The 4400 thread
#476
DVD Talk Legend
I just finished Season 1 and waiting on BBuster for Season 2. I read some spoilers on the website
and honestly I'm looking forward to all of it. It doesn't seem Season 3 is out on DVD yet. Can't wait, great show!
Spoiler:
#482
I like the show and would recommend it to anyone. That said this season was a real bummer compared to the first 2 seasons... The last 4 episodes of this season were better, but they are really going to have to step up next year. For me though since it is a summer series and it isn't taking the place of anything else, I will continue to watch.
#483
The 4400 - Ira Behr Interview (AICN)
http://www.aintitcool.com/node/33011
I remember how fragmented the show has seemed. Poor story direction and weak closure. After reading the article, I know why.
New season starts this Sunday Jun 17 at 9:00pm EST on USA.
The Wednesday after Memorial Day, a bunch of entertainment journalists and myself were invited to the Hollywood offices of “The 4400,” which returns to USA this Sunday.
The first episode of the season, “The Wrath of Graham,” deals with a newer breed of superhumans, the “extra-crispies.” These individuals were not part of the “original recipe” 4400; rather, they are non-abductees who have elected to risk their lives in pursuit of superpowers - by injecting themselves with “promicin,” the mitichlorian-like substance found in all of the “original recipe” 4400.
There are other changes. NTAC (the National Threat Assessment Command) has a kindler gentler boss (Jenni Baird), who will also serve as Tom Baldwin’s love interest. Gone is both Samantha Ferris, who played the director of NTAC for two seasons, and Karina Lombard, who played Tom’s old love interest. Returning to regular status are Tom’s son Kyle (Chad Faust) and Jesus-y 4400 messiah Jordan Collier (Billy Campbell), both of whom missed a good part of last season due to other commitments.
Some other interesting facts gleaned from our roundtable discussion with “4400” showrunner Ira Steven Behr:
* Behr said we will finally learn this season why forces from the future abducted and altered the title characters.
* The new season’s first four episodes will deal with the new promicin-enhanced “extra-crispies.”
* Episodes five, six and seven will delve heavily into the series’ “mythology.”
* Episode eight was described by Behr as something to “cleanse the palette.”
* Nine and 10 will see the return of Isabelle’s dad, World War II relic Richard Tyler.
* 4.11, 4.12 and 4.13, according to my notes, will deal with “space madness.”
* At the time we interviewed Behr on May 30, nine episodes had been shot and 11 had been scripted.
* Behr said some initially questioned the wisdom of focusing on the promicin-enhanced “extra-crispies,” since the name of the show is “The 4400.”
* Behr has high hopes for Meghan Doyle, the new NTAC director. He said the first NTAC director, Dennis Ryland (Peter Coyote), never really blossomed as a character until he entered the private sector. Behr described Ryland’s successor, Nina Jarvis, “neither fish nor fowl,” and too much of “a one-note finger-pointer.”
* Behr said he abandoned several years ago the original series finale he had in mind for “The 4400.” He would not specify what that original ending entailed.
* Current plans called for Jeffrey Combs to appear in six episodes. His companion, played by Summer Glau, will appear in four or five – despite the fact that Glau is now a regular on Fox’s new “Sarah Connor Chronicles” series.
* Behr says he spends six weeks before each season developing a presentation for approval by USA execs. These gameplans, however, often have to be altered due to things like budget restrictions and cast availability.
* Behr, “half-kidding,” said the perfect writing experience would be one in which “the only people watching the show were the ones who were writing it.”
* Though Karina Lombard’s visage makes a cameo appearance in 4.1, Behr admits her character, Alana Mareva, will likely never return to the series.
* Behr said he has not seen NBC’s “Heroes,” and has no plans to. (He points out also that he never saw “Babylon 5” while he was serving as showrunner on “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” either.)
