew is putting what I've learned about procedural stuff from "M:SCU" to use in a completely different context! We never wanted it to be a simple idea of "here's the crime, here's the bad guys, now solve it like Scooby-Doo!", so adding all those layers, getting each and every character involved somehow, and the occasional red herring and misdirect added is a lot of fun! 

As for the brief conflict with Pete Jensen, I found it to be a little forced. Something I've come to really despise in High School dramas is the often dramatised, and forced character beats / plot points that stem from stereotypes/tropes, and Pete kind of embodied so many of them. He was pummelling a kid, which went a bit too far when it went from throwing someone against a locker to strangling the life out of them. He talked about getting other people to do his homework, and offered this sort of "stick with me and we won't have a problem" type shtick that also just felt very on-the-nose to me. And then to progress that into him throwing a punch at Jake -- it just came off as very forced, and lead to that very strange mismatch of punishments with Jake getting suspended, but Pete getting a detention. As I said, I liked Jake stepping in and defending Charlie, and that was all well and good, but I hope as the series progresses, you find a line between something naturally progressing, and forcing it to happen because the plot you crafted needed to suspend Jake. 

The whole Pete/Jake dynamic was an early established idea that was also a throwback to the original series and the Blake/Pete conflict. But, like with what Brian said, I can see and understand where you're coming from on this. Also, regarding Pete, he is kinda written to be a trope, at least to begin with. But he does have his own journey, and we've also been fleshing out his backstory and who his parents are, to explain some of what he does and why...

Some other really quick things: 

-- I really liked the portrayal of the Principal. His dialogue was really captivating, and written really well. I'm sure he might cross paths with the students in an antagonistic way (in the sense that he's an authority figure) but I welcome any and all of it because he was a great addition to the cast, and someone I look forward to checking in with in the future. 
-- It was a little weird that Annie was described as someone who wants to be her kid's best friend, but she spent most of the episode sort of angry at Jake, and grounded him, and was quite short with him, haha. I just thought how she was in the beginning of the episode better suited that description, and then she sort of switched with the plot. But regardless of that, I liked her dynamic with Jake and hope we see more of the softer/calmer/nicer side in the future. . 
-- The scene between Jake and Conrad was a really great touch. I'm excited to learn more about Jake's father, and as its positioned, I'm sure the more we'll learn about the father, we'll get even more of an idea of who Jake is, too. 
-- I really liked the Tracy/Jake dynamic that was sort of forming in this episode. Excited to see where that goes!
-- Jake pocketing the phone was an interesting twist, and I wonder what he's going to find on it!
-- There were a handful of SPAG mistakes throughout the episode that could be spotted with just one more careful read through before you post. I don't like to comment on SPAG stuff, because I tend to just carry on reading despite it and it happens to all of us, but I thought I'd point it out in this first review because there was quite a lot of it and it could be something to focus on before airing new episodes.

- Wallace is a lot of fun, and yeah, he'll be back a few times over the season...
- Annie is still new to the single-parent thing, she's got her own baggage, she's dealing with a lot, just like Jake. I think you can allow her some scattiness! But yeah, her softer side comes out again in subsequent episodes.
- Jake's dad is more of a specter having over Annie at the moment, but what Jake does is reinforced by his own memory of his dad. That might be something we will focus on later, though. 
- Shush, spoilers... It's not all kisses and rainbows with them, be warned!
- Again... spoilers!
- SPAG stuff falls mostly on me, I'm afraid. I catch most of them, even after six or seven readthroughs, but I just get so caught up in tweaking dialogue or descriptions, that, yeah, some get by me! 

All in all, I'm pretty excited to follow this series. As I said, it has a lot of great potential and even though there were a few things I was mixed about, or had issues with, I don't think it's anything damning that can't be fixed as the series develops and figures itself out along the way. Congratulations on the show launching, and I wish you both the best of luck and hope you deliver a great first season of 'Winchester!' 

Happy to have your thoughts, and a positive review is always great to read, especially with constructive criticism from the best

[Matthew James]

Jan 20, 2018 21:50:36 GMT -6 Brian Melanson said:

REVIEW: 1x01: The Beginning in the End

Hey Brian, I just wanted to thank you for your quick review. I was pleasently surprised to see it so quickly. Sorry I couldn't asnwer sooner, been busy with work.

