NOOOOOOOOOO!: The Racialicious Roundtable For Flash Forward 1.7
Hosted by Special Correspondent Arturo R. García
“The Gift” marked, I hope, a real transition point for our team of protagonists. Because we got to see Al as not only sympathetic, but close to well-rounded; his sacrifice, I feel resonated for the viewers. More on this later. Meanwhile, this episode provided another glimpse into why the death of our alleged lead protagonist, Mark, would *not*.
The big problem with Mark is this: until he wore that Police shirt under his jacket, I had no idea the guy *liked* anything. We’re told he loves his wife, but the chemistry between them hasn’t ever been there, even in the “good times.” Until this week, he didn’t crack one joke (compared to Demetri, who’s been at least able to pull off the facade of joviality at times). Like I said last week, he’s a melodramatic character in an action-oriented series. (Another symptom of forcing melodrama where it doesn’t belong: The “pensive” little music videos that seem to close every episode. This week it might have stirred genuine emotion, had we not had to deal with one for most of the season.) I also don’t think Mark is as engaging to the “casual” fan as the showrunners may want to believe. If Brannon Braga and Co. aren’t careful, they might have another Claire Bennet on their hands. Now, to the week’s big topics:
As intense as the final sequence with Al was, I’m disappointed that Dem didn’t get to ask: Hey, what if Celia gets killed by somebody else? Wouldn’t that still make her flash forward come true? Nontheless, I’m sorry to see him go.
Mahsino: While I did scream “f-ck this noise” at the screen, I love how Al was/is technically the one that proves that the flash forwards aren’t set in stone and that he was able to actually make a change. That being said, why couldn’t Mark be the one to take one for the team? I think he knew the risk that Celia might die, but at least he wouldn’t have to live with the guilt. (And I can’t be the only one that wished they would’ve closed the show with Simon and Garfunkel’s “Cecilia“, seeing as they have a propensity for inappropriately-placed music).
Andrea: ::side-eyes Mahsino:: What struck me is that this is a Black man who committed suicide–a statistic that is rarely discussed within and outside Black communities, though, thankfully, that silence is starting to crack. At the same time, what deeply disturbs me is Al sacrificed his life for a narrative, whether to prove or disprove it. Again, the death of a character of color furthers a plot.
Diana: I was mad. I was already vested in Al and really wasn’t ready to see him go. The writers did have to address whether the flash forwards were set in stone to allow the story to go forward, but I didn’t want to see a POC be a casualty. We’ll see if this becomes a pattern. I’m willing to continue watching for now.
jen*: Yes, you can change things. But you don’t have to *die* to do it. Al struck me as smarter than that. Maybe it was too difficult to live with the guilt, but I’m sure gonna miss him. I suppose I knew something was gonna happen when I saw his name listed as a ‘guest star’ in the opening credits, but wow. All that to convince people not to roll over and take it? I’m ticked that it had to be him – there are SO many superfluous characters that could’ve gone instead.
Earlier in the episode, though, we got to see Al engage in some welcome jocularity with Mark and Dem. Though the three of them are the worst undercover ops I’ve ever seen; why would you discuss clues in front of a potential witness (even if she was sympathetic and “goth-hot”).
Mahsino: I feel like they’re so used to aimlessly chasing and shooting at people that they forgot how to do real sleuthing.
Andrea: LOL
Diana: I thought it was funny that Demetri called Mark on his Police t-shirt. You’re right, they’re not prime-time sleuths. They’re better when they are questioning odd balls, following weird clues, posturing in gun battles, and visiting dark warehouses with doll heads.
jen*: What did they do before the FF? Mark’s wife can still do surgery – why can’t they do their FBI thing? I actually wish they’d let Mr. Blue Hands get to whatever he was going to get to, cuz they didn’t have much to go on in the beginning. And of course, he’s not gonna talk. Eh.