* Behr said he does (or did) have “season passes” on his DVR for these series:
. “The Office,”
. “The Venture Bros.,”
. “Rome,”
. “Deadwood,”
. “The Sopranos” and
. “30 Rock.”
* Behr said he spends more free time with books and movies than with TV these days. When asked which recent movies particularly grabbed him, he singled out Tommy Lee Jones’ “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada” and Juan Carlos Fresnadillo’s “28 Weeks Later.”
* Behr admitted cast absences last season inspired plotting. Had the actor not committed to an extended boating excursion, he said, “Kyle would never have shot [Jordan Collier].”
* Budget restrictions apparently led to the demise of Laura Allen’s character, Lily Moore, at the start of last season.
* Behr admits he misses the “Deep Space Nine” days, when he could visit the sets of the show he wrote. The fact that “The 4400” shoots in Canada, he said, makes his job “less fun.”
* Asked what he thought of the plan to revisit the early days of Kirk and Spock in the next “Star Trek” movie, Behr only offered he was not generally a big fan of “moving backward” and that he thinks the “Trek” franchise has been moving in that direction since the first episode of “Voyager.” “When they put Starfleet uniforms on the Maquis, that to me was the first sign we were receding from the high water mark.”
* Behr said he was negotiating to have a female member of his “DS9” cast appear in one of this season’s last episodes. While he declined to name the actress at the time, he later confided that Penny Johnson Jerald, who played captain Kasidy Yates, had agreed to guest-star.
The first episode of the season, “The Wrath of Graham,” deals with a newer breed of superhumans, the “extra-crispies.” These individuals were not part of the “original recipe” 4400; rather, they are non-abductees who have elected to risk their lives in pursuit of superpowers - by injecting themselves with “promicin,” the mitichlorian-like substance found in all of the “original recipe” 4400.
There are other changes. NTAC (the National Threat Assessment Command) has a kindler gentler boss (Jenni Baird), who will also serve as Tom Baldwin’s love interest. Gone is both Samantha Ferris, who played the director of NTAC for two seasons, and Karina Lombard, who played Tom’s old love interest. Returning to regular status are Tom’s son Kyle (Chad Faust) and Jesus-y 4400 messiah Jordan Collier (Billy Campbell), both of whom missed a good part of last season due to other commitments.
Some other interesting facts gleaned from our roundtable discussion with “4400” showrunner Ira Steven Behr:
* Behr said we will finally learn this season why forces from the future abducted and altered the title characters.
* The new season’s first four episodes will deal with the new promicin-enhanced “extra-crispies.”
* Episodes five, six and seven will delve heavily into the series’ “mythology.”
* Episode eight was described by Behr as something to “cleanse the palette.”
* Nine and 10 will see the return of Isabelle’s dad, World War II relic Richard Tyler.
* 4.11, 4.12 and 4.13, according to my notes, will deal with “space madness.”
* At the time we interviewed Behr on May 30, nine episodes had been shot and 11 had been scripted.
* Behr said some initially questioned the wisdom of focusing on the promicin-enhanced “extra-crispies,” since the name of the show is “The 4400.”
* Behr has high hopes for Meghan Doyle, the new NTAC director. He said the first NTAC director, Dennis Ryland (Peter Coyote), never really blossomed as a character until he entered the private sector. Behr described Ryland’s successor, Nina Jarvis, “neither fish nor fowl,” and too much of “a one-note finger-pointer.”
* Behr said he abandoned several years ago the original series finale he had in mind for “The 4400.” He would not specify what that original ending entailed.
* Current plans called for Jeffrey Combs to appear in six episodes. His companion, played by Summer Glau, will appear in four or five – despite the fact that Glau is now a regular on Fox’s new “Sarah Connor Chronicles” series.
* Behr says he spends six weeks before each season developing a presentation for approval by USA execs. These gameplans, however, often have to be altered due to things like budget restrictions and cast availability.
* Behr, “half-kidding,” said the perfect writing experience would be one in which “the only people watching the show were the ones who were writing it.”
