The Dead Zone Blog

Written by Jim Dunn and Sam Ernst
Directed by Tim Southam

I was worried, at the beginning of this episode, that the writers had slipped back into familiar and convenient territory. I was waiting for Stilson to show his dark side in some obvious way, giving Johnny a reason to feel justified with his ongoing suspicions. Or better yet, for one of the many Stilson-inspired visions to replay the oft-seen footage of Washington in flames. As the hour progressed and the story refused to take the obvious turns, I found myself more and more thankful.

I particularly liked how the writers kept Stilson’s decisions logical. He wasn’t trying to get one over on Johnny; he was grasping at straws and turned to the one option he had left. Given his history with Johnny, he had every reason to avoid his adversary, but he hinged everything on what Johnny could tell him. While the idea of using a private space initiative for military applications (the implication of the visions) is hardly benign, it’s also not outside of government activities. It adds a more subtle side to Stilson’s probable fall.

The seeds are also sown for an unusual relationship between Sarah and Stilson, judging by his gentle insistence that they stay in contact. That would make for an interesting situation for Johnny. If Stilson continues on his current positive and open path, while pursuing Sarah along the way, Johhny could find himself struggling with the desire to protect Sarah without much evidence that Stilson is still a danger to the world.

On top of the excellent progression in the mythology, there’s a compelling problem for Johnny to solve. So far this season, none of the cases have been the conventional mysteries that plagued the fourth and fifth seasons, and that’s something to be applauded. Taking the budgetary limitations into account, Johnny’s walk in space was rather well done.

Unfortunately, the episode is hobbled by a disappointing final act. After some inventive build-up, the problem is resolved by a plot convenience that is a true cheat. Even if a satellite could be repositioned that easily, complete with matching the speed of a moving and somewhat out-of-control shuttle and no visible thrust system, it’s hard to imagine that the Morse code trick would have been so quickly and easily recognized. That took me out of the story at the worst possible moment.

That said, the final montage was very well done, and while there’s always reason to worry when a baby is introduced on a long-running series, there’s a certain symmetry to the idea of Johnny helping Sarah raise Walt’s child. Hopefully the writers will avoid most of the clichés and continue with the revitalized storytelling of the season thus far.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10

Written by Matt McGuinness
Directed by Rachel Talalay

We’re two episodes into the new season, and thus far, I’m impressed. I wouldn’t say that the new sheriff has grown on me quite yet, but I definitely see a lot of potential in the portrayal and the direction of the story. It’s been quite some time since Johnny found himself under sustained suspicion, and he’s had the support of law enforcement for a long time. That adds a new wrinkle to the formula.

Also interesting is the idea that Walt is under investigation. One might wonder if this has something to do with whatever Walt was dredging up regarding Johnny. Whatever it is, it adds to the tension that already exists in the wake of Walt’s death. Things are far from hitting a new equilibrium, and that’s more interesting to me than endless iterations of the same dynamic.

Speaking of which, anyone worried about Sarah and Johnny getting together again had their fears assuaged. Sarah may be willing to let Johnny be a friendly shelter in the current storm, but whatever they had is over. This opens the door for Johnny to find love elsewhere (perhaps Alex, now that the actress is available, or Nina from this episode?), which would make it very clear to the audience that the past is the past. There’s also the potential for Sarah to look available, which could have some interesting implications where Greg Stilson is involved.

While it’s still not clear whether or not Stilson was just a victim of scheming benefactors (it would be interesting, but perhaps too much of a diversion from expectation), the lack of a future apocalypse leaves Johnny with somewhat questionable motivations. There’s no denying that Johnny is motivated to help others, but the underlying thrust since the first season has been a desire to save the world.

So now is the right time to get the audience wondering, once again, why Johnny does what he does. Perhaps the new writing staff wasn’t particularly convinced by the insights of previous episodes, but whatever the reason, Johnny’s decision to help Nina was as much about him as it was about her. Between Sheriff Turner and Nina, Johnny’s tendency to act without permission from others gets a pounding in this episode. He turns out to be right, but he’s not let off the hook in the end, and that’s why I enjoyed the episode.

