However, not everyone is as happy about this rumour (I won’t call it ‘news’ until NBC officially confirms it) as most of us are. One such blogger is literally up in arms that the show hasn’t been cancelled:

Look guys, the only reason I watched that last, craptacular episode was because I believed it was the last one ever and felt a twisted sort of obligation to see it through to the end, having been a huge BW apologist from the beginning, trying to convince folks every week that it was going to get better, pointing out the few bright spots each week in a sea of craptaculosity.

Now you’re telling me it wasn’t even close and that I might have to watch more episodes when it returns? Not gonna do it.

NBC, do the right thing: Put Bionic Woman out of our misery and bring back Journeyman.

Firstly, NBC, do the right thing and keep Bionic Woman on the air! Do not bow to the negativity. If you’re going to give the show a chance, then give the show a chance. It may only be 5 episodes but a lot can happen in that time. Let the writers and the other creative forces come back with a knock-out 5 episodes and then I predict that people will flock back to the show. All we want is good TV. I’m not going to go on about the shows potential because that is obvious. The show received 14 million viewers on it’s debut..something drew the people in..think back to how the show was presented, to what was promised. Think back to what that was and go back to that premise! 

I still believe in this show – I might be crazy, but there’s something about BW that excites me. Granted, we haven’t seen it yet, but all we need is a blank slate and some creative writers who will stay true to the dark and edgy show that David Eick promised us.

I’m not even going to sweat the negativity that this show is still receiving. The thing is, people are still talking about the show – more than they’re talking about Journeyman or Chuck, even. As fans of BW we are not blind – we know what was wrong with the first 8 episodes, and I’d like to think that we’ve duly given constructive criticism were needed. I’d just like to appeal to all those who love or hate the show, to give the rumoured 5 remaining episodes a chance and make up your own minds. Importantly I hope that people keep talking about the show – if you hate it then please by all means continue to share those views constructively..equally if you love it (or anything in between love and hate) then keep talking about the show! There’s so much to be gained from interacting with other fans and critics of a TV series – we might not always agree but our different perspectives can help create a Universe which the creators can tap into. I want a ‘Bioniverse’! Perhaps if we talk and rant about the show enough then it will improve and we might even have something worth holding on to?

Hey, it’s Christmas..I can but hope!:D

Those of you who want to show your support for the show by signing the Bionic Woman petition (set-up by Chris Johnson) – you can do so here. There are currently 842 signatures!

At the end of the Pilot episode a determined Jaime told Jonas: “If we’re gonna do this, what ever this is, then we’re gonna do it on MY terms”. A stupid line if ever there was one, but that aside, what ever happened to Jaime ‘doing things on her terms’??

I was actually looking forward to seeing Jaime claim her independence only to realise that it would be more complicated than she had envisaged – or something like that. Instead we’ve seen very little of Jaime working for Burket on her own terms. Sure, she’s had the odd day off here, finished work a few hours early there, but I had associated ‘doing things on my terms’ with her making conflicting choices regarding right and wrong, possibly leading to her working outside of the organisation that made her. After all, this was the cautionary tale – Sarah Corvus served as a warning to what could become of Jaime. However Jaime has instead led a rathered sheltered life – not once have I got the impression that she was in any REAL danger (either physically or psychologically), or that she could be ‘changed’ by an event which ‘could’ lead to her taking the ‘Sarah Corvus route’ in self preservation.

Perhaps I’ve just missed the parts when any of this happened? Perhaps I haven’t been paying close enough attention? Perhaps I’m being unfair? Hey, I’ll admit it if this is the case.

I actually think that two of the biggest problems with the Jaime character is that she relies too much on men (or when she is ‘ballsy’, as they say in the UK, it’s unconvincing), and she never seems to be in any great risk. What’s the point of being bionic if you’re never in any real peril – even Superman had Kryptonite! This is why I really wish they had expanded on the whole ‘Bionic Lifespan’ storyline (what happened to that? Heck, what happened to Corvus!?) – now THAT was interesting! I get the feeling that they thought we were too unintelligent to grasp such a storyline..that, or they didn’t want to get too ‘scifi’ on us…HA!

Anyway, my main point is that I don’t think Jaime stayed true to herself – perhaps I am overlooking moments when she did things on her terms? If I am, I fear that they were too insignificant or not important enough to make me remember!