Speaking of the undercover raid, I’m disappointed that in this case, the writers gave in to some pre-conceived notions, namely, that the Ghosts would listen to generic “Goth” music and do naughty things to each other. It might’ve been more clever to show the Blue Hand Group go out in a more “civilized” fashion. Oh well, at least the Kangaroo isn’t mixed up with this crowd, right?
Mahsino: So, how long ago were the blackouts supposed to have happened again? I ask, because that’s a pretty quick turnaround time to develop a bonafide cult- that has a fully stocked bar no less.
Andrea: This whole sequence caused me to roll my eye with the oh-so-supposed-to-shock Goth-y BDSM-y silliness until I saw the folks cloaked Abu Ghraib-style. Then that whole scene went from silly to just side-eyeingly stupid because, as Fiqah would say, that image was shown all willy-nilly. But, as Mollena said about the Ciara/Justin Timberlake video, BDSM, especially race play, can be a visually easy cheat for shock value.
Diana: And the whole scene still didn’t explain the room full of bodies laid out and why they’re left for anyone to find. Really, there’s no need to have a rave (or open bar) to off yourself. jen*: Al gave me the impression that it was more likely that the Blue Hand people were a mix of abyss-seers and FF-havers. But I am surprised that it supposedly caters to just the Goth-iest folks.
Where does Demetri go from here?
Mahsino: Well, if his wife-elect has anything to say about it, he’s going to get his ass back to bed and stick with her plan. His death will not ruin her big day, dammit!
Andrea: If I was Demetri, I’d ask Zoey the most obvious: “I’m really glad you ‘knew’ it was me, but did you actually see me in your flashforward?” Her stubborn magical thinking doesn’t negate the possibility that he could still die. Already she’s a bridezilla. SMH
Diana: I am glad he finally told her, though. If I were them, I would go ahead and run down to the courthouse to get married and live for the moment, just in case.
jen*: Second that, Diana. What’s so hard about being honest? But also, isn’t Zoey a lawyer? She’s gotta be smart enough to realize that not *actually* seeing Demetri is a red flag.
Open Mic!
Mahsino: So, back to Al, how did someone who looked like that get to be so lonely? He was nice, attractive, and had a good gov’t job with benefits? Side-eye on that one.
Andrea: Quite easily, Mahsino. I had a step-cousin, a Black man who had a good career in the military, was beloved by family and friends, and was good-looking, too. He committed suicide and, if I recall correctly, he left no explanation. It happens.
Diana: And he could cook too. Sad. As for the expanding cast, I was glad to see the MI-6 agent. I always liked her on ER.
Arturo: I totally fell for her during her guest-spot on Doctor Who last year. Her character was actually cool enough to make you believe she could be the Doctor’s wife.
Mahsino: I understand how it happens in real life, but in the land of Flash Forward, and TV in general,I question how it’s justifiable that the nice guy kills himself, but the douche-bag alcoholic who’s meh-looking at best gets a loving and devoted wife and family.
Andrea: But that’s just it, Mahsino: suicide is one of life’s verities, both in real life and on TV. It’s not about who “justified” in killing themselves and who’s not. Again, it happens.
Diana: Andrea and Mahsino, I’m deliberately trying not to get too heavy. I like my fantasy and sci-fi somewhat pop light. I get where you’re both coming from. We can’t see the inner workings of people who, from the outside, seem to have it all together, but still choose suicide as the path of least resistance. If they are going to go there, I would like to see a discussion on how selfish a choice suicide can be. Yes, Al seemingly did this for selfless reasons, to save another life and save himself from the guilt, but where is his family in all this and how do they cope with being left behind? Was there an alternative that was less extreme? He could have stopped driving for the six months or stayed in his apartment. His suicide might just be laziness on the part of the writers.
Andrea: I understand where you’re coming from, Diana, but the writers killed off a sci-fi character in a real, heavy, and all too-human way instead of, say, a pop-light incineration in a teleporter. Al’s suicide–as well as the suicide cult–bring up the magnitude of the human cost–selfish, selfless, and/or otherwise–of what Olivia’s future lover and the Hobbit did. Now, I’m going to cut the creative a little–like a hair’s breath of slack–because they may chronicle the toll Al’s death has on his family and friends. However, if the FF creatives want to keep it light, then they’d better ask Jeff Goldblum where he keeps his machine.