Winchester was a show that has been around for a long time. And while it has gone through so many changes, I am happy that you finally found the right story to tell for yourself. After reading the pilot, I am a bit mixed. Let me start with the positives. Maya and Tracy. I loved them, they brought life to the pilot and really made me interested in the storyline. They really bring you into the story and give life to the said story.  Tracy digging in and trying to find out who Jake was and then how she is determined now to solve the murder of her friend.  That's a great way to drive her story, give her the reigns of this murder mystery.  I'm really excited to see where she goes in the future. 

Hey Brian, yeah. It's been a long time. I remember back in the hay day, planning our crossovers! I'm glad you loved Maya and Tracy, and I'm really happy to hear you enjoyed Tracy's little "side quest". I love the energy they bring to their scenes often. Maya is very driven, stubborn. She only cares about the story, which is in direct contrast to Tracy who cares more about the people. She's the "Heart" of the group. Though he sort of sat back in this episode, Jake will act as the balance between the two headstrong women when the plot picks up. I hope you continue to enjoy the dynamic between out "Tribuners".

Maya was also great.  It was cool to see her seem like she's hiding something.  I have a feeling it has to do with Shane's disapperence and that will again, be great to see unfold going forward.  Is she really involved in this?  Is she the one that lit the match?  Probably not, but it's just fun to think like that. 

Haha, I love your thought process here but don't want to ruin anything. Let's just say we're gonna get a lot more suspects throughout the season.

I'm excited for the Tribune side of the story, it's a different take on a murder mystery.  It's not cops and detectives.  It's teenagers trying to understand why their friend was in that house in the woods and why he went missing.  

I couldn't agree more, and I hope I don't disappoint.

Now for the parts I'm mixed on.  I can see that Jake is going to be your main character.  While Jake does have the potential to become a good character, right now to me, he does not seem like the main character.  He just seemed very one dimensional.  It seemed like he was like "oh bad things happen" and was just there while the supporting characters drove the show.  I think going forward, you should have Jake really get involved in the mystery.  Now that he's involved in the Tribune, maybe that will help bring out more of his characteristics and have him get involved in the overarching mystery.  Right now, Jake just isn't all there for me, but there is potential.  You just need to tap into it, have Jake be the character we want to root for.  I did like how you planted the seeds for his story.  That makes me happy because it means you guys will be tapping into that soon or later on down the road.  Jake just needs to be expanded on because the potential is there. 

Oh I promise you'll be getting a lot more of Jake moving into the future. he may be the first on the cast list, but as Alex mentioned it's very much an ensemble, and in this episode, he act's as "the eyes into the world" sort of character. Now that we've got to meet everyone, and introduced our "story" we'll be exploring a lot more layers of all the characters including Jake, who is definitely got some issues and demons he'll be battling.

Overall, I am still mixed on the show.  But I am interested to see where the story goes.  You have started to set things up.  My thing is, just improve small things like Jake and I honestly think the show could soar.  Good luck in the future!  I'm looking forward to see where the mystery takes us. 

Again thanks, Brian, your support means the world. I hope you enjoy the ride that's just started.

[Matthew James]

Hey Jack, thanks for your review. I always appreciate your take on things considering how long you've been doing this yourself, I'm glad you enjoyed our little opener and hope you continue enjoying.
 

First up, I wanted to talk about your main protagonist, Jake Farrell. He carried this sort of mysterious past to him when he was first introduced, with the Principal talking about him not doing what he did at his last school, and the whole nature of him relocating in the first place, and it was eventually revealed that he lost his father and that, like his father, he's prone to throwing himself into fights to defend the "smaller guys" that are being picked on. I thought this all defined him really well — especially his encounter with Pete Jensen, and his protection of Charlie Matthews. It was that scene that really offered us a great character moment that I was sort of craving to see from him.  

With all of that said, I was mostly disappointed in how the character was handled and came out of the premiere thinking he was the weakest link. He didn't really have a strong perspective, or even a strong presence — more times than not, he was sinking into the background and sort of observing the story as though he wasn't an active participant in it. The "suspension" on his first day felt a little unrealistic, and immediately threw him out of the High School, which diminished the High School as a setting for the show. And even though the premiere set up the idea that he was a "super star reporter," I kind of wish he had to earn that position on the Tribune at episode's end in order to enhance his story, because then we might have been able to latch onto his perspective, and maybe even root for him a little. Ultimately, I think he just suffered from the show having really great supporting characters that are probably more fun and interesting for you guys to write, and from a plot that A) Dismissed him from the show's setting pretty early on, and B) Didn't really involve him. It was almost like you could pluck Jake out of the whole show, and nothing significant would really change, and that's a shame. 