*I realise that alot of my complaints are down to the problems that the show has encountered, but hey, this is a blog and until the show gets cancelled I’ve gotta get my BW thoughts/frustrations out there!

Some of the comments on the nytimes tvdecoder blog, in particular, leave no doubt as to their feelings regarding MR’s performance. Here’s a sample:

It’s pretty simple: Michele Ryan is a car wreck, and there’s no rebuilding her. She mistakes oogling her giant, expressive eyes for acting. The writing is generally stiff and unengaging. — Posted by Janet V

Michelle Ryan? Bless her heart- awful. Really, just about the worst actor I’ve seen a show built around since Emeril Lagasse. Not many people can make a line that reads as bad as “That saving the world thing? I’d like to give it a try,” and deliver it so it sounds even WORSE. Ryan sunk to the occasion. — Posted by howlless

The problem in a nutshell: Michelle Ryan ain’t no Jennifer Garner. Nor is she a Lindsey Wagner.

— Posted by Phil

Whilst I realise that these views are supplemented with many positive views about MR, from what I have seen a lot of the recent criticisms of the show are beginning to focus on the lead actress. I am surprised that MR is under such attack – sure, she wasn’t outstanding but in my opinion she’s miles better than the entire female cast of ‘Heroes’ and Evangeline Lilly from ‘LOST’ (no offense, Evie), yet I don’t see them getting bashed for their acting ability, not to this degree.

Sorry, but I have to defend Michelle Ryan’s corner because she has shown vast improvement over the course of 8 episodes. Doesn’t that deserve credit? The main problem with BW is the writing – it has been terrible, it has been disjointed and it has been ‘insecure’ – it has tried to please, but has failed to find it’s voice after the first showrunner left. Sure, great actors can sometimes carry a show – heaven knows Jack Coleman has just about carried Season 2 of Heroes – but Ryan is not a great actress, not ‘yet’ (that’s not to say she won’t be). She is a fresh actress, in a new country, with her first breakout series. Yes, she does deserve criticism, as does every person who is judged on performance, but personally I don’t think she should shoulder the blame for Bionic Woman’s ills. Could anyone else really have made the show ‘better’? I’m not so sure they could – not when the likes of Miguel Ferrer, Isaiah Washington and even ‘cult hero’ Katee Sackhoff, have at times, struggled in their own performances.

It’s good, however, that the show is still provoking so much opinion – that’s what it’s all about and that’s what NBC need to recognise. Yes, the show has, by and large, sucked so far, but the show is STILL a major talking point and still has so much in reserve. Let’s just hope that Michelle Ryan and friends get the chance to give the fans something positive to talk about.

C’mon NBC, give us the ‘edgy’, ‘dark’ and ‘captivating’ Bionic Woman we were promised! Remember that? Can’t we, like, just go back to that?

—————–

* I should add, that in regards to the crisitsms being laid at Michelle Ryan’s door, she is also receiving much love from some quarters. Keep your head up girl!

I’m not sure whether Bionic will use popular culture in this way, but I hope they do as it adds depth to a show and enables the viewers to further their understanding of the key themes by enriching their experience.

So with that in mind I wonder what was behind the Alice in Wonderland book reference? Of course it was used to hide the neuro-transmitters, but one thing which struck me is the parallel between the book and a key aspect of the show. In the book, Alice falls into a fantasy realm which is populated with Anthropomorphic creatures. It could be argued that Jaime herself is a Anthropomorphic character because she is no longer ‘human’ (if you will), yet she clearly still has those uniquely ‘human characteristics’, such as morals, emotions, love, vulnerability etc. Not only that, but with the key theme of this episode being about ‘mind control’, it seems likely that the ‘Alice In Wonderland’ reference also alludes to the idea that the world Jaime is living in..the world she once thought was ‘normal’ is now anything but ‘normal’.

Perhaps in a later episode we’ll see the book “Through The Looking Glass” ?

I should also mention that this is now the second book reference in Bionic Woman  (or third if you include James Joyce’s “The Dead”) – the first was ‘What Color Is Your Parachute’, which was referenced in “Paradise Lost” when Jaime met Antonio.

