Tuesday, September 17, 2013

Sleepy Hollow


If Sleepy Hollow could have been a Halloween movie instead of a weekly series it would have been both epic and memorable. As it is I can see this one running out of ideas real fast. I am impressed it even got on the air to tell you the truth. But that doesn't mean I was going to miss watching the pilot. The concept is just too high for me not to wonder how 'full retard' they went on the execution.

The Revolutionary War battle at the beginning was a nice touch showing Ichabod Crane battling and beheading the dreaded Horseman who still seems to be able to see and hear without a head. Sounds like there is magic afoot. Of course through sorcery Ichabod is forever bound to the creature who can't be killed, just like him.


It's great how fast we get into the story with this 'fish out of water' quickly becoming reaquainted with his home town of Sleepy Hollow. I would have liked to see him be more impressed with the future civilization we have built (especially our McDonald's chicken nuggets) but that might be built into future episodes.

Another bonus is Clancy Brown as a cop near retirement with his young sassy partner to back him up. She mothers him but has secrets of her own as he pushes her to join the FBI and leave this one headless horseman town. Just don't get too attached to him.

I like the setting too. Everything takes place at night or during a storm or during a  foggy evening. It's all very spooky. I can't get enough of a good storm and undead axe wielding psychos.

Okay, first guy loses his head. This will be fun to keep track of how many guys get beheaded in this show. And will it only be men? No women or children heads?

Now after three headless guys I would hope they would just dig up the horseman's original melon and end all of this. I love how they find the head but it just happens to be in an easy to carry glass box.


Or will this become the 'beheading of the week' kind of show. Why is just any old head not good enough for the Horseman who is apparently one of the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Our guy is DEATH. Some cool ideas here but I fear them being developed stupidly.

John Cho is in this? Mr Sulu from the Star Trek movies? He must not think this one will go very much further than 13 episodes.

And where the hell did Headless learn how to work machine guns and pump action shot guns? How long before he finds a surface to air missile?

Oh an maybe Ichabod can take a bath, comb his hair and change into some clean clothing. Is that to much to ask. That girl has to drive in a closed car with Ichabod Stinky Pants. Just because he just rose from the grave is no reason to look shabby.

 


7 comments:

DrGoat said...

You're right. Clean him up and he would fit right in on Grimm. Nothing is impossible in the ridiculous world of TV.

Erik Johnson Illustrator said...

I had a very haphazard reaction to the original trailer.

A real sign of trouble was when Ichabod referred to the last book of the Bible, “The Book of Revelations”. No, there is only one singular “Revelation” and you’d think thats something a literate seventeen-century schoolmaster would know that better than anyone. If the writers are going to get something that simple and easily checked wrong, we're in for a world of hurt. Then it went further into "lowest common denominator territory" with three George Washington name drops, two witch covens, one for good, one for evil (because we can’t go around saying that witchcraft is bad or anything like that) and the apex of humor “How many Starbucks are there?” Oh “Sleepy Hollow”, clearly there is no start to your quality!

It just feels like a lot more of what we’re getting in the movies, more retools and reboots. Though this is more in the vein of those “dark retelling of fairy tales” movies were they are taking a familiar, often times public domain character and trying to give it a more “up to date” sensibility. Then again television has been picking up on that lately with shows like Once Upon a Time, Hannibal, Elementary, or the upcoming Dracula series. This one seems to be sort of a blend between the fantastic (I use the word loosely) and the network bread and butter procedural.

Mike D. said...

I liked the chemistry between the two leads. I was disappointed when Clancy lost his head. ( As I was in Under the dome when Jeff lost his ) I too saw weird anomalous points of contention with the Bible references. But I am very interested to see where it all leads. Visually the Horseman is cool looking especially when he was loaded for bear!
Plus I loved the Captain America reference.

Mike D. said...

PS...I know Jeff didn't lose his head in Under the dome... I meant simply that they had killed him off. lol

Debra She Who Seeks said...

I pvr'd this and will watch it tonight. I have high hopes for this series -- at least for the moment. Last night I had to watch the finale of the Amazing Race Canada and the Afterparty instead.

Kal said...

The Amazing Race Canada was really good and HARD to win. I was hoping for the brothers but the Tims pulled it out.

Wings1295 said...

I was wary going in to this, but found it to be pretty good, interesting and fun. I will be back next week.