Arturo: My guess is, we’ll see the most – if any – toll of this on Demetri, since Al did this, in part, to show him he could change the game.
jen*: Hum. I’m sad about Al, because I would rather have seen more about him than this old guy with the long-lost daughter. But I was kinda weirded out that the doctor-boy seemed to think that kanji was the name of that specific character that the babysitter showed him. (Yeah, I don’t know anybody’s names.) Interesting that he’s looking for his Japanese dream-girl.
Mahsino: That reminds me- the vaguely, possibly, maybe “traditional” Japanese music they felt obligated to play when they mentioned Japan. Eye roll.
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Persia wrote:
She’s gotta be smart enough to realize that not *actually* seeing Demetri is a red flag.
The flash forwards include state of mind, though, so I’d think she’s going to be thinking “I’m marrying Demetri, whee!” I hope this isn’t some lame ‘doubles’ plot.
I am going to miss Al so much, and I actually cried at the end of the episode. It bothers me that the black guy died, especially since I loved Al and his relationship with Demetri– he was the one person who cared enough about the people around him to take action, which is interesting in itself.
(I wish they’d done a better job foreshadowing the ‘dark side’ of Al’s FlashForward, rather than having it so innocuous in the beginning– I’d rather have seen his increasing discomfort as the forwards began to ‘come true.’ Or was I just not watching closely enough?)
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 10:10 am ¶
Mary wrote:
Did not see that coming at all… DAMN! I want to be happy that Gough took decisive action and moved the story along, but I’m really upset at losing him, both as a character (I loved his scenes with Demetri!) and as a character of color.
And yes, I was one of the many people asking “Why couldn’t it have been Mark?” Because seriously, why is Mark the ostensible hero? Al, Janis and Demetri all seem far more sympathetic to each other than Mark does to any of them. As a result Mark ends up looking like kind of an odd-man-out jerk among an otherwise great team dynamic.
Mahsino: That reminds me- the vaguely, possibly, maybe “traditional” Japanese music they felt obligated to play when they mentioned Japan. Eye roll.
My hackles started to go up during that whole storyline… if this becomes a “depressed white guy finds mystical meaning of life in Asia” thing, I will puke. But, and maybe I’m giving the show too much credit here, I wouldn’t be surprised if they subverted it somehow (it could be a potentially good storyline if Dr. Suicide ends up killing himself anyway. Especially now that Al’s checked out, it would only be fair…)
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 10:15 am ¶
Persia wrote:
But, and maybe I’m giving the show too much credit here, I wouldn’t be surprised if they subverted it somehow (it could be a potentially good storyline if Dr. Suicide ends up killing himself anyway. Especially now that Al’s checked out, it would only be fair…)
I’m hoping that too– it seems like they have to subvert a lot of things, if only to keep some suspense going. Maybe she’s got a Japanese store in Chinatown, and Dr. Suicide goes all the way to Japan to find her and can’t!
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 10:35 am ¶
wendi muse wrote:
is this show goood yet? i am too impatient to go back and check. someone update me lol
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 10:51 am ¶
malted_tea wrote:
FWIW, I felt a glimmer of hope when soldier girl showed up at the kitchen table.
It’s my assumption, that Al’s “game changer” move won’t alter the reality of those two kids passing away. Instead, it messed up the pseudo-cosmos and brought back soldier girl.
And, if SHE can come back from the dead then so can Al.
Just need more people to try and change the game up. Err, hopefully with less building jumping.
Aside: Granted, I’m now caught up – more or less – and can follow this great Roundtable. But should I, as a mom, feel horrible for sending my kids to bed 30 minutes earlier twice weekly in order to watch V (Tues) and FlashForward (Thur)? LOLz.