What Worked:

The opening scene where the man kills his fellow soldiers was awesome in that it instantly presented us with the theme of control and manipulation. This mirrors Sarah Corvus’ claim that she was hacked and ‘made’ to kill the Burket scientists and brought it to a whole new level with not only the notion of non-bionic hacking, but the proof that it can be done..even to ‘humans’. I mean if you can effectively ‘hack’ a human, you bet they can hack a machine, right? Corvus is innocent I say! (well, apart from all those subsequent murders maybe)

Nathan is SO the man! His whole protective rant at Jaime was so funny and believable. Gotta love the tech geek! He’s fast becoming my third favourite character – who would have thought?

Jaime going back to college. OK, so I thought that this would suck, but it was actually rather well done. Particularly the bit near the end where her roommate gave her the results of the paper Jaime completed for her – it was sweet to see Jaime fulfil, if you will,  her ambition to experience further education (something she had to give up due to looking after her sister).

Jaime & Tom. OK I was cynical. I don’t watch BW for the ‘romance’. I get enough pointless love stories watching ‘Heroes’. However, this was good. The chemistry between Ryan and Bridges was fantastic, he managed to bring out that sparkle in Ryan and I dare say she added to his performance too. They are certainly more ‘believable’ than her and Will Anthros (who by the way is no longer boring since his ‘death’), and I think the audience will care more about them as a couple as they lead their double lives and perhaps find solace and understanding in one another. Of course it wont be as simple as that..well, I hope not.

Antonio Pope. You have to hand it to Washington, he knows how to work the camera. I thought he was fantastic in this episode, not only because of his presence and intensity, but because he actually gave a more ‘subtle’ performance, which was perhaps helped by his script allowing his character to show more ‘compassion’?

Jaime’s ‘British’ accent. Yes Yes and YES! Now the only thing I’m left thinking is why they didn’t just make her an English Bionic Woman in the first place!? I think NBC are also wondering this as it almost seemed as if they wanted to see ‘our’ reaction to her accent (which is very clever by the way whoever thought of that script). Although Ryan has done a great job with her American accent, it must be hard work keeping it up when it’s not your natural way of speaking, and I actually think that this may be the reason why some people perceive her character lack ‘emotion’ or ‘life’. Maybe she’s concentrating so hard on getting the accent right that she is not able to harness the rest of her acting talents? After all if I were to suddenly have a new arm it would feel kinda foreign to me for a good few months and I’d imagine that co-ordination would be a problem. So, NBC, here’s my suggestion..ditch the American accent..find a way..get freaky-geeky Nathan to rewire her ‘programming’ (he has a fetish for the English accent, right?) and have her speak in her natural accent. You may get some stick for it, but this is the business you’re in..you’ll think of something. I really think it will be worth the risk because for the first time Ryan (as good as she has been) reminded me of her performance in the outstanding ’Jekyll’. Please bring back the English Bionic Woman..even ‘Tom’ (if that’s his real name) liked it!

What Didn’t Work:

The fight scenes. Was the camera person drunk? Seriously what was going on behind the camera? The filming of the fight scenes was so jumpy and disorientating.

The lighting/editing. What I mean is that the outdoor scenes look so ‘pale’. The colours aren’t ‘rich’ enough for what should be a glossy, super-slick show. I mean take a look at the other Sci-fi shows and they ‘look’ much richer on the eye. Unless it’s a dark scene the BW lighting/editing (whatever) just doesn’t look good. Please sort it out NBC because the visuals shouldn’t be noticeably bad – No-one talks about the great visuals on Heroes because they’re just that..great.

More random terrorists. OK, enough is enough – I know that “this isn’t your moms Bionic Woman”, but do we really need the random terrorist plot week after week?Yes, the world is a scary place, much ‘scarier’ than it was in the 1970′s (or at least that’s what they say) but honestly, there’s more going on than just terrorism. Yes, by all means drop it in there every once in a while, but not every. single . week! If something doesn’t work, get rid of it..that’s what I thought NBC were doing with this show, seeing what works and what doesn’t until the show finds it’s identity? Well, the random terrorist plots don’t work, they look silly and only serve to prop up the much more interesting themes – like neuro-hacking..nowTHAT’s a theme..run with that, heck leap from building to building with it, just cut out the random terrorist plots each and every week. We get it, the world is a scary place..but it’s much more believable when the corners of science and it’s often unethical application in society is explored.

Ruth. What have they done to her?? She’s vastly unemployed after such a promising start. Let the caged bird free..

