Post by M.A.Y. on Sept 25, 2002 10:19:21 GMT -5
The good, the bad and the Testimony...
Well...the show is back with a bang!! So let's start with the good....New show opening and music (much improved!). The background music throughout the show is also so much better. It gives the show a much more sophisticated and cool atmosphere.
Excellent performances last night from Dabney and Simon. Dabney was a real standout. Finally we get to see just how much Burton loves his son! There isn't anything Burton wouldn't do for Nick. It was really moving to see Burton put Nick's interests ahead of his own. And his desire to have Nick participate in his swearing in ceremony was beautiful.
Who know that Jake could be so thoughtful...so nice of him to bring Nick books to read in jail. What was shocking is that he turned down a "sure thing" with Caldwel to go it alone with Nick. But Nick should be careful, because I think that Jake is a little to insecure to be trusted completely.
The best scene of the episode had to be Lulu's visit to Nick in prison! She looked great. They both played the scene very well. Nick asked the question that every fan of the show has been wanting answered since the "Beginning": Why did you marry Brian? Still no answer from her. I guess she thinks that it should be obvious that she married for love...but is it? Nick put it all out on the table telling her that he wanted to be with her and again she leaves him hanging. All we get from her is "I know". If Nick is emotionally repressed then I'd say that she is a close second.
Simon is such a natural actor that I thought that the lines following "Did they make you take your clothes off" were ad-libbed! That was really great stuff to watch. Nick wasn't trying to be an "ass" as she put it. He was trying to have some fun with her! Nick has a sardonic sense of humour at best and he was just trying to play with her a bit. His smile during the exchange tells us that his motives were all good! Lulu, unfortunately, didn't get it and was about to leave in a huff. Nick, seeing that she didn't appreciate his humour, tried to salvage the visit by getting serious again and offering her the legal advice that she supposedly came for. All of which shows just how much he cares for her. I still think that having Lulu marry Brian was a mistake for the plot (there are so many better ways to keep Nick & Lulu apart), but this does set us up for three or four more seasons of romantic tension between these two. They have loads of chemistry and dramatically it's best that they be kept apart for as long as possible, because the thrill of the chase is infinitely more entertaining than the consummation, so to speak.
And now the bad....after watching the Beginning I felt that the writers had put Nick into a predicament that would be too difficult to resolve plausibly and in a satisfying manner for the viewers. Now that I've digested Testimony I feel that I was right. The resolution, in one episode, of Nick's troubles was way too contrived and not very dramatically satisfying at all! This should have been a three episode arc at least. I think Simon was cheated out of an opportunity to really show what he can do as an actor. We didn't see much at all of the fear, anger, and frustration that Nick must have been feeling about his situation. All we got was a thirty second montage of Nick pacing back and forth in his cell. Simon is a good actor and he could have really blown us away with a deeper story line. Nick had committed several parole violations even before Mandy showed up at his house that night and now we have Nick back to work next week as if nothing happened!
Overall, a good episode. I'm interested to see where Hollander takes the Guardian now that he alone is running the show.
Well...the show is back with a bang!! So let's start with the good....New show opening and music (much improved!). The background music throughout the show is also so much better. It gives the show a much more sophisticated and cool atmosphere.
Excellent performances last night from Dabney and Simon. Dabney was a real standout. Finally we get to see just how much Burton loves his son! There isn't anything Burton wouldn't do for Nick. It was really moving to see Burton put Nick's interests ahead of his own. And his desire to have Nick participate in his swearing in ceremony was beautiful.
Who know that Jake could be so thoughtful...so nice of him to bring Nick books to read in jail. What was shocking is that he turned down a "sure thing" with Caldwel to go it alone with Nick. But Nick should be careful, because I think that Jake is a little to insecure to be trusted completely.
The best scene of the episode had to be Lulu's visit to Nick in prison! She looked great. They both played the scene very well. Nick asked the question that every fan of the show has been wanting answered since the "Beginning": Why did you marry Brian? Still no answer from her. I guess she thinks that it should be obvious that she married for love...but is it? Nick put it all out on the table telling her that he wanted to be with her and again she leaves him hanging. All we get from her is "I know". If Nick is emotionally repressed then I'd say that she is a close second.
Simon is such a natural actor that I thought that the lines following "Did they make you take your clothes off" were ad-libbed! That was really great stuff to watch. Nick wasn't trying to be an "ass" as she put it. He was trying to have some fun with her! Nick has a sardonic sense of humour at best and he was just trying to play with her a bit. His smile during the exchange tells us that his motives were all good! Lulu, unfortunately, didn't get it and was about to leave in a huff. Nick, seeing that she didn't appreciate his humour, tried to salvage the visit by getting serious again and offering her the legal advice that she supposedly came for. All of which shows just how much he cares for her. I still think that having Lulu marry Brian was a mistake for the plot (there are so many better ways to keep Nick & Lulu apart), but this does set us up for three or four more seasons of romantic tension between these two. They have loads of chemistry and dramatically it's best that they be kept apart for as long as possible, because the thrill of the chase is infinitely more entertaining than the consummation, so to speak.
And now the bad....after watching the Beginning I felt that the writers had put Nick into a predicament that would be too difficult to resolve plausibly and in a satisfying manner for the viewers. Now that I've digested Testimony I feel that I was right. The resolution, in one episode, of Nick's troubles was way too contrived and not very dramatically satisfying at all! This should have been a three episode arc at least. I think Simon was cheated out of an opportunity to really show what he can do as an actor. We didn't see much at all of the fear, anger, and frustration that Nick must have been feeling about his situation. All we got was a thirty second montage of Nick pacing back and forth in his cell. Simon is a good actor and he could have really blown us away with a deeper story line. Nick had committed several parole violations even before Mandy showed up at his house that night and now we have Nick back to work next week as if nothing happened!
Overall, a good episode. I'm interested to see where Hollander takes the Guardian now that he alone is running the show.