I kind of wish this was pitched and went through those regular stages of a pick-up (even though I understand why it didn't happen that way), purely because it was the only real big issue I had with the premiere and I think it'd have been so easy to fix if it had been pointed out. And I'm not really sure how to offer a constructive response to it because it does look like with Jake acquiring the position at the Tribune -- he'll now be involved with the plot, have a perspective to offer, and can thrive with the rest of the show. I'm hoping that's the case, and that's where things are headed. 

I think Alex really summed this up well, and a lot of the scenes in which Jake sits comfortably in the background, I think a lot of that came from what I would do in those situations. Imagine your in a room with these two powerhouse female's arguing over their dead friend, and you've literally just met them. What would you do? I'd personally keep my mouth shut lol. I think a lot of those scenes you're talking about, I think it's more Jake feeling uncomfortable from the discussion topic, not knowing the situation and not knowing what to say or do. I do see your point though, and now that Jake has become involved, you'll see him giving a lot more of his perspective

Now I've gotten all that out of the way, I absolutely love Tracy Vargas and Maya Raymond. I think they were the most fleshed out characters in the premiere, and gave us a lot of personality, and energy in their scenes. With Tracy, I liked her subplot of trying to figure out who Jake was, and it was such a great scene when she reached that conclusion that he was a good kid, and that they should bring him on board. And I like that we saw her embark on that little investigation. I definitely came out of the episode thinking she was a perfect female lead for the show, and she's who I'm most excited about seeing as the story progresses. As for Maya, she definitely carried the most scars from Shane's disappearance, and it was nice to see her fight for him, and for his position on the Tribune. She made that whole conflict really land the way that it needed to, and her back and forth interactions with Tracy were a highlight of the premiere for me. 

I'm really glad you enjoyed these two, especially your love of Tracy. I Think one your last Winchester OS review you had mentioned you felt Tracy had no personality and only felt she didn't have much personality and only felt like Blake's girlfriend, and I think that hit me hard, and I tried to very much do the opposite. I may have overcompensated lol, considering your views on Jake now;) lol. The thing I love about Tracy, that made her easy to write is that she's the antithesis of Maya. She's this voice for the people whose all heart and compassion, and Maya is "heartless" she only cares about getting to the bottom of the story and exposing the truth. I would be lying if I said some inspiration for her didn't come from our mutual beloved blond high school reporter. I've always been a little in love with Chloe Sullivan, and her journey. Remember Matthew Sullivan... I don't even remember what that was from? Was it the original Destiny Falls pilot? who knows haha. Anyways, I love that you enjoyed the Maya and Tracy scenes and glad you enjoyed Maya's perspective of things. I was worried writing the episode that people wouldn't like Maya, in my experience people usually don't like a character who acts as an enemy against the "heroes". We definitely get some more of their banter moving on. They're two characters who will always be connected. They were first Tribune members. That's something that will bleed through the whole season.

Charlie Matthews was another favourite in this episode, for me. It was heartbreaking to see that he not only gets beat up and bullied at school, but that he has to go home and experience that from his father, as well. And I think there are so many layers to that too -- that his father is just like the kids at school that see him as a loser, that he's trapped in two environments that just belittle and berate and strip away at everything that he is, and to juxtapose those two things with him catching up with Jake, and having this lighthearted moment was really powerful. It sort of positioned their potential friendship as a source of light for Charlie, and along with Tracy and Maya, he's a character I really want to see more of as the show progresses. 

I'm glad you enjoyed Charlie, it was just as heartbreaking writing his scenes, I knew almost right away when going into this gritty version of Winchester that making Charlie darker meant making him more of a victim, an Underdog. I love this view of him as "being torn down" because in my mind he's being built up. Maybe that's a spoiler, maybe not

Another thing I thought was handled really well was the whole storyline involving Shane Wise's disappearance. I was really impressed at how you carved this particular plot point out because it wasn't just about launching this murder-mystery for the show, but it served as a compelling conflict, and an interesting way to introduce us to Jake, who would essentially be filling the hole left by Shane in the world of Tracy and Maya. That, paired with hints of who knew him, who was looking for him, who cared, who didn't -- you've already built a platform for this mystery to really climb. And I think if you didn't nail the starting point on this mystery then the show/season would have greatly suffered, so I'm really happy to see how well it was handled. 