* Though Karina Lombard’s visage makes a cameo appearance in 4.1, Behr admits her character, Alana Mareva, will likely never return to the series.
* Behr said he has not seen NBC’s “Heroes,” and has no plans to. (He points out also that he never saw “Babylon 5” while he was serving as showrunner on “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” either.)
* Behr said he does (or did) have “season passes” on his DVR for these series:
. “The Office,”
. “The Venture Bros.,”
. “Rome,”
. “Deadwood,”
. “The Sopranos” and
. “30 Rock.”
* Behr said he spends more free time with books and movies than with TV these days. When asked which recent movies particularly grabbed him, he singled out Tommy Lee Jones’ “The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada” and Juan Carlos Fresnadillo’s “28 Weeks Later.”
* Behr admitted cast absences last season inspired plotting. Had the actor not committed to an extended boating excursion, he said, “Kyle would never have shot [Jordan Collier].”
* Budget restrictions apparently led to the demise of Laura Allen’s character, Lily Moore, at the start of last season.
* Behr admits he misses the “Deep Space Nine” days, when he could visit the sets of the show he wrote. The fact that “The 4400” shoots in Canada, he said, makes his job “less fun.”
* Asked what he thought of the plan to revisit the early days of Kirk and Spock in the next “Star Trek” movie, Behr only offered he was not generally a big fan of “moving backward” and that he thinks the “Trek” franchise has been moving in that direction since the first episode of “Voyager.” “When they put Starfleet uniforms on the Maquis, that to me was the first sign we were receding from the high water mark.”
* Behr said he was negotiating to have a female member of his “DS9” cast appear in one of this season’s last episodes. While he declined to name the actress at the time, he later confided that Penny Johnson Jerald, who played captain Kasidy Yates, had agreed to guest-star.
New season starts this Sunday Jun 17 at 9:00pm EST on USA.
#484
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Originally Posted by Ayre
I remember how fragmented the show has seemed. Poor story direction and weak closure. After reading the article, I know why.
I admit I am excited for this to start up again. 20 episodes this season - Yippee!
#485
Suspended
I watched the first half of the first season and gave up on it. Is it worth giving another try? From the comments so far, it sounds like the answer is no. Do others agree?
#487
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Originally Posted by JasonF
I watched the first half of the first season and gave up on it. Is it worth giving another try? From the comments so far, it sounds like the answer is no. Do others agree?
#488
DVD Talk Special Edition
oh, come on! The 4400 is an immensely entertaining show with involving, three dimensional characters and fun story lines. So what if the concept is implausible? It's Science Fiction!
This is one of the most creative, original shows on TV since the X Files, bottom line.
This is one of the most creative, original shows on TV since the X Files, bottom line.
#489
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Originally Posted by Dan1boy
oh, come on! The 4400 is an immensely entertaining show with involving, three dimensional characters and fun story lines. So what if the concept is implausible? It's Science Fiction!
This is one of the most creative, original shows on TV since the X Files, bottom line.
This is one of the most creative, original shows on TV since the X Files, bottom line.
I was saying that I didn't agree with the others who were saying it wasn't worth giving the show a chance. I enjoyed all the episodes so far, and am looking forward to new ones (although I didn't even know it was coming back already). I wouldn't call it one of my favorite shows ever, but it's entertaining enough to stick with.
#490
DVD Talk Hall of Fame
Originally Posted by xVladx
If they're not going to bring Alana's character back, then I hope they at least explain why she was re-abducted.
The show does have problems with pacing. I caught up on DVD and watched last season live. It really hurts sometimes when the mythology arc gets interrupted by several standalone "freak of the week" stories. Overall though it looks like they have the potential to get back on track with all the characters like Collier in it for the whole season. I'd certainly rent the first season to see if you like it. It itself could be considered a miniseries since it does kind of wrap itself up at the end. If you don't like it after the 5 episodes that are S1, you can just drop it.
