Human Target – Series Premiere
Starring Mark Valley, Chi McBride and Jackie Earl Haley
Directed by Simon West
When the ads came out for Fox’s new Human Target show, I was concerned that the network would water down the darker aspects of the character’s last comic incarnation from DC / Vertigo (which was featured in a recent Hidden Gems column), and judging from the pilot episode, Fox didn’t disappoint. What they’ve given us is an annoyingly generic “caper of the week” show that resembles the comic in name only and that I predict will be cancelled by mid-March.
The biggest change made from the book is that Christopher Chance, played ably by Mark Valley, is not so much a master of disguise as he is a freelance secret service agent. Instead of assuming the identity of his clients, he goes undercover alongside them in order to draw out the people threatening them. This means that the title now makes no sense, because Chance is now more of a human shield than a human target. He is aided in his assignments by his straight-arrow, long-suffering sidekick Winston (played by Chi McBride) and his morally gray intel guy Guerrero (played by Watchmen‘s Jackie Earl Haley in a ridiculous wig and mustache). The bickering between the two sidekicks adds at least a little bit of interest to an otherwise dull plot.
The pilot episode has Chance boarding an experimental supertrain in order to protect the train’s designer (played by Tricia Helfer of Battlestar Galactica
If the entire series is to be judged from the pilot, Fox has taken an original concept from the comic and turned it into a cookie-cutter action show. The fact that Chance is no longer a master of disguise doesn’t bother me, as that may not translate convincingly to TV, but they’ve completely neutered the character into an amalgam of the most basic elements of James Bond, Jack Bauer, and the aforementioned Macguyver. Even the title sequence is derivitive of the Bond movies. The episode tries in vain to give Chance an edge by suggesting that he takes all these dangerous missions because he has a death wish, the reason of which will likely be revealed in a future episode, if the show lasts long enough. Overall, the pilot episode of Human Target resembles Christopher Chance’s mission…it doesn’t stand out at all amongst the vast crowd of TV thrillers out there. Unlike Chance, however, I doubt the show will do anything to step out of the background and attract any attention. 2 out of 5 Makeshift Parachutes.
awww, a failure of translating a comicbook series for a new audience made by Fox, how unexpected.
Wow … I give the pilot episode 4 out of 5 stars. There was quite a lot to like – especially if you got back on read the original HUMAN TARGET material before Milligan got his grubby mitts all over it. It was more like the Len Wein stuff I grew up with and adored. And get a look at that awesome opening credit sequence. I watched this with my parents instead of the Golden Globes last night – and they found it fun, charming, and enjoyable. I hope they are the kind of mainstream television watchers that keep this property afloat. We need more of that — and less fans slavishly devoted to the most recent ‘kewl’ version of the character.
>> awww, a failure of translating a comicbook series for a new audience made by Fox, how unexpected. >>
The show was made and produced by Warner Brothers, in conjunction with DC Comics, not FOX.
One thing I forgot to mention: Danny Glover makes a cameo apperance in the final scene of the pilot, and yes, he is still too old fo dis shit.
I give this show a month.
@ Laura – What you call “fans slavishly devoted” to blah blah blah couldn’t be further from the truth. That’s certainly the kind of stance I would take. Not Ben.
I think, instead, that Ben read a book that had a very unique premise and he was excited to see a TV show adapt that and provide a breath of fresh air to television. What they’ve done – and what you seem to support – is remove anything that made the property special and instead turned it into a bland also ran that “mainstream television watchers” can find “fun, charming, and enjoyable.”
If your parents want to watch the show described above, have them turn on Burn Notice. It’s fantastic. But, since it’s been around for a few years, they may have to catch up.
If this show came out fifteen years ago, it may have been a hit, but TV for the most part is so great right now, there’s nothing really special enough about this show to make it stand out, in my opinion.
I’ve never read the book, but I like the idea of him being a body guard type rather than taking the place of the client. I think it’d be kinda boring if he did that.
I just have a feeling this show is going to develop into something awesome.
^ But then he’s not a Human TARGET…he’s a Human SHIELD.
I felt that the show could easily fall on its face, but maybe be saved by those who love 24 and Fringe. Guess we’ll see the mood of the country soon.
10 Million viewers for this pilot, though.
@JM: You totally miss the point of Human Target.
While I enjoyed Chi McBride and Jackie Earl, I could not get into Mark Valley at all. I will continue to watch until it gets cancelled which will probably be in 3 weeks, only to see Jackie Earl’s character which was one thing I really enjoyed.
@Ben: He can still be the Human Target. Even by only being a body guard he can still make himself the target to protect the client. He made himself the target in the bank at the beginning.
@Tomer: I have NEVER READ THE BOOK. I’m sure if I read the book I’d get the point, heck from the description I kinda get the point, I’m just saying for TV it wouldn’t work as well (IMO) if he disguised himself as the client. I think it works better if he just protects them.
@JM: Not reading the original material has nothing to do with it. Why bother translating a character to film or television, if they don’t mean to use the original formula to create it? I don’t see your point. How come a character that takes the guise of his clients to protect them is less interesting than a character “just” protecting them, like we’ve already seen in so many TV shows?
@Tomer: I see the point about why bothering to translate a character if they are not using the original formula, but they can sill use some of the ideas. They may very well end up going closer to the source material, we don’t know. Even if they don’t maybe they wanted to use the property as a template to launch the show.
I just think having him as a sort of body guard works better for TV. That way he has to constantly worry about the client being in danger and not just himself/bystanders. It also gives him another person to bounce dialogue off of during the mission. There is also the believability aspect. I just don’t see the general public buying the premise that he can impersonate anyone/his clients. Also, there are already shows out there where the characters are going undercover/impersonate people (Burn Notice, Leverage) so its not like if he was a master of disguise that it would be this revolutionary concept.
@ JM: I did kinda dig the opening part in the bank, in which he took the place of the hostage, which is why I’m giving the show another episode to win me over.
Just… look at these:
http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2009/10/09/a-year-of-cool-comic-book-moments-day-282/
http://goodcomics.comicbookresources.com/2009/10/10/a-year-of-cool-comic-book-moments-day-283/
(Contain spoilers)
^Those were pretty cool, but I still think they made the right decision. If they were to have a white man in blackface the backlash would be HUGE. Also, how would Chance impersonate a woman?
You’ve honestly NEVER seen convincing drag?
Yeah, a few times, but I don’t really think that they could find a guy that can come across as a bad ass and still pull off dressing as a woman. There is no way in hell that Mark Valley could be convincing as a woman.
The master of impersonation won’t reveal his secrets.
Haven’t you seen the ’80s Mission Impossible TV show? Darkman? They both featured methods of creating synthetic face masks that looked authentic. Heck, cinema had this technology to alter an actor’s appearance for ages. Some of Eddie Murphy’s most memorable roles involve it.
I wouldn’t even mind if the producers had chosen to make Chance a shape-shifter to make it believable.
^I think its funny that by making him a shape-shifter it would make it believable.
No, I’ve never seen the MI series or Darkman. Either way, I’m fine with the way they’ve done it.