Thanks, Jack, I really appreciate that. I'm really glad I have Alex as a partner on this one. He's really helped with the murder aspect having written so many of them now on MSCU at this point. He's a great partner to bounce ideas off. Picking as the victim was a no-brainer for me considering his fate in the original. We do get some flashbacks that are going to answer a lot of the comments you made and we'll get see how he affected the people in his life, and if any of their affects on him could have lead to his death

As for the brief conflict with Pete Jensen, I found it to be a little forced. Something I've come to really despise in High School dramas is the often dramatised, and forced character beats / plot points that stem from stereotypes/tropes, and Pete kind of embodied so many of them. He was pummelling a kid, which went a bit too far when it went from throwing someone against a locker to strangling the life out of them. He talked about getting other people to do his homework, and offered this sort of "stick with me and we won't have a problem" type shtick that also just felt very on-the-nose to me. And then to progress that into him throwing a punch at Jake -- it just came off as very forced, and lead to that very strange mismatch of punishments with Jake getting suspended, but Pete getting a detention. As I said, I liked Jake stepping in and defending Charlie, and that was all well and good, but I hope as the series progresses, you find a line between something naturally progressing, and forcing it to happen because the plot you crafted needed to suspend Jake. 

Alex pretty much said it all

Some other really quick things: 

-- I really liked the portrayal of the Principal. His dialogue was really captivating, and written really well. I'm sure he might cross paths with the students in an antagonistic way (in the sense that he's an authority figure) but I welcome any and all of it because he was a great addition to the cast, and someone I look forward to checking in with in the future. 
-- It was a little weird that Annie was described as someone who wants to be her kid's best friend, but she spent most of the episode sort of angry at Jake, and grounded him, and was quite short with him, haha. I just thought how she was in the beginning of the episode better suited that description, and then she sort of switched with the plot. But regardless of that, I liked her dynamic with Jake and hope we see more of the softer/calmer/nicer side in the future. . 
-- The scene between Jake and Conrad was a really great touch. I'm excited to learn more about Jake's father, and as its positioned, I'm sure the more we'll learn about the father, we'll get even more of an idea of who Jake is, too. 
-- I really liked the Tracy/Jake dynamic that was sort of forming in this episode. Excited to see where that goes!
-- Jake pocketing the phone was an interesting twist, and I wonder what he's going to find on it!
-- There were a handful of SPAG mistakes throughout the episode that could be spotted with just one more careful read through before you post. I don't like to comment on SPAG stuff, because I tend to just carry on reading despite it and it happens to all of us, but I thought I'd point it out in this first review because there was quite a lot of it and it could be something to focus on before airing new episodes.

-- Wallace was a lot of fun to write for in fact I think his scenes went through the most rewrites, we really wanted him to strike a balance between being supportive and authoritative. Once we came up with his inspiration for wanting to help the Tribune, did his character fall into place. I'm glad you liked him, and as Alex mentioned he'll be back.
-- I think most of the time it's supposed to be meant that Annie is the mom-best friend, but when you start getting into fights at school, running off to crime scenes when you're ground. She quickly becomes angry mom lol, Like Alex said I think calmer versions of her in the future.
-- I'm glad you liked Conrad, he's one of my favorites, and glad you enjoyed their bonding.
-- Again Alex said it. Can't don't want to give away everything.
-- Porn! He's hiding porn. Lol.. Kidding.
-- That's something we can definitely improve on. We read each other's work, and try to catch all typos. It's something we'll definitely go over in the future. In fact, I think we wrote in a little scene in episode two just for you on it haha.

All in all, I'm pretty excited to follow this series. As I said, it has a lot of great potential and even though there were a few things I was mixed about, or had issues with, I don't think it's anything damning that can't be fixed as the series develops and figures itself out along the way. Congratulations on the show launching, and I wish you both the best of luck and hope you deliver a great first season of 'Winchester!' 

Thanks again Jack. Hope you continue to read the new episodes. The reviews are one of my favorite parts about writing.