Bionic Woman

My time with Bionic Woman has become an equivalent of an educational experience. I take my television shows very seriously and only watch programs that offer me characters with whom I can sympathize. And since Jaime is the only character with any real depth, I would have normally given up on this show after watching just the pilot. But due to my duties as a TV GUIDE blogger, BW offers me the chance to better understand how a flawed show constantly attempts to better itself. BW is a vastly improved product from it's less than auspicious debut, but it has also lost more than half of its original viewers. "Do Not Disturb" is BW's last original episode that was completed before the inopportune* WGA strike. With NBC striving to reclaim the ratings dominance it once held, they might decide that BW is a show that is not worth reviving. So for what might be the last time, let me present my views on "Do Not Disturb."

Why does the "Previously On" segment in the beginning of every episode always specifically focus just on the previous episode? Most programs that utilize this device include segments from every possible episode, so the audience acclimates more easily to the show's premise. BW is depriving itself of the simplest method to get a greater number of viewers that it so desperately needs.

Jonas notices that Jaime needs a break from the emotional rigors of work, so he orders her to go on a vacation. But this is not just any holiday, as he gives this poor girl a "simple" task of giving hit information to a nerdy assassin. Btw, why does BW always portray extremely weird and creepy looking characters on this show? Primary examples of this are Nathan and Ruth, whose humor is derived from their personal paranoia's. Anyway, I did snicker when the similarly skeezy assassin performed the narration from the opening credits of The A-Team. Is it bad that I knew all the words myself?

"Do Not Disturb" ended up being one of BW's better efforts, coming off last week's disastrous episode. Pushing Jonas to the forefront, alongside Jaime, was a long time coming for the character. I liked seeing Nathan getting involved in field work, and especially enjoyed seeing some explanation for his many neuroses. Characterizations aside, the special effects team needs to come up with a better way to give Jaime's bionics a more visual appeal. Slow motion just doesn't cut it these days.

*When I say that the strike is inopportune, I mean that solely for the creators trying to improve BW. Viva la strike! — Joshua Green

I had high hopes that Bionic Woman would continue its recent wave of success, but "Trust Issues" brought this reinvigoration to a grinding halt. The show's quality depreciated to the same substandard levels of its debut episodes.

A large contributor to the show's creative woes came from the inconsistency of its storylines and cast. Whatever happened to Katee Sackhoff as Sarah Corvus? Despite being among the most poorly conceived rogues in television history, it was a shame that she was seemingly abandoned. Sarah Corvus was a principle player that would have assisted in supplying answers about the mysterious origins of bionics. There were so many different ways that Sarah's personality could have been developed. Flashbacks to Sarah's past would have provided motivation for her present actions and would also have made her more relatable to the audience.

This ambivalence to creative development separates Bionic Woman from classic shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In Buffy's third season, the villainous Mayor Wilkins was introduced as Buffy's new archenemy. The mayor was stiff in his early appearances, only acting as a plot devise to move the storyline forward. But Joss Whedon and his writing team continued to turn the mayor into a heinously hilarious villain. It turns out that the actor playing Mayor Wilkins, Harry Groener, had great comedic delivery and the scribes were able to use this to their advantage.

Not only did Bionic Woman ignore its failed storylines, but they also felt obligated to destroy any success that the show had achieved. I credited the character of Tom with contribution to the previous creative turnaround, so it was a shame to see Tom become just as serious and miserable as the rest of his cast mates. Tom's concerns for Jaime's well-being in the field were starting to interfere with their relationship. He also stopped doing what he did so well in the last two episodes, which was to bring the show some much-needed levity. Jaime and Tom's relationship should have been given the chance to blossom before any conflict was introduced. The Bionic writers should have recognized Tom's burgeoning importance and taken advantage of it.

Another success story of character development occurred during the first season of Heroes. Jack Coleman had a small role in the show's pilot episode, with only a few lines of dialogue. But Jack's performance was so strong that the producers promoted him to a series regular as HRG.

"Curtis from 24 is back from the dead!" That's what was going through my mind when I saw Roger R. Cross in tonight's episode. After I recovered from the sudden shock, I was baffled that I got so excited about an actor that I thought was at best average. Unfortunately, this all-too-brief moment was the most enjoyment I was able to reap from "Trust Issues." With Bionic Woman hemorrhaging viewers every week, the writers are running out of time to make this show work.

Hello again faithful TVGuide.com fans! Joshua Green here, reporting for the most revamped show of the fall!

The momentum that began with "The Education of Jaime Sommers" continues with the focus on Michelle Ryan's Jaime Sommers and her CIA pseudo boyfriend covertly known as Tom. Their chemistry continues to shine and prompts me to think that Jordan Bridges as Tom will soon become a series regular. Jordan's comedic chops help him stand out among the cast and allows the show to be almost — gasp — fun!

I groaned when there was yet another dull training session between Jaime and Jae Kim. Granted, I usually whimper whenever Will Yun Lee is on the screen, but I absolutely detest these mundane training sequences. What have they actually accomplished? Jaime has been able to control her bionics solely because of her calm and self-control. Nevertheless, the training continues with tonight's episode but also serves for the reintroduction of Tom. All of a sudden this scene has a purpose, showing Jaime and Tom's continued confusion about their romantic feelings towards each other. Remember earlier when I said that Jordan brought wit to the show? I roared with laughter when Tom said in a roundabout way that he is the Human Bomb, like the character from his favorite comic book The Freedom Fighters. So until his true name is discovered, Tom is the bomb!

Bionic Woman needs to focus more frequently on Miguel Ferrer as Jonas Bledsoe. (Check out our interview with Miguel here.) I have seen Miguel on several other TV shows and movies, most notably as the lovingly deplorable Albert Rosenfield on Twin Peaks. Miguel has clearly found his niche in Hollywood, as he usually plays characters that viewers hate to love. People are drawn to Miguel because he reflects society as a flawed (and bald) everyman. His characters aren't bad human beings, but their social inadequacies sometimes overshadow their good intentions. "The List" finally shows Miguel's Jonas as the unassuming hero that I knew he would turn out to be. I love how quickly Jonas agrees to provide Jaime the financial means to purchase the list, all while assisting Becca (Lucy Hale) at the police station. After seeing how understanding he was with Becca, I look forward to more developments with Jonas in Jaime's personal life.

After making significant progress creatively, Bionic Woman's writers should now focus on the impossible task of making Jae Kim a more interesting character. Shame they're on strike….

Read recaps of prior Bionic Woman episodes here.