Human Target - Embassy Row, S01E03

Now, I know I said I wasn't going to watch Human Target, and I'm not really, but it was on and I was being lazy and it was on...it's not the worst show in the world. My opinion, though, remains the same - there are better shows on TV.

In this episode, Christopher Chance (Mark Valley) has a different challenge. An old friend was poisoned, so now he has to finish his friend's work and save both himself and his friend's brother (Sean Maher) from dying of poison as well.

It was interesting so see Chance in a different situation, one in which he has less control. The episode also contained another awesome fight scene when Chance and FBI agent Emma Barnes (Emmanuelle Vaugier) first confronted each other. But, while it was awesome, any desire to watch the show based on the action sequences were then destroyed when Chance and Barnes escaped by making a ridiculous jump on a motorcycle, and then climbed over a wall while being shot at by machine guns, with Chance nearly dead from the poison, without getting shot. Not credible, people.

We did finally get a hint of plot continuing from one episode to the next, as, after Barnes and Chance parted, she ran his prints and wants to find him again. Meanwhile, Chance claimed that leaving his prints behind was a mistake because, as he said, "risk everything for woman? What [is he], 14?" So there is a potential love story going on, which could be exciting.

So, again, Human Target isn't a waste of time, but missing it is not a tragedy either.

Human Target - Rewind, S01E02

Human Target is a show that does its job, fulfills its promise. There is action, and it's mostly entertaining. And the 3 leads have decent chemistry. But it doesn't offer anything more than that.

In the second episode of the series, I had hoped for something to reward me for my return. Instead, I got a convoluted plot line told from the middle. Sometimes this works, but in this case, I did not feel any concern for the other people on the plane who might be injured because I hadn't met any of them when the danger started. Plus, it was not an easy story to follow in that one moment, everything would be fine, and the next we would be at a different point in time (with no certainty about the time differentiation), with Chance (Mark Valley) and Winston (Chi McBride) in a fight with unidentified enemies.

And unlike in the pilot, those fights were choppy, using the modern technique of allowing the camera to do most of the work. Considering the fights in the premiere were what captured my attention in the first place, this development was disappointing to say the least.

I'm not going to get into how silly I thought the notion of turning an airplane upside down is. Not a small plane, mind you, a very large one! Why not just climb to the altitude needed? Is that really going to be more difficult than flipping the plane? And what happened to the guy who got shot? We just forgot about him, so why was he there in the first place?

This episode was missing cohesiveness, which was sad and a little annoying, but regardless, there was still no draw. "Why should I watch this again next week?" I ask myself, "What am I excited about seeing happen?" And the answer is nothing.

The show is perfectly adequate, and I may watch it again if I'm bored and it happens to be on, but from what I have observed in these first two episodes, why bother when there is so much else that is fantastic on to watch instead.

Human Target - Pilot, S01E01

While there were quite a few impressive moments, and impressive guest stars (Danny Glover for one), in this new action show, Human Target did not deliver any reasons for viewers to come back except that the action was awesome.

The concept of the show is simple - Christopher Chance (Mark Valley, formerly of Fringe) is something like a bodyguard. He keeps you alive, while blending in to eliminate the threat. In the pilot, he blended in, kept Stephanie Dobbs (played by the incredible Tricia Helfer*) alive, and discovered who was trying to kill her with the help of his partner, Winston (Chi McBride), and computer-savvy wild card, Guerrero (Oscar-nominated Jackie Earle Haley).

Next week, with their help, he can do it all again, only this time (from what I got during the brief ad for it during the Globes) the girl is the chick who played Christine on Dexter this season.

And that's the problem. Not that there are no female leads, though that might help, but that there is no apparent continuing story arch. And maybe that's a good thing - so many shows that are on now require week to week viewing, or you have to wait for the DVD release - but it's no longer what is expected. I want a show that promises me something on a week to week basis, even if it is something so small as "What will happen when the girl and guy talk this week? Will it make my heart soar just a little, even if they aren't going to get together for 5 more years?" Maybe something will happen in the second episode (which aired on Monday at 8pm), but the point of a pilot is to get us hooked, with no wriggle room.

Despite the lack of grabbing plot, the action was excellent, and I don't just mean the explosions. Chance had to fight off the assassin, and the battle, which was mostly hand-to-hand combat was shot so that we could actually watch the fight. And it was a long fight too! The directing not only made Chance look tough, but clever and dedicated. He got hit, and he went down, taking proper time to recover. It wasn't an easy win, and it was beautifully choreographed. If fight scenes like that are the norm on this show, than I will wave any need for love stories or plot lines all together.

So the jury remains undecided about whether this show is going anywhere, but I will take another look. And watch that fight sequence again.