4400 2.8: "Rebirth"
Written by Lisa Melamed
Directed by Milan Chaylov
In which Tom and Diana must deal with a 4400 who has the ability to repair birth defects, but his past in Rwanda has bigger consequences, while Sean, Richard, and Diana deal with family issues…
After a few weeks of strong plotting, this episode slips back into a more predictable mode once again. It wasn’t hard to figure out where the story was going once the first act was over. There were some good character scenes, especially in terms of the reconciliations, but the central story was a bit too overwrought.
The tragedy in Rwanda was something that the Western world, for the most part, ignored. The media never made much of it, and while Middle Eastern and European matters dominated the United Nations and international diplomacy, the atrocities in Rwanda barely came into conversation. Anyone with a sense of humanitarianism would have to agree that the world dropped the ball, and that the lack of something to gain from taking matters in hand had much to do with it.
With that in mind, I found it gratifying that the writers saw fit to address the fact that it even happened. I don’t take issue with that, as it gave Edwin a strong motivation for personal redemption, even unto a painful and lingering death. It was a rather predictable resolution, but it made sense for the character. Hill Harper did a great job of communicating the inner turmoil within Edwin’s soul.
But the extension of that plot to Tom and Diana wasn’t as smooth. Tom, in particular, was way over the top in his response to the revelation that Edwin was tied to the Rwandan atrocities. He was immediately enraged, and he never really bothered to see any other side of it. It felt strongly out of character, especially coming on the heels of an episode where he was willing to save the life of a woman able to kill millions on a mood swing.
The writers did suggest (not enough, IMHO) that Tom was on edge because his doubts about the true purpose for the 4400 were coming to the surface. He has good reason to harbor such doubts. As I’ve speculated in previous reviews, the goal of the “future humanity” doesn’t seem nearly as straightforward as the finale of the first season suggested. In fact, much of the anticipated impact of certain 4400 (especially the now-dead ones) has been speculation within NTAC. There’s plenty of reason to think that the agenda is, at the very least, a bit more complicated.
Diana, on the other hand, has plenty of reason to be frustrated, but she seems to keep her head together a bit more. In fact, she keeps her head a little too much. If Tom comes across as more angry than he should be, and less than inclined to consider other points of view, then Diana is a bit too ready to see the “upside” of Edwin’s ability and give him a second chance. A more realistic approach might have been to give each character misgivings about their points of view; instead, Tom was tossing people into walls.
On the home front, it’s about time that Diana had a confrontation with April. It’s good that the situation from the previous episode didn’t just disappear, and that it will have ongoing consequences. I like to think of this as being important to Maya’s development; she really needs to understand how people will want to take advantage of her, and she’s learning quickly. This will no doubt continue to be reinforced as NTAC tries to use that fake diary to anticipate problems.
Family is also an issue for Sean, Kyle, and Danny. I thought that Sean and Danny reconciled way too easily. It should have taken more than a few angry words and an almost-fight to work everything from the first season out. It provides a means of applying pressure on Kyle, which is important to the season arc, but it also takes something away from the sense of isolation that Sean has felt. I’m hoping that it’s a move towards placing Sean between his family’s good influences and the political goals of Mr. Slimy Lobbyist.
Perhaps the best subplot of the episode involves Richard and his attempt to find closure with the soldier who beat him for dating a white woman back before his abduction. There’s a certain bittersweet quality to the reunion scenes, where these old men do everything possible to make sure Richard understands that they feel remorse for their actions. But Richard learns something about how holding on to hate and rage can kill you inside when he visits Lee. I wish more of the episode had been devoted to that part of the story.
But the character moments didn’t keep me from wincing whenever Angry!Tom stepped into a scene. It was jarring, and it felt more like the writer jumping on a soapbox (however justified) than a genuine reaction from the character. It took me out of the episode more times than I can count, and so I found myself less than pleased with the episode as a whole.
Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4
Final Rating: 6/10
Directed by Milan Chaylov
In which Tom and Diana must deal with a 4400 who has the ability to repair birth defects, but his past in Rwanda has bigger consequences, while Sean, Richard, and Diana deal with family issues…
After a few weeks of strong plotting, this episode slips back into a more predictable mode once again. It wasn’t hard to figure out where the story was going once the first act was over. There were some good character scenes, especially in terms of the reconciliations, but the central story was a bit too overwrought.
The tragedy in Rwanda was something that the Western world, for the most part, ignored. The media never made much of it, and while Middle Eastern and European matters dominated the United Nations and international diplomacy, the atrocities in Rwanda barely came into conversation. Anyone with a sense of humanitarianism would have to agree that the world dropped the ball, and that the lack of something to gain from taking matters in hand had much to do with it.
With that in mind, I found it gratifying that the writers saw fit to address the fact that it even happened. I don’t take issue with that, as it gave Edwin a strong motivation for personal redemption, even unto a painful and lingering death. It was a rather predictable resolution, but it made sense for the character. Hill Harper did a great job of communicating the inner turmoil within Edwin’s soul.
But the extension of that plot to Tom and Diana wasn’t as smooth. Tom, in particular, was way over the top in his response to the revelation that Edwin was tied to the Rwandan atrocities. He was immediately enraged, and he never really bothered to see any other side of it. It felt strongly out of character, especially coming on the heels of an episode where he was willing to save the life of a woman able to kill millions on a mood swing.
The writers did suggest (not enough, IMHO) that Tom was on edge because his doubts about the true purpose for the 4400 were coming to the surface. He has good reason to harbor such doubts. As I’ve speculated in previous reviews, the goal of the “future humanity” doesn’t seem nearly as straightforward as the finale of the first season suggested. In fact, much of the anticipated impact of certain 4400 (especially the now-dead ones) has been speculation within NTAC. There’s plenty of reason to think that the agenda is, at the very least, a bit more complicated.
Diana, on the other hand, has plenty of reason to be frustrated, but she seems to keep her head together a bit more. In fact, she keeps her head a little too much. If Tom comes across as more angry than he should be, and less than inclined to consider other points of view, then Diana is a bit too ready to see the “upside” of Edwin’s ability and give him a second chance. A more realistic approach might have been to give each character misgivings about their points of view; instead, Tom was tossing people into walls.
On the home front, it’s about time that Diana had a confrontation with April. It’s good that the situation from the previous episode didn’t just disappear, and that it will have ongoing consequences. I like to think of this as being important to Maya’s development; she really needs to understand how people will want to take advantage of her, and she’s learning quickly. This will no doubt continue to be reinforced as NTAC tries to use that fake diary to anticipate problems.
Family is also an issue for Sean, Kyle, and Danny. I thought that Sean and Danny reconciled way too easily. It should have taken more than a few angry words and an almost-fight to work everything from the first season out. It provides a means of applying pressure on Kyle, which is important to the season arc, but it also takes something away from the sense of isolation that Sean has felt. I’m hoping that it’s a move towards placing Sean between his family’s good influences and the political goals of Mr. Slimy Lobbyist.
Perhaps the best subplot of the episode involves Richard and his attempt to find closure with the soldier who beat him for dating a white woman back before his abduction. There’s a certain bittersweet quality to the reunion scenes, where these old men do everything possible to make sure Richard understands that they feel remorse for their actions. But Richard learns something about how holding on to hate and rage can kill you inside when he visits Lee. I wish more of the episode had been devoted to that part of the story.
But the character moments didn’t keep me from wincing whenever Angry!Tom stepped into a scene. It was jarring, and it felt more like the writer jumping on a soapbox (however justified) than a genuine reaction from the character. It took me out of the episode more times than I can count, and so I found myself less than pleased with the episode as a whole.
Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4
Final Rating: 6/10
posted by John Keegan | 16:40
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