By now you've read my advance review of NBC's new Christian Slater spy drama My Own Worst Enemy and had the opportunity to watch it yourself.I'm curious to see what you thought about the series premiere of My Own Worst Enemy ("Breakdown"), which introduced the audience to Slater's Henry Spivey/Edward Albright; one is the consummate career-driven family man, the other is a deadly intelligence operative with a penchant for fast cars and faster women.
Were you as bothered by the episode's incongruities and sloppy plotting as I was? Did you think that Slater himself was pretty darn underwhelming? And did you care at all about Henry's family or Fainburg's Marbles? Do you care why Henry and Edward seem to be emerging at inopportune times? And, most importantly, will you be tuning in again next week?
Talk back here.
Missed the series premiere of My Own Worst Enemy? No worries. You can watch it after the jump...
Comments
The show was reminiscent in some ways of "Jekyll", where the two personalities find way to communicate with each other using digital technology. Also flirts with "Dollhouse" elements such as memory wipes and personality implants.
This kind of show begs for the serial treatment, but we're in an era where serial is like cancer, so let's hope we're not looking at another baddie-of-the-week show that spends a whole year unfolding 10 minutes worth of plot. The gimmick of dueling personalities won't last long, so it needs to get Alias-like in a hurry...like next week.
And as for Edward being the good guy...are we sure about that? Maybe it's like Uzi (I know, I agree - it's a stupid name) said: Edward is a psychopath. A psychopath that's too valuable and decorated to kill outright, but too devious to let live. There's just so many different ways the story could go, and too many twists and potential twists. It's just too early to judge.
As for Slater's performance, I saw plenty of things that differentiate Henry and Edward - all of them subtle. For example, Edward talks differently. He pronounces every word he says very exactly, while Henry does not (I didn't catch that until I watched it a second time). Edward talks like someone with a dozen languages under their belt. And I never saw anything in Henry's eyes but frustration, confusion, fear, and love for his family. When I look at Edward's face I see...nothing. A blank mask. He clearly has no fear. No conscience. I only caught glimpses of wry amusement and annoyance at times.
I thought the pilot of My Own Worst Enemy was a good start-off point, all things considered. It had some issues, yes, but nothing that can't be fixed with the next episode. You don't always get a perfect pilot episode from experienced show-runners, as evidenced by Fringe (I'm sure we could all name a dozen more).
The show can go anywhere from here. And I for one, will be tuning in next week to see where. Maybe then I'll be ready to cast my vote.
I'm not sure I can say the same for Sanctuary. I haven't found the time (aka desire) to watch the 2d and 3d eps I have on TiVo.