In the end, it’s too early to tell if the new showrunner and writing staff has given the series a shot in the arm, or if the massive shift in status quo has been enough to break the series out of its former malaise. Right now, I’m inclined to believe it’s a little bit of both.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 7/10

Written by Ann Lewis Hamilton
Directed by James Head

Coming off the fifth season, the series was at a crossroads. The previous order of 22 episodes, produced a couple years earlier, had been split into two seasons. The results left the fans sharply divided, and the overall ratings suffered and critical buzz suffered. In fact, the order for the sixth season came as a shock to many, and it was widely reported that the network and studio had asked for several major changes in exchange for the show’s continuance.

Many of the changes were behind the scenes. The previous showrunner was replaced, the writing staff was given a massive overhaul, and the production was moved from Vancouver to Montreal. This was partly a cost saving measure and partly a response to the dissatisfaction with the direction taken in the previous seasons.

This episode reflects the changes in front of the camera. Not only is the story moving in unexpected directions, but the familiar supporting cast has been shown the door. This, too, is a cost-saving measure: the longer one works on a series, the more expensive they become. The trick is turning that pragmatic reality into something creatively viable.

The writers managed to pull it off well. No longer tasked with the responsibility of keeping the series in a holding pattern, certain potentials could be realized. The love triangle had all but expended its potential, so Walt and Sarah were effectively expendable. Given Sarah’s history with Johnny, it was probably a simple choice to kill Walt and rip away part of Johnny’s law enforcement support system.

This major development was tied to the culmination (or so it would seem) of Reverend Purdy’s arc. Purdy finally stood up to Stilson’s mysterious backers and rededicated himself to his faith. While this has happened before, and the topic deserved more than one episode worth of exploration, this is still a good way for the character to exit. The fact that he took out Janus in the process also shifts the mythology.

Johnny no longer sees Stilson as bringing about the apocalypse, and that’s an interesting change of pace. The series has always been on its own path in comparison with the book, but this choice brings that point home definitively. It’s likely that the plot will turn back towards the more familiar path again in the future, but for now, the course of the mythology is no longer quite so predictable.

With Bruce also moving on, Johnny’s support system is all but gone and his purpose for the past few years (saving the world from the apocalypse) has apparently been fulfilled. It might have been better for Johnny to face down the threat of Janus directly, since Janus had been shown as an adversary able to counter Johnny’s visions on a regular basis, but this serves the same purpose.

This is probably where the fifth season should have ended, since it resolves the plot elements of the fifth season far better than “The Hunting Party”. That said, this had to have been a challenge for the writing staff. Not every plot thread gets a solid resolution, but when things need to change so quickly and completely, things often fall to the wayside. The real challenge will be moving forward and making the new supporting cast equally effective.

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10

Written by Adam Targum
Directed by Kevin Speckmaier

Now that the fifth season has come to a close, there are number of questions surrounding “The Dead Zone”.  It’s not just a matter of renewal anymore.  It’s a matter of progress in terms of storytelling.  This season finale was an example of how the series could still deliver a competent episode, but it was also an example of treading water in all the wrong ways. 

First, the good points.  I like the fact that the story started off small.  It was fairly obvious to the audience that the situation was much bigger than Johnny could guess, but from his point of view, it was all about peeling back the layers of the onion and discovering how well he had been used.  Skipping over the major plot contrivance of Johnny accepting a free computer from a contest he didn’t remember entering (something he ought to know better than to ignore by now), the plot unraveled in a measured fashion that allowed the audience to stay one step ahead, dreading what must inevitably come next.

Seen as a whole, from the end of the third season to the end of the fifth, given that they were one big production order, the revelations about Janus, Stilson, and the conspiracy all made sense and build neatly on the sporadic mythology episodes to date.  The purpose of the “Armageddon” is revealed, and it follows a certain brand of logic.  Janus is not unlike the Shadows on “Babylon 5”: knocking over the anthills, ensuring that the nation(s) of choice emerge from the rubble stronger and better than everyone else on the planet.  Stilson is effectively a figurehead, and that allows Stilson to demonstrate some degree of humanity while remaining a figure of darkness. 

