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« Journeyman
Episode Recap: Series Premiere
In the months leading up to last night's series premiere of Journeyman, most of the buzz surrounding the show seemed to pigeonhole it as a Quantum Leap wannabe. A lot of the people I spoke to had written it off as just another unoriginal idea from Hollywood with little chance of success. To be honest, once I saw they had cast Moon Bloodgood, one of the key players in last season's attempt to mess with the space-time continuum, Daybreak, I too had my doubts. Nevertheless, I've always been a sucker for time travel (anyone else catch Ben Kingsley in Sound of Thunder?) So regardless of popular opinion, I had to check it out.
Meet Dan Vasser. He's a family man, a reporter and a dude with some serious blackout issues. Just as he's about to hop in a taxi to celebrate his wedding anniversary with the missus, he has a bizarre trip back in time to watch the end of a classic ballgame and to catch one last glimpse of his lost love Livia before she supposedly dies in a plane crash. Not a terribly long trip back in time but just long enough to freak him out a bit when he finally shows up to his anniversary dinner a few hours later. He chalks it all up to a weird dream and goes on with his life in present day. However, not soon after he and his wife "reaffirm" their love for each other that very night, he's off on another crazy adventure through time. This time he awakens to find himself among the homeless in Golden Gate Park. He runs back to his home to find a stranger living there and learns that the year is actually 1987. Meanwhile, back in 2007, his wife Kate is frantically searching for him and goes to his brother for help. His brother suggests that perhaps he's left her for another woman, but since his only other love Livia died nine years earlier, she's positive it's something else.
As Dan wanders around 1987 San Francisco, we're treated to random pop-culture references, like a billboard for the movie Less Than Zero. While roaming the streets, he stumbles on a man about to throw himself in front of a trolley. It suddenly clicks in his mind that perhaps he's back in a time for a reason, so he uses the opportunity to do some good and save the man's life. By the time he finds his way back to 2007, he learns he's been gone for two days and his wife now suspects that he's on some mind-altering substance. He also learns that the man he saved back in '87 is alive and well in present day and his name is Neil Gaines. He tries frantically to get some answers but is ripped from his present life into the past yet again.
It's the '80s again and this time Neil Gaines finds himself in another predicament. It seems he's gotten a girl pregnant and she'd rather get rid of the child than start a family with him. Our man Dan convinces her not to. After another successful fix in Neil Gaines' life, Dan finds his own life in shambles. His wife has staged an intervention for him, believing drugs were responsible for his car crashing into a telephone pole during his last trip. As he tries to learn more about the family he has single-handedly created, he's sent back again to do another fix. It's 1997; Sarah McLachlan and Oasis have hit songs and Dan is living with his fiancée Livia. Now here's where things get interesting!
As Dan is leaving Livia at their apartment, he steps outside to find her standing in the hallway. She briefly explains to him that she "left" before her plane went down and that he can't meddle during these little trips. Just when we think he's gonna get some answers, she vanishes once again, leaving him and all of us wondering what is going on.
Now that he knows his mission, Dan concentrates all of his energy on figuring out this Neil Gaines enigma. So far he's saved Neil's life and the life of his unborn child, but something's still not right with Mr. Gaines. His marriage is in shambles and he seems to be on the verge of a psychotic episode. As Neil is about to kill his wife and child for trying to leave him, he is hit by a car, making all Dan's efforts seem pointless. In 2007, however, Neil's son goes on to save a school bus full of children. Mission accomplished! And just to cover all his ground, Dan has something in mind to prove to his wife he wasn't on drugs and had actually been on time traveling: He buries her wedding ring under their deck years before it had been built, along with a newspaper from 1997. The premiere ends with a loving embrace between the couple as Katie finally starts to believe her husband's stories.
Overall, I think we're getting off to a good start. The pilot left a lot of unanswered questions that will undoubtedly be developed over the season. I wonder, though: Is there perhaps too much going on? In addition to trying to figure out his mission each episode, he will attempt to learn why he has been given this task, all while trying to maintain a stable home environment. I just hope the show lasts long enough to provide some of these answers. It's going to be quite the journey.
