Glen here…
Well…damn it…for several days I’ve been trying to figure out how to review the pilot without giving too much away. Alas, it’s nearly impossible - as one of my key criticisms of the show also happens to be a rather major spoiler. Can this review be done without revealing the spoiler? Yes, but I think the points I would like to make regarding said spoiler are valid, and I’d really like you to think about them while viewing the show.
As such:
THIS IS A SPOILER WARNING. A RATHER MAJOR SPOILER IS CONTAINED WITHIN THIS ARTICLE. IT’S NOT ALTOGETHER A SURPRISING SPOILER WHEN YOU REALLY STOP AND THINK ABOUT IT, BUT IT IS A MAJOR SPOILER NONE THE LESS.
IF YOU PROCEED PAST THIS POINT, YOU RISK SPOILAGE FOR THE PILOT OF UPN’s "SEVEN DAYS".
Here we go…
SEVEN DAYS is a new series for UPN. It’s pilot is about a guy who gets to travel back in time seven days to save the U.S. President, Vice President, and Speaker of the House from assassination by terrorists. Also in the mix: a school-load of young children, many of whom had been exterminated in a terrorist gassing.
One candidate for the time travel mission is Frank Parker, who is taken out of a sanitarium populated by disgruntled American war veterans. The vets are pissed off about how the government treats the special forces, and feel like they’ve been summarily abandoned after being utilized to accomplish various government agendas (think THE ROCK). In fact, when news of the assassinations starts rolling in, many of the vets don’t seem to give a crap, but Parker sees beyond his resentment.
Parker is one of the few people put in the running to take the "backstep". Backstep is a time travel project which the government is planning using to send one person back in time seven days, to prevent the gassing and various assassinations. Someone qualified but expendable is needed. Someone whose tolerance for stress factors will allow him to survive the tremendously violent time transition process (think the sphere sequence in CONTACT). Parker looks to be the man.
There is initially some dissent among the staff of Backstep, some of whom feel drafting a crazy person for the job of saving the future is pretty insane notion in itself. Thanks in no-small-part to the endorsement of a Backstep military liaison (a former friend of Parker’s - played by the way cool and much missed Don Franklin, Roy Scheider’s First Officer on SEAQUEST), Parker is ultimately selected for the job. After a rigorous and daunting training / physical regimen (think THE RIGHT STUFF), Parker is ready to make the journey back in time. And the rest, as they say, is history. Or, *will* be history. Or, *was* history. Or…
And herein lies the problem…
((LAST CHANCE TO LOOK AWAY FROM THE SPOILER))
In this first episode, Parker is ultimately successful in resolving his mission. He saves the President, Vice President, Speaker of the House, and all the little children. And all is right with the world. BUT - if Parker was sent back in time solely as a reaction to the events he just canceled out (which he did by preventing the assassinations from happening), would this not suggest that Parker should cease to exist?
After all, he was only sent back in time because the assassinations happened to begin with. If the assassinations were successfully prevented, Parker would - therefore - never have been sent back in time. He should be erased from the subsequent timeline, no? So, why is this guy still hanging around in the past after he saves the day? ‘Cause they need a series, I guess. Still, this inconsistency bothers me, and unless I missed something along the way, the paradox even flies in the face of the laws laid down throughout this first Backstep story.
Which leads to a second issue: by the episode’s conclusion, we’re made to believe that other backsteps will be made. Pretty safe bet - after all, there are further episodes of the series. In this particular adventure, Parker can only travel back in time seven days due to power limitations and requirements. Does this imply that all stories for this series will be set within the previous week? Seems this is the case given a recent TV Guide interview with the series’ producer - who said something about the seven day limit giving the stories a greater sense of urgency (this is *not* an exact quote). This is a budget saver, all right - but this restriction could get really old really, really fast.
Jonathan LaPaglia plays Parker as very much the everyman. He is an appealingly volatile and enjoyably unpredictable personality who you *know* you could count on when the going gets tough. Franklin is…as always…cool and measured, his character is a fun counterpoint to Parker’s off-centered nature. Norman Lloyd is also on hand as a Backstep scientist. Anything Lloyd touches automatically inherits at least a *little* class, doesn’t it? A few subordinate characters are too stereotypically drawn or heavy handedly presented (the bitch ex-wife or the ass hole "this guys is never going to work!" nay sayer), but these factors are nicely counterbalanced by extra focus and attention towards the characters who are most often in the spotlight.
The opening of SEVEN DAYS is extremely handsome. It is wonderfully photographed, and is directed with involving sensibility by John McPherson (you can tell this episode is directed by an accomplished cinematographer). This pilot is a hell of a way to start a series. A lot of money got spent on this pilot, and it shows across the board. This thing is *big*.
One can only hope that writer / producer Christopher Crowe (FEAR and LAST OF THE MOHICANS) and company are fast enough and sharp enough to jump over all of the pitfalls this concept inherently lays down before them. It’s a fun and interesting ride, which might even make you think from time to time. But if the saying is true...and the devil really is in the details…they’d better watch out for those details, or someday there could be hell to pay for this series which seems to have so much potential - despite the many obstacles it will need to overcome to be the best it can be.
Hope *does* shine brightly. While they would not tell me any specifics (which equals "take this with a grain of salt"), several people working on this production have messaged me, indicating a high degree of support and belief in SEVEN DAYS. They feel some of the inconsistencies and trouble-spots enumerated in this review have been smoothed over or successfully addressed. If this is indeed the case, SEVEN DAYS might…just might…be the next "real thing".