This episode also firmly establishes Janus as a figure with enough intelligence and influence to overcome Johnny’s gift.  Sooner or later, the writers need to explain why Johnny is completely unable to gain a victory against Janus, but for now, this episode avoids that problem by centering on a plot by Janus to inform Johnny of a certain reality in a certain way.  Johnny is meant to be a spectator, not to change events.  It’s a subtle point, but one missing from earlier episodes on a similar theme.

The problem, however, is that breaking the production order into two seasons gives the impression of nominal progress.  The two seasons end at essentially the same point: Janus giving Johnny an ultimatum.  If the season had aired 22 episodes, then there might have been a sense of the subtle shift: Janus giving Johnny a basic offer in “Saved”, and now making it more of a demand.  But the difference isn’t enough to make it feel like the fifth season advanced the story very much. 

I’m also disappointed that Purdy had nothing to do with the season finale, after a lot of apparent build-up towards a decision to help Johnny.  It’s hard to imagine how he would have been part of the episode, but the structure of the season and the character’s arc really demanded it.  Without that element, the finale felt incomplete.

It’s also hard not to notice that this episode was produced much earlier in the production order, because a lot of the cast chemistry problems hadn’t kicked in at this point.  Walt seems a lot stronger in this episode than the previous installment, for instance.  In a way, the effect is that the episode doesn’t feel much like a season finale at all. 

This is the part where the season finale review would usually launch into a discussion about the season as a whole, but things will be done differently moving forward.  The “Dead Zone” post-mortem (so to speak) will be the main focus of this week’s episode of “Dispatches from Tuzenor”, the podcast associated with my various reviews.  That episode should be up after the weekend, so anyone interested is invited to drop by the archive site (www.entil2001.com) and click on the link.  (It’s also available on iTunes.)

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4 

Final Rating: 7/10

(Season 5 Final Average: 6.5)
 

Written by Shintaro Shimosawa and James Morris
Directed by James Head

I have a feeling that this one will divide the fans a little bit. For one thing, a lot of people hated The Collector, and this is a direct sequel to that episode from the fourth season. (While the past 21 episodes have been far from cohesive, this proves that the writers had conceived the full 22 episode order as a whole.) On the other hand, this episode finally comes back to the core relationships, and there’s even the feeling that this is meant to be a final statement on those relationships. But the question is: did the execution match the goals?

I’ll look at the idea first. Maligned as it is, the whole connection to the Collector was just a device, a way to put Johnny, Sarah, and Walt through the emotional and psychological wringer. Linda annoyed me, but I understood why she was there. It was about establishing priorities. Sarah admitted that she really loves both Johnny and Walt, but that her future is clearly with Walt. It’s been said before, but there’s a feeling of finality to this particular version. Sarah made her priorities clear: the baby, JJ, Walt, and Johnny. The future, the present, and then the past.

Walt is challenged as well, particular in the possibility of losing his family. The characters have danced around the question of JJ, but this puts it into a very clear perspective. It was all about Sarah, especially once he discovered that a baby was on the way. When he thought that Sarah and the baby were gone, it came down to his feelings about JJ. In the end, he understood that he was JJ’s father, regardless of paternity. So his priorities were clearly aligned.

All of which provides the opportunity for Johnny to make a clean break from the Bannermans. Considering how all the promotion has been focusing on Johnny and Bruce, it feels as though the recent episodes have been about closure in nearly every other respect. Looking back on the past couple of seasons, that process of separation has been reflected in Johnny’s isolation. Unfortunately, it has also led to a degradation of the cast chemistry.

So conceptually, if the series is meant to continue with Johnny and Bruce and precious little else (as often speculated), then this episode is an important part of that process. And since I love context, this episode had plenty of what I enjoy? Why, then, was this not one of the best of the season?

