Gah. I was the first to bid a good riddance to the show when it ended, and I can't fathom why it's been resurrected...
I respect your opinion - would you tell me what you saw in it? To me, the show had a fascinating premise, which was quickly ignored in favor of love triangles and people lashing out against authority. This is the turf of soap operas. I was hungry to find out how the bombings were planned and carried out, and how the population dealt with the practical matters of the aftermath - but there was precious little of that. I don't ever recall seeing any churches in Jericho, much less anyone praying!
I watched the entire series out of morbid curiosity, but in the end I wasn't satisfied; it all felt far too contrived. I went back and watched the 1983 teledrama The Day After and enjoyed that a whole lot more. :)
I see some of the flaws you note (the lack of churches really is striking), but I found the characters consistently engaging, and the sense of danger and anarchy gripping. It's also one of the few shows on TV that ever seemed to recognize the value of keeping a truly bleak outlook throughout.
And I do think it was better than The Day After, not least because it had more time to focus on a smaller group of people.
I didn't really feel the sense of danger or anarchy. Jericho felt to me like a town inhabited by seven or eight people and a few dozen zombies.
I really wanted to see how people would react to their jobs suddenly disappearing (large swaths of people would suddenly have nothing to do), and to the fact that perishable food was now practically unavailable, and that air conditioning no longer exists for them, and that money was now mostly useless, and that all of their electronic devices - from wristwatches to SUVs - were now suddenly fried. And I imagine that one consequence of the EMP and the bombs would have been that running water might stop, too, which would make bathing (and even flushing the toilet!) difficult.
You're right that this had a different set of priorities than The Day After because it got to cover a longer period of time, but it really bothered me that things seemed like Life As Usual, Plus Candles. And the less said about Hawkins and his amazing laptop with the super-long-range wireless and the infinite battery life, the better...
It jumped the shark for me when the citizens of New Bern were portrayed as pretty much a unified group of ruffians out to take advantage of the chaos by annexing Jericho's farms. Our Heroes certainly couldn't have been the only ones to know about and have an issue with the munitions factory...
I'm only complaining 'cos I reeeally wanted to like this series.
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(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-07 12:44 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-07 01:40 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-07 02:38 am (UTC)I respect your opinion - would you tell me what you saw in it? To me, the show had a fascinating premise, which was quickly ignored in favor of love triangles and people lashing out against authority. This is the turf of soap operas. I was hungry to find out how the bombings were planned and carried out, and how the population dealt with the practical matters of the aftermath - but there was precious little of that. I don't ever recall seeing any churches in Jericho, much less anyone praying!
I watched the entire series out of morbid curiosity, but in the end I wasn't satisfied; it all felt far too contrived. I went back and watched the 1983 teledrama The Day After and enjoyed that a whole lot more. :)
What did you enjoy about Jericho?
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-08 02:06 pm (UTC)And I do think it was better than The Day After, not least because it had more time to focus on a smaller group of people.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-08 08:10 pm (UTC)I really wanted to see how people would react to their jobs suddenly disappearing (large swaths of people would suddenly have nothing to do), and to the fact that perishable food was now practically unavailable, and that air conditioning no longer exists for them, and that money was now mostly useless, and that all of their electronic devices - from wristwatches to SUVs - were now suddenly fried. And I imagine that one consequence of the EMP and the bombs would have been that running water might stop, too, which would make bathing (and even flushing the toilet!) difficult.
You're right that this had a different set of priorities than The Day After because it got to cover a longer period of time, but it really bothered me that things seemed like Life As Usual, Plus Candles. And the less said about Hawkins and his amazing laptop with the super-long-range wireless and the infinite battery life, the better...
It jumped the shark for me when the citizens of New Bern were portrayed as pretty much a unified group of ruffians out to take advantage of the chaos by annexing Jericho's farms. Our Heroes certainly couldn't have been the only ones to know about and have an issue with the munitions factory...
I'm only complaining 'cos I reeeally wanted to like this series.
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-07 03:14 am (UTC)http://www.holyshitake.com/archives/2005/06/maple_baknlava.html
Bacon Baklava!!! :)
(no subject)
Date: 2007-06-08 02:06 pm (UTC)