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Sep 25, 2007 1:39 AM
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Good review Adam!
I am glad there were no spoilers out there regarding Lyvia being alive. It took me a minute to figure out how she got off the plane (oh, she takes her own "trips" and I guess that one came at the right time eh). That was a good twist.
The show was pretty good overall, it is hard for me to get hooked on anything though since the discovery I can actually break-up with shows (Desperate Housewives comes to mind--duh) ..there was a fun blog on that here a few months back!!
This was the best new show on Monday, I'll say that, and I liked it better than Chuck.
The fact that Voyagers! was my favorite show of all time (and probably the first NBC dabbled in time travel) makes me want to like it.
Also, I am looking forward to "Life" on Wednesday, and waiting for the first cbs cancellation (what will it be..Kid Nation or Viva whatever) so Jericho can come back!!
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Sep 25, 2007 3:04 AM
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Wow! The episode ended and I noticed how fast my heart was beating! I was totally into it.
I too thought it would be a Quantum Leap ripoff and I was wrong.
I enjoy a show that engages my mind. I just hope enough people like it so that it stays on the air.
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Sep 25, 2007 5:35 AM
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i got to watch the pilot last week through amazon's unbox, and i have to say, it was better than i expected. i enjoyed quantum leap back in the day, and what i like about journeyman is that his jumping through time has an effect on his actual life (in that he goes missing for the time he's in the past). and while i like that part of the setup, i think it'll get real old if the people around dan (wife, brother, etc.) just continue to think he's crazy. they'll need to have some comprehension of what's happening with dan or else it'll just be the same situation everytime he jumps back, and that'll get boring. so hopefully they can keep that part of the show fresh.
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Sep 25, 2007 8:32 AM
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I really enjoyed the show; it was very well put together, and I was actually surprised by the twist that Lyvia was also traveling through time. There is a whole lot of stuff to mine here. I really really hope the show lasts long enough for us to find out; I'm worried about this one.
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Sep 25, 2007 8:58 AM
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I have to say I enjoyed this show a lot yes it does remind me of Quantum leap and also Daybreak maybe even Early Edition but kevin McKidd is good. I confess as a Reed Diamond fan before I saw the show I thought I wish he had been playing the lead character. Great casting btw they totally look like brothers they even sound alike but I think reed looks younger than Kevin. I am a little bit confused Dan's wife used to date his brother so how did she and Dan end up married? There was some mention of reed's character having a drinking problem maybe that had something to do with it.
I'm really looking forward to the next episode!
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Sep 25, 2007 9:00 AM
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I really liked this show as well. I am too young to remember the show Quantum Leap, so this show being similar to that is not a problem for me.
Once I saw Moon Bloodgood was in this show, I too got a little nervous because of Daybreak that flopped last year. (Although I really LOVED that show, and I continued to watch the rest of the season online.) But it still makes me weary that they will cancel this show because last year a lot of pretty good shows were cancelled and it really got on my nerves because I would get really into them only to be left not knowing what ever happens.
One question I do have though...So when Dan travelled through time, he was missing from present day, right? Because his wife and everyone couldn't find him for days or whatever. Then why when Dan tries to call his brother from that payphone when he's "in the past" does his brother say, "who is this really? It's definitely not my brother because I'm looking right at him right now." Did anyone else catch that? Just wondering people's thoughts....if that was a mistake, or I'm missing something????
Overall though, good show. I hope it gets to stick around all season.
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Sep 25, 2007 9:13 AM
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Shorebaby,
Dan was calling his brother in 1997. So his brother was really confused because he saw 1997 Dan walking toward him while 2007 Dan was on the phone with him.
I too got it on Unbox a week ago, and it was a great idea on NBC's part because I'm not sure I would have caught it otherwise and I loved it!