It all comes down to the final act. Up until the final confrontation between Linda and Walt, the episode had been holding its own. And then there was Chris Bruno’s performance. I usually love Walt and how he’s portrayed, but this just felt wrong from the moment Walt started breaking down. It never felt genuine, and that immediately took me out of the story. And that did a lot to undermine the effectiveness of the episode.

(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”. Recent episodes have highlighted “The Dead Zone”, so it might be something of interest . Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 1/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 7/10

Written by Shintaro Shimosawa, James Morris, and Paul Coyle
Directed by John L. Adams

It’s taken five seasons, and possibly the entire run of the series, for Purdy’s past to take center stage. So was it worth the wait? Purdy has been a central figure in Johnny’s life for a very long time, and there has always been a great deal of tension. Purdy’s personality has been fairly complicated, especially in terms of the intersection of his faith and his ambition and greed. Where did all that begin, and will he and Johnny ever find common ground and peace between them?

In terms of how Purdy’s story was crafted, I think this is a past that makes sense. It might have been a bit much to make his name an alias, hiding some former identity, but it does fit the idea of a man who combines the best and worst of humanity. And his past jumps back and forth between the two extremes. Purdy uses his faith to fuel his greed, yet in the end, he has the potential to perform a selfless act of contrition.

So I liked where they went with Purdy, and the producers put a lot of money and effort into rendering it large on the screen. John Adams did a great job with the direction, and his casting choices were also top notch. And for the most part, I thought the cast chemistry was a lot stronger than it has been of late. Only one thing was bothering me throughout the episode, and it’s something that has been bothering me since the fourth season: David Ogden Stiers.

Looking back on earlier seasons, I felt his performance as Purdy was a lot more subtle. Over time, I think it has become a lot more strained, a lot less nuanced. A lot of his scenes have been rather ham-fisted this season (the end of the premiere, for example), and while it was a bit better in this episode, I still found that his line delivery took me out of the story on occasion. I’ll be gracious and attribute it to Stiers’ advancing age and the overall slip in the chemistry of the cast, but some of the scenes didn’t work for me because of that.

Also, I wonder if this wasn’t a plot point that would have had more impact within a larger context. The previous episode didn’t do a perfect job of it, but the stand-alone elements had consequences on the larger stage of the Johnny/Stilson battle. This episode could have been a turning point for Purdy, following up on “Forbidden Fruit” and the possibility of working against Janus. If this episode had provided Johnny a reason to sympathize with Purdy, or at least come to peace with him, then it could have also led to Purdy deciding to make amends by helping deal with Stilson. Just a few lines, a little context, and the episode could have been that much better.

(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”. Recent episodes have highlighted “The Dead Zone”, so it might be something of interest . Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 7/10

Written by Michael Taylor
Directed by Alexandra LaRoche 

Ever since the beginning of the fourth season, I have been annoyed with some of the creative choices for the series.  In particular, there has been a movement towards “message episodes”, where the story is more about preaching a moral than telling a story that makes sense for the characters.  While Johnny’s selfless personality traits do lend themselves to such a direction, it can get tedious week after week.

More than that, the chemistry of the cast has been degrading on screen, and in some instances, it has been distracting.  In terms of isolating Johnny, it would make sense, but it hasn’t been consistent and it doesn’t feel like something the writers and producers had planned.  As a result, a lot of the defining relationships from the earlier seasons feel weakened.  Contributing to that is a lack of connection to the overall mythology, fostered by the episodic structure of the season.  Add occasional bad dialogue, sketchy direction, and odd comedy choices, and it’s little wonder that some fans have been less than pleased. 

So I get the question quite often: what does the series need to do to meet my expectations?  The question is usually framed to suggest that I would never find an episode of the fifth season with the right stuff.  I now have a very good example, however, to counter that claim.  I think that “Vortex” holds up incredibly well.  If all the fifth season episodes were constructed with this level of confidence, things might have been very different.