Recommendation:

Other than the whole ‘bring back the British Bionic Woman’ and lose the ‘constant’ terrorism plots, what I recommend NBC do, is to give the Burket’s a barometer – bring a tangible rival organisation into the picture. Not the CIA, an actual rival ‘bionic’ agency. We need something to compare them against..Jaime is constantly questioning the idea that they are the ‘good guys’, so let’s put this to the test, let’s find out just how ethical Burket really are, let’s find out how far it is acceptable for an organisation to go before it becomes immoral and unethical. We have a plethora of themes and issues which should be explored here. Let’s see whether Jaime, who is doing this on her terms (apparently), is fighting for good, for the ‘greater good’, or for the interests of a few fatcats who simply want to shape the world as they see fit. It always gets sticky when the main protagonist finds out that not only are they a puppet on a string, but every choice they thought they were making, was actually a choice which was made FOR them. Let’s explore the notion of freewill, control, manipulation, personal gain and sacrifice. Let’s see this Bionic Woman become a pawn and then have her fight for her right to be free and to make her own decisions..real decisions which she believes in. Then you have the question of what IS real and what is controlled – we’ve seen it with Corvus..now let’s explore that cautionary tale.

———-

Best Actor: I’m pleased to say that it was Michelle Ryan. The lead actress is coming into her own! 

Best Character: Jaime Sommers

Best Quote: One of many from Nathan’s scenes! Oh and this one from Jaime’s room mate:

“I just like secret food, OK!”

I don’t know why that made me laugh, but that’s the whole point..great stuff!

Worst Quote: (Tom) “You’ve got something on your nose” (or words to that effect)

Excuse me whilst I cringe! ;)

Best Moment: The various scenes which showed people being ‘controlled’ (notably the opening scene).

Worst Moment: The fight scene (daytime). Apart from Jaime knocking the guy out with a Melon, watching it gave me a headache. Sort it out..maybe give the camera technicians some of those neuro-control transmitters (I’m kidding about the last bit..but seriously please sort it out)

Episode Rating: 8/10. I’m tempted to raise this by .5 but I hope that there is still alot more to come.

So now they have me interested again..I’ll admit it, I was beginning to wonder whether I had misjudged my excitement over the premise of this show, but although “TEoJS” wasn’t perfect, it was a continued improvement. I really do think that it will be worth being patient with this show as they find their groove. It’s almost like watching a ‘beta’ project at times, but the fact that they have a new show runner suggests that NBC are in this for the long haul, and if they keep on improving then my interest in the show will continue to peak. The biggest compliment that I can pay this episode was the fact that the lead actress did just that, she led and she was brilliant. Furthermore, four of my favourite characters were absent – Papa Anthros, Sarah Corvus, Jae Lee and Becca Sommers – yet I honestly didn’t care.

Now the bad news is that just when things get interesting, NBC decide to put another show on in it’s place for Halloween, so no new episode next week. Bionic Woman returns on November 7.

OK, here’s the premise:

You have a choice of ONE of Jaime’s bionic abilities – which would YOU choose? Use the poll below/in the side bar to vote for your choice and let’s see which of Jaime’s abilities is most popular with the Bionic Community. Perhaps we’ll even convince ‘the powers that be’ (aka the Bionic producers) to use more of our favourite abilities in the show, goodness knows the Bionic Eye has had more than it’s fair share of usage (as cool as it is).

[poll=15]

If the above poll doesn’t work, please use the one in the sidebar.

This week, I’ve broken my views down in to what I felt worked and didn’t work:

What worked:

-Jaime’s reaction to Becca ‘making out’ – This was actually a believable scene and it allowed us to see Jaime using her bionic installations for personal use – much to the displeasure of Jonas.

-Jaime and Nathan. I’m fast becoming a Nathan fan! I like his quips and the way he and Jaime interact. He SO wants her, but it does cross my mind as to whether he likes ‘Jaime’ or the technology that is inside of her. After all, he is a tech-freak.

-Sarah being carted away, ala Hannibal Lecter, as she makes small talk with Jaime as if she didn’t threaten to kill Becca the week earlier (or whatever the timescale currently is in this show). Funny stuff!

-Finding out about Jaime’s “5 year” bionic lifespan was a good device. Kinda knew it was coming seeing as we found out about Sarah’s the week before, but it was a good move. Just a shame we didn’t focus more on this potentially interesting theme.

