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10/12/2003: Jeremiah season premiere (not spoilery)
Yay! I watched the Jeremiah season premiere and liked it very much. It's been a long time since season one of ended (July last year), and I haven't rewatched, but the season opener did a good job of getting me into the series again. I won't comment in detail because it's a two parter and I'll wait until the next episode, however it still has me hooked, not just with the cliffhanger. I'm not sure yet what to think about the "Mr. Smith" character Sean Astin plays, but I like the actor in general so I'm pleased that he's going to be a regular. Anyway, it's good to have the series back.
So to celebrate the season opener and to pimp my fandom, here's a list of reasons why I like Jeremiah (incomplete, but a start):
- It is SF-genre, but without techno-babble (not that there's anything wrong with that per se), and while the plots definitely lean towards human drama the basic premise of their post-apocalyptic world is interesting. Also I have a thing for post-apocalyptic scenarios.
- There is a backstory arc, but it doesn't dominate the series totally, i.e. most of the season one episodes worked as standalone action-adventure as well. Also, at least so far the mytharc makes more or less sense, but then it's written by JMS and not Chris Carter.
- Jeremiah offers a wide variety of themes. There's not just action/adventure going on, but lots of emotional stuff about how the main characters (and really all current survivors in the Jeremiah scenario) deal with the trauma of loosing their parents and surviving in the aftermath of the catastrophe, also they actually talk with each other about those things from time to time. Religions and belief systems play a role throughout the series, the importance and dangers of technology, the struggle and different solutions to organize communities, the questions of individual freedoms vs. the common good...
- I like their post-apocalyptic aesthetic, the visuals, the scenes, backgrounds, props, they make the universe seem very real and alive to me, and I like the flashbacks revealing events of the characters' pasts.
- There's not just angst and h/c, and relationship drama but also plenty of humor, sometimes quirky characters.
- It is really slashy, I mean it has dialogs like this (from Mother of Invention):
Jeremiah: Marcus it's not that we're complaining.
Kurdy: Because we would never do that, Marcus.
Jeremiah: No we wouldn't, because we love what we do. Being out 16 days in a row in the rain and the mud. We live for that stuff.
Kurdy: Makes my nipples hard just thinking about it.
Marcus: Thanks for the image.
Jeremiah: The thing is though, when we're out on the road, we work alone. I mean, Kurdy and I we got a great shorthand. I give him a look he knows what I'm thinking...
Kurdy: ...I give Jeremiah a look, he knows what I'm thinking.
Jeremiah: See that? Now you send us out with another team it's gonna ruin all that. - There is plenty of on-screen chemistry, with many different and interesting combinations, both slash and het (as a side note, generally most families and relationships that are seen on screen aren't the 'nuclear family' type, more common seems that groups live together and raise their kids together). There is banter, and buddy interaction. Not to mention lots and lots of eye-candy. Like scenes like with Jeremiah and Kurdy showering next to each other with bare-chested shots showing Kurdy's nipple ring. Not that I'm shallow or anything.