I don’t intend to get into too much detail, but I think there’s a clear difference between the quality of this episode and, for example, “Panic”.  The writing for “Vortex” manages to tell a strong and compelling story without resorting to plot contrivances or shortcuts.  Johnny’s visions are integrated constantly.  The guest cast works very well, and scenes that could have been over-the-top are kept believable.  Most importantly, the direction and production of the episode is noticeably stronger.  None of the scenes pull you out of the story, wondering why they did what they did. 

The only gimmick is the courtroom drama, but that wasn’t really a gimmick, so much as a way to tie this particular story into the larger tapestry of the series’ mythology.  With that in place, the events are no longer self-contained; the broader impact and implication is also communicated.  This is what I have been looking for, and what has largely been missing.  But that alone wouldn’t have been enough; it was the tight production values that sealed the deal.

(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”.  Recent episodes have highlighted “The Dead Zone”, so it might be something of interest .  Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!) 

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 2/4

Final Rating: 8/10
 

Written by Loren Segan and Christina Lynch
Directed by Rachel Talalay

With the season already winding down towards the season (and possible series) finale, I’m rather pleased with the fact that the quality of the episodes has kicked up a notch.  I still don’t feel like it has hit the same heights as the first couple of seasons, but relative to the fourth season and the beginning of the fifth, things are looking up! 

A lot of people (including the producers) compared this episode to the classic “Precipitate”, but I’m not sure that’s a great idea.  “Precipitate” was a lot better, especially in terms of clean storytelling.  No matter the complexity, the audience had a good sense of what was happening.  This episode felt a lot more muddled and a bit more tentative in places.

At the same time, I think this was a lot more ambitious than I expected out of the fifth season, and it kept my interest for the entire hour.  Right up until the final revelation, I wasn’t sure how it all fit together.  Most of the recent episodes have been easy to decipher, so it was fun to have an episode that kept me guessing.  If nothing else, it distracted from some of the minor storytelling mishaps along the way. 

I wasn’t thrilled with Bruce’s involvement with the episode, since I’m still not sure how that was supposed to work, and I think some of the transitions between characters were hard for Anthony Michael Hall to communicate.  One thing I’ve complained about is the need for every episode to have an underlying “message”, so the relative lack of a message in this episode was a good thing.  Even so, it was a little easy for Johnny to defuse the situation at the very end, especially given how psychotic Cole had been right up until that point.

The director did a nice enough job of keeping the story straight and avoiding the most obvious drawbacks of the plot device in question, but there were a few moments where the story was almost impossible to follow.  I can easily see how people would get frustrated with the episode, but it did reward patience.  And considering how pathetic the continuity can be on this show, it was interesting to see the knife from “Panic” come back into play. 

This is the third episode in a row that I actually liked.  Even if I still don’t think that the episodes are better than average, especially relative to earlier successes, it is nice to see that the writing staff still has some measure of creativity left in the barrel.

(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”.  Recent episodes have highlighted “The Dead Zone”, so it might be something of interest .  Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!) 

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 7/10
 

Written by Dan Truly
Directed by Michael Robison

All things being equal, I prefer the more serious episodes over the comedic installments.  The reason is actually very simple.  Most of the comedic episodes cast Johnny as a comic figure, which is something that I have a hard time believing.  I much prefer to see Johnny as a man filled with angst, destined to fight a losing battle, despite his gift.  It’s the small victories that give the character nobility, making the battle for the future that much more involving.

In this case, the comedy came from a different angle, using the guest star’s pathetic nature as the source of laughs rather than Johnny.  If anything, Johnny was the near-perfect straight man.  It was easy to believe that Johnny was caught between a desire for self-preservation and his well-established desire to save as many lives as possible, regardless of his personal welfare. 

As mentioned in the review for the previous episode, I sometimes find the “messages” a bit heavy-handed.  And like the previous episode, I thought this did a nice job of delivering the message without going too far.  The “money can’t buy happiness” message was hardly subtle, but it made sense within the context of the story.

