Saturday, October 1, 2011

TV: Charlie's Angels (2011, ep. 2)

Week two of the new Charlie’s Angels series with an episode entitled “Runway Angels”. Yes, it didn’t take the show long to set up an episode involving murder at a fashion show. I mean, seriously, three attractive leads and elegant clothes - it’s a complete no-brainer.

Okay, maybe that sounded a little too harsh.


The plot wasn’t so bad really. It felt like something right out of the standard playbook. A model goes missing, possibly murdered, and the Angels are hired to investigate. One goes undercover as a model and needs a place to live. The suspects take her in. Bosley also goes undercover as a trainer. So far, so good.

Okay, now the spy-tech video camera via simple looking designer eyeglasses was a bit too much to believe. So is the hi-tech touch screen wall as a computer interface. I guess the show has to have some larger than life elements, and allow for Mr. Townsend’s wealth to be shown off further.

The house where the models live has a sleazebag attorney, typical stereotype, but he seems to have a money-making sideline that involves the girls. Meanwhile, Kate learns that her ex-fiancé Detective Ray Goodson is back in town and also looking in on the same case. So there’s this week’s trip into a main character’s past.

Okay, the plot took an unexpected twist at the halfway point. That’s a good sign. Ten minutes later, that twist kicks the scenario into an even deadlier situation involving snipers and diplomats. The episode ends pretty predictable from this point, except I had Ray pegged as being a bit more of a plot element to the murder than he ended up being.

Turns out the episode was written by Douglas Petrie, a name pretty familiar to me. Petrie, you see, was a story editor on Buffy the Vampire Slayer and worked on the show for the final four and a half years. He also worked two years as a writer on CSI which explains why the investigation scenes worked well in the episode.

So, not a bad second episode. It was done well enough to warrant another look next week. Actually, I am holding on until at least week four when they have an episode entitled “Angels in Chains”, which was also the same name as episode five in the original series’ first season. Hmmm…coincidental? I think not. I am hoping for a nice homage to that classic.

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