-Fight scene between Jaime and Antonio (although I would like to know how Antonio escaped from ‘bad guy hideout’ in the first place..)

-The idea that Will Anthros was working outside of the Burket Group. As Jonas said: “I don’t think we knew Will as well as he thought”. Basically, Will is getting more and more interesting since his ‘death’! Was he selling bionics to the highest bidder, just like his father before him?

What Didn’t Work:

-Sarah’s escape. Fair enough they explained the ease of her capture by her admitting to Jae that she ‘wanted’ to get caught, but her escape was far to ‘easy’ and rather disappointing.

-Sarah and Burket interrogation. Apart from the line where Sarah admits to Ruth that’s she’s “crazy” and where she references “Mr. Ed”, I found the interaction between Burket (Jonas, Ruth, Jae) and Sarah, unbelievable. It needed more tension and better dialogue. A missed opportunity for some real character development methinks!

-Jaime’s decision making. OK, she saved the CIA guy, but why did she give him the flash file? Would she REALLY trust him enough to do that? Maybe I’m being picky, but that just made no sense…she previously didn’t strike me as stupid.

-Fan bending. I know what they were trying to do here (i.e. give Jaime something ‘cool’ to do), but what was the purpose of that fan other than to give Jaime something ‘cool’ to do, lol!? Also, would the fan really continue to work afterwards, and stop every single bullet that the bad guys fired? Perhaps it’s a super fan..

-The scene were she did her bionic leaps as the bad guys fired bullets at her was cool (it certainly looked cool in the trailers), but wasn’t it a bit convenient that she just happened to get shot and land in the exact spot where she would have ended up had she followed Mr. CIA man (which would’ve been the logical thing to do anyway!)?

-So Will, who works for a top secret agency, leaves all of his data on Jaime’s bionics on one flash file? Maybe limiting the data to one source is not such a bad idea, but the whole plot device about the CIA man getting caught just seemed so random!

All in all this was quite a mixed bag, however something kept me interested. Whether it’s the promise of things to come, the hope that Mark Sheppard might grace the episode with his presence or the faith that they will finally start driving home the powerful themes..whatever it was, I still enjoyed it enough to watch the episode in full. However it has to get better than this, I’m used to quality shows and demand that ‘BW’ doesn’t waste this opportunity to give us themes which no other show currently can. Come on guys, don’t waste this chance!

Best character: Antonio Pope – not great in this episode but he gives us that ‘curveball’ intensity and makes me laugh when he ‘tries’ to face off again Jaime..like duh, she’s bionic, dude! He must like getting kicked through walls!

Best Actor: Michelle Ryan (OK, Jaime was dumb in this episode, but I thought Michelle gave the best performance. Wasn’t feeling Katee this time, perhaps it’s down to her script?).

Best moment: The Antonio/Jaime fight (Incidentally is THIS why it was called ‘Face Off’? I can’t think of any other reason…except maybe for the capture of Sarah. But that was hardly a face off..more a passing glance!). Anyway, the fight sequence still rocked!

——–

Best Quote:

Ruth: “You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink”

Sarah: “..If Mr. Ed wont drink, you grab him by the mane and hold him under…he’ll swallow”

—-

Worst Quote

Jonas (to Jae) “You want to help her..help her help herself”.

——–

Main Episode Theme: Trust, trust and trust..did I say TRUST?

——-

Overall Episode Rating: 7/10

*Coming soon: “Face Off” Episode Investigations

Wow, this was certainly a step up from last weeks episode! If this episode was an indication of things to come then no wonder NBC have ordered more scripts.

The title – “Sisterhood”

I thought this was a good title for the episode as it played into the central themes – the relationship between Becca and Jaime and between Jaime and Sarah. Despite not telling Becca the truth about her being half machine, Jaime clearly loves her sister and feels protective over her. However, in this episode she realised that Becca could be her biggest weakness, as people such as Sarah can target her as a way to get to Jaime..as a way to make her comply, or conform to their standards. Sarah Corvus and Jaime are virtually sisters themselves, both of them share a connectivity or a ‘sisterhood’, if you will, by the fact that they both have bionic implants which have been placed inside them without their total consent (though I was of the understanding that Corvus ‘volunteered’ for the programme, but there you go). I get the feeling that although Jaime’s priority is to protect Becca, she also empathises with Sarah and wants to help her..she just doesn’t know whether she can trust her – likewise, Jaime broke Sarah’s trust by using the self-hack trick to alert the Burket Group. Can’t blame her really, you just don’t mess with a girls sister. I would like to see this theme explored in greater depth because it’s obviously one which the actors can easily identify with and consequently it will be depicted with great realism and integrity, as it was in this episode. By the way, Katee Sackhoff was simply brilliant.