The writers managed to make it all come together in an interesting and unexpected way, and in an unexpected twist, Johnny couldn’t prevent the future he foresaw.  That’s one thing that I always find appealing, because it would be easy for him to be right each and every time.  He also has to be wrong or unable to change things in situations that don’t involve Greg Stilson, because that would undermine the integrity of the series. 

One small disappointment was the barely-there appearance of Sarah.  I know a lot of people have been pleased with her absence, but I’ve always liked the character, especially in earlier seasons.  Her absence has been a huge factor in the lack of cast chemistry this season, because Johnny seems to be more isolated.  That supporting cast is a necessary element, and the series would be ill-equipped to survive without it.

I place this on par with the previous episode, and I think it is one of the better episodes of the fifth season.  This also marks the mid-point of the season.  Looking back, the season has certainly struggled to find its voice.  Not one episode has been above average, and that’s a rare circumstance.  With only five episodes left of the season (and possibly the series), there’s not much time to go out on a high note. 

(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”.  Recent episodes have highlighted “The Dead Zone”, so it might be something of interest .  Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4 

Final Rating: 7/10
 

Written by Karl Shaefer
Directed by Michael Robison

With the first half of the season rapidly coming to a close, I’ve been worried that the entire season would be buried under storytelling problems.  I’ve almost gotten used to the feeling of disappointment that tends to come before the end of the first act.  So when I found myself engrossed in the story, and ultimately quite pleased when the credits began to roll, it was a wonderful change of pace.

As the writers themselves put it on the official website, bottle shows can be a great opportunity to focus on story.  Drama needs to be generated through character interaction, usually prompted by some extreme circumstance.  In this case, Johnny finds himself in a situation where he must do the wrong thing in order to do the right thing.  As it turns out, he’s not the only one.

That was something I really liked about the episode.  I could tell, in general terms, that there was more to the story with the head thief, even before the flashbacks began.  But his actions spoke of desperation, and I was intrigued by the possibility of how that desperation was born.  Tying it to Purdy was a nice touch, and one that forced a bit of a confession out of Gene.  Much like Johnny, it was a matter of doing terrible things for some perceived greater good.  Unlike Johnny, he was willing to kill to restore the object of his faith.  (Thus, to a certain extent, lending question to the veracity of his faith.)

I’ve always liked Purdy as a character, just in terms of the complexity of the man.  He is the leader of a vast religious movement, but a man fundamentally at odds with his faith.  He may have been sincere in his desire to know Christ more personally through Johnny, and it might have given him a restored sense of faith, but how long would it have taken for Purdy to use that vision to further his financial goals?

The fact is, just the act of buying the supposed object of his faith rendered it powerless as a path to restoration.  It was immediately tainted by the manner of its acquisition.  Purdy was trying to purchase faith, which is an impossibility.  And so the result would have ended poorly, had Johnny seen the face of Christ or walked in John the Baptist’s shoes.  Purdy would have laid claim to the vision as a means to an end, objectifying Johnny as much as he objectified the relic.

I love episodes that expose, through something other than exposition, the underlying psychology of the characters.  Lately, the series has been a little preachy, which has stolen away some of the power of the narrative.  In this case, the writers managed to dial it back a bit, even in the final scenes, which could have been a lot worse than they were.

All that said, there were still some nagging problems.  I found myself wondering why Purdy didn’t recognize Johnny’s voice, considering how often they have been around each other.  Also, the kid who plays JJ is a horrible actor; he pulls you out of every scene he’s in, because it never rings true.  Oddly, Chris Bruno seemed to be stumbling over his performance this week.  That’s one of the overall issues I’ve had with recent seasons: the cast chemistry has really degraded, and it seems like conversations are a bit too stilted and unnatural.  I still haven’t seen one hit it out of the park this season, but this was the one I’ve enjoyed the most.

(As a sidenote: I also have a podcast associated with my various reviews called “Dispatches from Tuzenor”.  Recent episodes have highlighted “The Dead Zone”, so it might be something of interest .  Go to http://entil2001.libsyn.com if you want to listen!)

Writing: 2/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 7/10