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 11:18 am ¶
chicagorose wrote:
I had to laugh at the header, was wondering when you guys were going to get to this episode. My reaction was “Damn it!@% why do the ALWAYS kill the brother?!” This was the first episode of the series since the start actually felt a vested interest in watching, but was really hoping they’d further along Al’s developing connection with the British female agent.
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 12:11 pm ¶
Iggles wrote:
malted_tea – I would love it if Al somehow came back. But, this show seems too grounded in “reality” for such a scenario to work.
I would have *loved* if when Al jumped off the building, he landed in water. I think the ramifications of that would be scarier — he took drastic measures to end his life but still didn’t die.
I think Al was such a strong character. I am not liking where this storyline is going. If the future is changeable, then why did so many flashforwards come true after the blackout? In season 2 of Eureka, Jack changes one event and as a result from that point on things occurred differently. The blackout was a MAJOR events, so if the future is changeable then the FFs aren’t glimpses of the future. It’s glimpses of the future they would have had, if the blackout did not occur.
I think the show loses a lot of tension now. I liked the aspect of them fighting against their “destiny” yet not being able to change major events (i.e., if a character is alive in the flashforward they really can’t die).
I want to see where they go with this. Perhaps they can turn it around and find a new angle that surprises us. But since we now know the visions aren’t set in stone, how hard could it be to wrap up season 1 with a happy ending? Meh..
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 12:18 pm ¶
Lola wrote:
Al and Demetri had much better buddy chemistry than Demetri and Mark. I’m pissed that they killed Al off with and with so little warning.
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 12:31 pm ¶
Lisa J wrote:
Haven’t seen this show yet, b/c though I’m hearing from you and others how good it is, I get the impression it is one of those shows where it isn’t good to jump in and you need to catch every episode, but I hope to catch up at some point but just wanted to get some info out on the Heroes front.
Arturo, not sure if you aren’t watching Heroes anymore or if you are just not writing on it here but just wanted to let you know if you aren’t watching, the past 3 episodes have been fairly good, not season 1 good but better than the last 2 and kind of watchable. Mohinder will be back next week, (yaaay) and big news, drum roll please : THE HATIAN HAS A NAME!!! IT IS RENE! (Sorry can’t get a little accent on here) I almost fell of the couch when I thought I heard Claire say to him “Come on Rene” and had to rewind to double check and then in another scene, she introduced him to Gretchen and said “This is Rene” FINALLY. Took long enough. Oh and thank goodness, Gretchen is GONE (hopefully for good
And except for Peter we haven’t seen much of the Petrelli’s though I think Mama will be popping up next week.
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 12:35 pm ¶
Keith wrote:
What’s America’s obsession with black men making the ultimate sacrifice? Seriously, you saw it with Heroes, The Bionic women, Lost, and now this?
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 1:42 pm ¶
Diana wrote:
@Keith–Don’t forget Joe Morton in Terminator 2 blowing himself to smithereens and that still didn’t stop Skynet. :sigh:
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 2:45 pm ¶
gillian wrote:
A week later and I’m still sad about Al’s fate. I kept screaming at my TV, “Don’t do it, Al! Don’t do it!” To no avail-lol.
I can’t believe how invested I was in his character, after only knowing him for a few weeks. On the one hand, that fact gives his suicide more impact; OTOH
WHY AL?
*shakes head*
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 2:47 pm ¶
Winn wrote:
I too was extremely upset to lose Al, because a. I loved his chemistry with Demitri, b. he was extremely pleasant to look at, c. why does the brother always have to be the one to die? and d. I think his manner of death and its implications throw up all sorts of logic and continuity-flags that may end up derailing the show’s narrative plausibility if not handled very carefully. Unfortunately, I also kept being pulled out of the episode due to continually wondering, “Is it awkward for Joseph Fiennes and Alex Kingston to work together now, with all that fabulously awkward family history between them?” She’s a terrific actor and if I didn’t know it wouldn’t have bothered me, but as it stands, I found her casting a distraction. Probably just me, though…
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 4:22 pm ¶
eccentricyoruba wrote:
this roundtable managed to cover every single thing that came to my mind while watching this episode! i did not like that Al sacrificed himself but at the same time realised that this was possibly the first time i had seen a black man commit suicide on screen. i wish he was still there though, Al quickly became my favourite character in the series.
