Alcatraz Review: "Garrett Stillman," "Tommy Madsen" (Episodes 1.12 & 1.13)
When it comes to J.J. Abrams produced shows such as _Alias_, _Fringe_ and _Lost_, their first seasons and finales seem to have much in common. The first seasons become a basic prologue to what the show will become, while the first season finale usually answers some of the questions that have been asked thus far, but also raises many more questions than before. Take for example, _Lost_’s first season finale, in which the show had set up the idea of a mysterious hatch and in the finale, the hatch was opened, only leaving the viewers with more questions. The two hour finale of _Alcatraz_ kind of leaves the audience like the cast of _Lost_ at the end of its first season: looking down at the answers to their questions, yet wondering where exactly that leads them. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: "Webb Porter" (Episode 1.11)
When watching _Alcatraz_, I like my criminals as weird as possible. I don’t mind the occasional bank robber or innocent guard, but I’m always more keen to a crazed man sniping women at an amusement park or a mixologist poisoning rude people at a country club. “Webb Porter” is probably one of our creepiest criminals thus far and ushers in another pretty good episode before the season, and possibly the series, ends next week. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: "Clarence Montgomery" (Episode 1.10)
As we reach the last few episodes of _Alcatraz_ for its premiere season, I must say I like the direction it has been heading. It is not a show that goes for too much change from week to week, but it does a fine job of deepening the world they are building and the ideas the show is clearly trying to reinforce through the weekly criminal the protagonists are hunting down. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: “Johnny McKee” (Episode 1.7)
This week’s episode of _Alcatraz_, “Johnny McKee” doesn’t start off with a bang like the rest have. We start with Dr. Banerjee still in a coma and Dr. Beauregard suggesting that Hauser read her a story. Not the typical bombs exploding-sniper attacking beginning we are used to seeing. But from there, “Johnny McKee” becomes _Alcatraz_’s most tightly woven and interesting episode so far. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: "Paxton Petty" (Episode 1.06)
With last week’s episode of _Alcatraz_, “Guy Hastings," the show took a turn from the formulaic nature the show has taken of adding a new villain, catching him, then having a few minutes at the end of the show’s basic mythology. With this week, “Paxton Petty," the show returns to that formula, and is lacking because of it. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: "Guy Hastings" (Episode 1.05)
In Alcatraz’s premiere, we were given a look at how Rebecca Madsen’s life seemed to be intertwined with the inhabitants of Alcatraz. Her grandfather Tommy was imprisoned for killing her grandmother and the man that played a sort of adopted uncle to her, Ray, was a guard at the prison. We haven’t seen these two men in the present since the first episode, but in “Guy Hastings”, we are given a deeper look at how Madsen’s family tree links to the mystery of people from the past showing up in the future. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: “Cal Sweeney” (Episode 1.4)
Four episodes into Alcatraz, and it feels like it may be starting to get a bit too comfortable. It seems somewhat fitting that in “Cal Sweeney”, the criminal of the week is a man who has a clearly laid out plan for how he goes around robbing safety deposit boxes. Everything is familiar, structured. It seems like Alcatraz is also suffering from that rigidity, getting more procedural than the show deserves. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: “Kit Nelson” (Episode 1.3)
Last week’s two episode series premiere felt like it was strongly influenced by J.J. Abrams other great Fox show, _Fringe_, but this week’s episode “Kit Nelson” felt strongly like a trip back to the island of _Lost_ in terms of style and tone. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that the episode was written by Jennifer Johnson, who co-wrote two of _Lost_’s best first season episodes, shot by frequent _Lost_ director Jack Bender, the sweeping score by Michael Giacchino, or just the use of flashbacks, underground hatches in the woods or a stand out performance by Jorge Garcia. But “Kit Nelson” felt like it took a page out of the best parts of _Lost_ and without creating problems that many viewers had throughout the show’s entire run. read more
Found in: TV, ReviewsAlcatraz Review: "Pilot" & "Ernest Cobb" (Episode 1.01 & 1.02)
With his latest executive production efforts, J.J. Abrams has become hit or miss. He has worked on two shows that are fantastic examples of great television with deep mythologies and intricate stories (_Lost_, _Fringe_) but also struck out with shows that become too procedural and become frustratingly mediocre (_Undercovers_, _Person of Interest_). After the first two episodes of _Alcatraz_’s series premiere, the show feels like it belongs in among the interesting Abrams shows and comes off reminiscent of early _Fringe_ episodes. read more
Found in: TV, Reviews10 TV Shows We're Looking Forward To in January
2012 has a lot to offer—a presidential election, the end of the world, and so many new television seasons and series that will consume you, you’ll forget all about those vying political parties and doomsday. Lucky for us we don’t even have to wait long, as a bunch start in January. read more
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