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Sep 25, 2007 9:29 AM
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Shorebaby there seems to be some way that Dan exists "sometimes" both in the past & the present maybe the timelines cross somehow like when he walked out of his apartment leaving Livia behind and Livia was then also outside the apartment. I'm sure there is an explanation for this but then again maybe not.
Did we ever find out how and why Taye diggs was reliving the same day over and over in Daybreak and why his injury recurred each day etc. ? I was so dispppointed that Daybreak got cancelled and I don't have the ability to watch videos on line so I didn't get to see the full season. anyone know if it is on DVD or if it will be offered on DVD?
Question for the TV Guide bloggers. How re the blogs determined? Ihave been trying for over a year to get a blog for Without A Trace but to no avail it seems. It's a very popular show when it moved back to Thurs. night this summer it got great ratings. Some people would say star your own blog but it's not as easy as it sounds requires a lot of time and effort as I'm sure the TV Guide bloggers can attest to. I enjoy commenting on discussing a show with others but I'm not sure I have the "talent" to actualy write a blog.
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Sep 25, 2007 9:35 AM
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Adam - Thank you for an exceptionally written and revealing blog.
I'm one of those multi-taskers and I was doing a couple of things while also watching this show. I did not realize at the time the amount of attention I would need to give this show. So, your blog REALLY helped fill in the blanks.
Will Heroes fans shoot me on sight if I admit that I enjoyed this premiere better than the Heroes premiere? It was a hell of a lot more intriguing. Don't flip out on me, just thought it was more of a mid-season ep than a much anticipated premiere.
I'm one who was looking forward to this show BECAUSE it was reminiscent of Quantum Leap. I miss that kind of social commentary/sci-fi/heartwarming storyline combo. I'm glad it's not a carbon copy, b/c nothing could replace or improve on that show... it stands alone in a sea of inequity.
But, I could totally see this show becoming a new favorite.
The saddest thing to me is that he's obviously still hung up on Livia, yet he has this "new" life with his wife and son. How hard it must be to be in love with two people at the same time... one you've shared vows with and have a life with.... and another that seemed unattainable before, but is suddenly very real. How difficult to know there is someone out there that you would absolutely love and want to be with if circumstances were different... but you can't b/c of your new life? I will be interested to see how it plays out...
One issue tho.... and probably b/c I was multi-tasking... why would the whole ring & newspaper in the tool box buried under the deck prove to his wife that he wasn't crazy or drunk? I just didn't catch the "punchline."
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Sep 25, 2007 10:13 AM
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Reed Diamond is 40. Kevin McKidd just turned 34.
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Sep 25, 2007 10:18 AM
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Reed Diamond is 40. Kevin McKidd just turned 34.
I don't care... to me it's still Gorgeous and his little brother Gorgeous II
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Sep 25, 2007 10:21 AM
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I have high hopes for this show, because it sucked me in from the very first moments. Let's hope NBC gives it a fighting chance!
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Sep 25, 2007 10:24 AM
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sorry guys, but I thought Journeyman jumped around too much. I like a fast-paced show, but this was making me nauseous.
It's hard to judge a show based on its pilot as the creators have to make the show interesting enough to pick it up, throw in enough character development to make sense, and not give too much away. So, that said, I'll watch one more week, but if it doesn't get better, I'm out.
As an aside, this fall season is really strong and it almost pisses me off because some shows will inevitably be canceled only to have us all languishing following this strong start and the sweeps months. I wish the networks would stagger the shows more - then we wouldn't all be blowing up our TIVOs, DVRs and neglecting other stuff! 
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Sep 25, 2007 10:29 AM
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My hubby usually falls asleep on the couch for the 9 p.m. CST shows and never catches them so I was surprised when this one kept him awake! It's got a great premise, but I worry that after Heroes, it may suffer the fate of so many shows that followed Lost - it requires you to pay attention and think after a show that requires you to pay attention and think.
Can't wait to find out what gives with Lyvia and how Katie adjusts to her time traveling husband because after that last scene, she seems to believe him.
Let's hope NBC gives it more than a fighting chance and sticks with it ...
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Sep 25, 2007 10:31 AM
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