Jaime Sommers & ‘Grooming’

So, it would appear that Will did indeed target Jaime for Bionic installation years before they ‘met’, as the file she found in last weeks episode indicated. Not only is this creepy, but it raises some serious issues about a person’s right to freedom as well as issues of trust. So, Will was looking for someone with the right genetic/personality/physical etc make-up in order to try out his new and improved Bionic technology. Question – where on earth was he test running all of this? Was it directly under the Burket noses or did he have another agency that he worked for? I mean two years is a long time, and one would assume that during this time he was still perfecting and testing the implants..and on who? That’s what I want to know. We also have the issue of Jaime’s grandmother who may have been an early Bionic subject, which would suggest that my theory that Sarah is not, infact, the first Bionic Woman is correct. I think that Jaime’s genes are suited to Bionic installation and perhaps her grandmother (who had a so-called ‘genetic defect’) was an early Bionic test run?

Jaime & Sarah &’ Hacking’ into oneself

One of the most interesting themes from this episode – the fact that both Bionic Woman can ‘hack’ into their implants and ‘turn them off..and on’. How cool is that..and how cool was the nose-bleed aspect!? They’re beginning to present these BW more and more like machines..or computers and it’s a fascinating exploration into what it would be like to be bionic. I have a question though – how often can they hack into themselves before it starts to do irreparable damage? Sarah has been Bionic for what, 2-3 years, and already she is beginning to ‘erode’. This may be because her implants are inferior to Jaime’s but I would still imagine that Jaime’s lifespan is also limited? Another interesting aspect is the notion that if they can self-hack, then others can also hack into them – as Sarah claims (and I believe) happened to her when she killed those 14 BG scientists. I’m sure there would be no end of people who would want to hack into a BW, afterall, they’re part machines..machines that can be turned into the most dangerous and ‘effective’ of weapons.

Which brings me onto Antonio/Jae..

Embrace the machine or retain humanity?

These are the contrasting philosophies of Jaime’s two mentors – Antonio believes that she must unleash the ‘animal’ and embrace her machine side if she is to survive..whilst Jae, who has had to turn a gun on his own love, believes that “the machine is nothing without the woman”.

These are two crucial distinctions and it’s fascinating to see which one is most effective and which one Jaime will end up choosing. My bet is that she will have to choose BOTH if she is to survive. There may come times when she has to hold onto her humanity in order to keep her identity and possibly save her sister..but there will also be occasions when she has to make snap judgements for the greater good..decisions which may well mean ‘calling out the animal inside’ and stepping outside of her human morals and belief systems. As a BW she can no longer just think for herself..she has a wider picture to survey. No-one said being a BW would be easy..it’s the price she now has to pay for the curiosity of science and mans meddling with God’s work. Ah, and there’s another themes..natural evolution versus scientific evolution.

Sarah & her Sister

So, Sarah had a sister..I never actually considered that. It actually gives the most layered character even more layers, which is great as Katee Sackhoff is able to handle it..infact she seems like an actress who needs a challenge. Anyway, whilst my heart does bleed for Sarah’s loss, what I want to know is, who killed her sister? Afterall, it was surely no accident as it mirrored the way in which Sarah attempted to kill Anthros jnr..unless, of course, she is still so scared by what happened to her sister that she wanted to purge herself of the memory (guilt?) by inflicting a mirror ‘accident’ upon Will..? Eitherway, I felt bringing her sister into the game (yes Jaime, ‘game’) at this stage was great as it enhanced the episode and integrated with it’s central theme. Did I say Sackhoff rocks? And that’s coming from an anti-fanboy!

Papa Anthros

It’s amazing what Mark Sheppard does to an episode – perhaps next time we can just sit him in a room and have him talk about…anything! Seriously, the man is awesome..awesomeI tell you! So, Papa Anthros is quite the manipulator, it would seem. He obviously has his own agenda, which consists of getting his paws on Jaime’s bionics. Hmm, he must be pretty jealous that his son was able to create a more advanced Bionic Woman than his Sarah Corvus effort – is this why Will’s death doesn’t even seem to register with him? I knew there was some-kind of beef between the two of them. Anyway, enough about Will, he’s dead (or IS he?), what were those drugs that Papa Anthros gave Sarah? She must be at a very low ebb if she is trusting him, after all doesn’t she hate her creators?