Mahsino: That reminds me- the vaguely, possibly, maybe “traditional” Japanese music they felt obligated to play when they mentioned Japan. Eye roll.
i think my eyes rolled as far back as they could during that scene. i really wonder how that story is going to play out.
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 5:13 pm ¶
Grapefruit wrote:
@Lisa J,
I would not be getting my hopes up about Heroes. There has been a kind of discussion with Tim Kring’s assistent on his blog, and his reactions to people bringing up racism and sexism on the show… well… I don’t know how to put it other than I had low expectations, but he left me pretty much speechless.
He is stating clearly that he doesn’t think white priviledge is a problem in Hollywood at the moment, and says there is nothing wrong with the show in his view. (And his view is the relevant one here, because he is a white male and therefore disadvantaged by the diversity programs in Hollywood!)
What do you expect to get from people like that?
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 8:36 pm ¶
Karen wrote:
It’s official. Mark is Claire Bennett.
What kind of idiot is this guy!?
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 10:09 pm ¶
Flioba wrote:
I actually found it really irritating that they claimed the Kanji character was ‘unfinished’ when the missing stroke is actually the second stroke, not the last one. Also that character exists in Chinese. Way to jump to conclusions? That failure could have been so easily avoided.
Posted 12 Nov 2009 at 11:06 pm ¶
TheVoiceOfReason wrote:
I was disappointed to see AL go he was a great character and not to mention SEXY!
Posted 13 Nov 2009 at 12:57 am ¶
dersk wrote:
All I can say is, who cares? They cancelled Dollhouse. ):
Posted 13 Nov 2009 at 10:39 am ¶
Darkrose wrote:
I cried–and I was totally spoiled for Al’s suicide. After I collected myself, my first thoughts were pretty much what everyone else has said: “Why’d they have to kill the good-looking brother?” and “Why couldn’t Mark have killed himself? I wouldn’t miss him.”
At this point, I’m mostly watching for Demetri, Janis, and Stan Wedek–and because Dom Monaghan as the evil genius cracks me the hell up every single time.
Posted 13 Nov 2009 at 6:27 pm ¶
Roxie wrote:
I said “NO, JETT JACKSON! DON’T DO IT!”
Posted 13 Nov 2009 at 11:02 pm ¶
Betty Chambers wrote:
I could have forgiven them if they had put Al in a coma, I don’t care how – maybe a freak accident, and keep him on ice until that special date went by.
At this point, the show is heading into Lost / Heroes territory of white washing the cast, whereas both shows took a full season – at least! Oh, I take that back, they killed Simone off as soon as possible.
I’m done watching FlashForward, I like Dmitri and Zoey, but I can’t stand the rest of the cast.
Posted 15 Nov 2009 at 8:51 pm ¶
Koi Nahin wrote:
@wendi muse — I think most people, like me, are up in the air. If you want a good site that does episode reviews on this show (as well as many other sci fi/fantasy/cult shows), check out Billie Doux’s blog.
@Keith – To be fair to Lost, there has also been a white male and a white female who’ve made the ultimate sacrifice — not to mention nearly all of the (very diverse) characters who, at one point or another, have tried and failed.
I think everyone here pretty much highlighted the majority of the problems that I have with this show. You know there’s a problem when the viewers are already ahead of the writers. And, really, do the characters have to be so dumb?
Why didn’t someone just shoot the Nazi to prove a point?
Posted 15 Nov 2009 at 9:45 pm ¶
Lisa J wrote:
@grapefruit, thanks for the info. Sighh. Oh well, at this point it is like watching a train wreck, I might as well keep watching till it is over or my eyeballs fall out.
Posted 17 Nov 2009 at 12:53 pm ¶