#491
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This show had so much promise and I have watched it up until the end of last season but I think it has squandered it's potential.
I won't be back for the upcoming season
I won't be back for the upcoming season
#492
Suspended
Originally Posted by rfduncan
I'd certainly rent the first season to see if you like it. It itself could be considered a miniseries since it does kind of wrap itself up at the end. If you don't like it after the 5 episodes that are S1, you can just drop it.
#493
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I agree about the wasted potential, but at least it sounds like they at least have their ducks in a row this season. Last season was a complete disaster after Billy Campbell went on a 13 month boat trip or something. His character was basically the linchpin of whatever multi-season story arc the had going and it really screwed the show. They they were forced to write out Laura Allen's character, apparently for financial reasons. Combined it meant a new arc that featured Isabelle, an annoying character played by a bad actress following a script that still had the fresh feces smell from the ass you know they just pulled it out of.
I'm kind of torn on this show. Sometimes I would like it to be more freak of the week, and sometimes I want it to be more central arc driven. I think that's because after the first season they really haven't done either very well so when they do one type poorly I think of the potential in the other and get nostalgic. I'll still give the new season a shot at some point, but I'm in no hurry.
I'm kind of torn on this show. Sometimes I would like it to be more freak of the week, and sometimes I want it to be more central arc driven. I think that's because after the first season they really haven't done either very well so when they do one type poorly I think of the potential in the other and get nostalgic. I'll still give the new season a shot at some point, but I'm in no hurry.
#494
DVD Talk Platinum Edition
Originally Posted by rfduncan
She wasn't re-abducted. Last season Tom and Diana put her with a wanted 4400, and she flees the country into Canada in the season finale. I believe it was implied by their parting that Tom would never see or hear from her again for her own safety.
Originally Posted by wmansir
I agree about the wasted potential, but at least it sounds like they at least have their ducks in a row this season. Last season was a complete disaster after Billy Campbell went on a 13 month boat trip or something. His character was basically the linchpin of whatever multi-season story arc the had going and it really screwed the show. They they were forced to write out Laura Allen's character, apparently for financial reasons. Combined it meant a new arc that featured Isabelle, an annoying character played by a bad actress following a script that still had the fresh feces smell from the ass you know they just pulled it out of.
I'm kind of torn on this show. Sometimes I would like it to be more freak of the week, and sometimes I want it to be more central arc driven. I think that's because after the first season they really haven't done either very well so when they do one type poorly I think of the potential in the other and get nostalgic. I'll still give the new season a shot at some point, but I'm in no hurry.
I'm kind of torn on this show. Sometimes I would like it to be more freak of the week, and sometimes I want it to be more central arc driven. I think that's because after the first season they really haven't done either very well so when they do one type poorly I think of the potential in the other and get nostalgic. I'll still give the new season a shot at some point, but I'm in no hurry.
Last edited by Vipper II; 06-15-07 at 05:17 PM.
#495
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Originally Posted by rfduncan
She wasn't re-abducted. Last season Tom and Diana put her with a wanted 4400, and she flees the country into Canada in the season finale. I believe it was implied by their parting that Tom would never see or hear from her again for her own safety.
#498
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i am a pretty big fan of the show. i love all the cool stuff they are doing with promicin now. have any of you guys seen the site: www.promicinterror.com ? it is like a legit political site warning of the horrors of promicin...pretty cool. like how it is incorporated outside the show.
#499
DVD Talk God
I watch, but just because I feel like I need to finish it. I thought the best episodes were the first ones where you found a new 4400, watched them develop their power, and change the world for the better (or worse), and the end of the show, was the end of that story. Then they decided they needed to take the big arc ala X-files instead of sticking with what was great.
#500
DVD Talk Hero
I'm liking this new season so far. Sure it's been typical FotW fare for the most part, the bits with Kyle's ability and apparent destiny and Sean standing up for him and his kind are really giving me hope for a solid season.