Human Target - Season One

Well the premiere for Human Target has finally aired in all markets (it aired in Canada a few days early), and the ratings are strong (around a 3.0 share in 18-49, with about 10 million viewers), considering it had no real lead-in to speak of, save for the finale of 24 season 7.

Overall, I thought the pilot was quite strong, bolstered by great performances all around by the cast.  Mark Valley, as Christopher Chance, blended the roguish charm of Han Solo, James Bond, and Indiana Jones.  Jackie Earle Haley seemed to channel part of his recent performance as Rorschach in his new role as Guerrero.  Chi McBride rounds out the core cast as the down-to-earth (so far, at least) Winston.

The action was quite good, with the fight scenes--in particular the melee on the train--rivaling some of the better film fight scenes in recent memory.  While the plot was pretty basic, it served to introduce the basic premise of the show, and highlight the skills of the main cast members.  To be honest, I'm not sure a show like this really needs complicate plots to engage the audience.  Sometimes all you need is cool characters, fun dialogue, kick-ass action scenes, and great music.

Speaking of music, the amazing Bear McCreary, of Battlestar fame (not to mention Sarah Connor Chronicles, Trauma, and Caprica, to name a few more) scores the show with his typical mastery.  To say he was robbed of an Emmy this past year is an understatement.  Human Target is one of the few shows on TV that is scored by a full orchestra week-to-week, and anyone familiar with Bear's work knows he puts 100% into each and every cue, theme, and motif.  His blog ( http://www.bearmccreary.com/blog/ ) is reall well-done, and worth a visit.

I'm looking forward to the rest of the season--here's hoping its ratings continue, and FOX gives it a Chance.

This show seems "fun," and fun shows are few and far between these days (Chuck, of course, being one of the few).

The second episode was quite good.  It's clear the show is all about an adrenaline ride, with a side of charm and sarcasm.  Of course the situations are preposterous, but it is based off of a comic book.  Also, nothing I've seen is any more or less believable than events on 24 or Chuck (two favourites), so I don't mind suspending my belief for an hour of action.  Not everything needs to be LOST or The Wire or The West Wing for me :)

I really like this show, too.  I think the cast is great, the music is amazing, and the fight scenes are better than most movies.

Sadly, the ratings aren't going that well (a 2.4 in the 18-49 demo, which is down 25% from last week, when it had American Idol as a lead-in).  However, the show has been bounced around from time-slot to time-slot, and this was the first week in its "proper" spot.  Normally those ratings would be considered "decent," but this is FOX, and they tend to be a little harsher than others.  I hope the show just gets a slight bump next week, after people realize when its real slot is.

I'm totally digging this show.  The ratings aren't stellar, even though it pulls in over 8 million viewers, and TV by the Numbers has it on "the bubble."

Personally, I think it has the absolute best fight scenes on television, a great-but-small cast (something refreshing in an era of TV where casts are large and unwieldy), a strong lead, amazing music, interesting weekly plots, and a cool mystery behind everything.

This is Fox's "fun" show, much like Chuck is NBC's fun show.