We also found out that Anthony was in jail for treason – selling Bionics to the highest bidders. Now that is a storyline that has depth - it not only questions the ethics of the man, but it suggests that he is motivated by money (or the equivalent). Did he not care what the buyers of these ‘weapons’ did with them? Also, did he actually sell ‘Bionic Women’ to the highest bidders, and if so what has become of them? And why ‘women’? Sarah raised this issue in the episode, and it’s now made me question why ‘women’ seem to be the prerred gender for Papa and son’s Bionic installation programmes?

Oh, And where was Mr. Stitches? I miss his barrel of laughs..

Jonas and the Burkets

Loved Jonas this week, full of quips and witty comebacks! He is a pervert though (joking), and the issue of privacy is an important one. I mean, what do they do when Jaime is taking a shower? And did they really watch her and Will get it on (Yuck)? I guess it would explain why Jae was so quick to tend to Will’s ‘fatal’ shoulder wound and why Jonas was so quick to save Jaime’s dignity in last weeks toilet debacle -they’re monitoring her at all, well, ‘most’ times. So just to clarify, they (or rather Will) implanted an optical interface which is wrapped around her cerebral cortex and relays a live video feed or stream to BG HQ. So it’s in her brain and not her eye – which is perhaps why she is able to ‘hack’ herself – ‘if’ it was in her eye then surely no amount of concentration would allow her to turn it on and off at will? Although she could cut out her eye, but that’s another story (season 2 maybe? ;)). So yeah, Jonas and co. contravene her rights to privacy but then from their point of view she was a curveball who has $50 million of their machinery inside her body. So I guess Jonas has to keep track of his investment..hopefully he wont abuse that power on a late night at the office – he’s no longer married, right? Close your eyes whilst bathing Jaime..that’s my tip to you.

I could say much more about this episode as I thought it truly rocked! Last week was such a disappointment for me, so it’s only right that I congratulate the guys at BW for a fantastic episode this week. It wasn’t perfect but please let this be the start of many more good things to come. Everyone recognises that this show has potential, and if Eick and co. continue to tap into that potential then people will remain curious..don’t drop the ball guys!

—————-

Best Performer: Katee Sackhoff (Did I say she rocks?)

Best Character Performance: Sarah Corvus & Papa Anthros (awesome..both of them)

Special Mention Award: Lucy Hale as Becca (great addition to the cast and an excellent character so far)

Best Quote:

Antonio: I’m about to go analogue on your ass!

Jaime: Bring it bitch!

Best Moment: Jaime hacking herself so that her optical interface came back online and alerted the Burkets of Sarah’s presence. That was an awesome moment!

Episode Rating: 8.5/10

No doubt it will purify her of any germs that she may pick up during drunken sex in a public toilet? Is that why she was so libral in allowing Steve to ‘embrace the machine’?

Hmm, I guess the truth is that we still know so little about the make-up of the new Bionic Woman. We know she can heal faster than the rest of humanity (Sarah aside), but does this prevent her from getting colds, disease…older?

That’s a point..what if she doesn’t age?

I touched on this in last weeks Bionic Investigations: In the first episode, Sarah Corvus proclaims that she is the first Bionic Woman. But is she?

Just before she makes love to the man now dubbed “Mr. Stitches”, she asks him if she reminds him of ‘her’. He replies by suggesting that her skin does. Could this “her” with the Sarah-like skin have been a previous Bionic Woman? Was she another experiment of Anthony Anthros..or perhaps more likely, Will Anthros, seeing as “Stitches” wanted him dead..?

All this makes me wonder what a living version of an earlier Bionic Woman would do to Sarah’s ego? Whilst she seems more intriuged rather than de-throned by newer model Jaime, perhaps the existence of an earlier Bionic Woman would make her feel less ‘original’..less special? Afterall, she does seem to have a needy side to her, despite her bravado.

Of course this is mere speculation right now, but it’s something to consider, perhaps.

Place your bets below (Poll closes after Wednesdays episode, so get your vote in!):

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