Threshold 1.5: "Shock"

Written by Andre Bormanis
Directed by Tim Matheson

In which Caffrey and the Red Team track down one of the infected to Baltimore, where issues of jurisdiction get in the way of conducting the investigation, while team members continue to change…


I’m beginning to have serious concerns about this series. It has some very good elements and a lot of potential, but it just doesn’t seem to be coming together. Granted, some series are just rough for a season or so, but in this day and age, it takes a strong showing right out of the gate to stay alive. I suppose there’s little else on Fridays right now, but that doesn’t mean that the audience will continue to support a series that seems to have internal logic problems.

I’m finding it very hard to believe in the character of Molly Caffrey. In the pilot, she seemed to be very competent, and while they really played up the sex appeal, the writers let Carla look smart at the same time. Now, while every episode has the requisite buoyant bosoms in a really right shirt and stylish skirt and boots, her credibility has been terribly compromised. Here’s the thing: for someone who keeps talking about how she has a plan, the Red Team is completely reactive.

That’s what bothers me. These are good characters, and their various issues are becoming a good reason to watch the show. But this “contingency plan” is a complete crock. It seems to have little political support, especially considering the fact that this is quite obviously a matter of national security. It’s also quite clear that Threshold can’t predict something that is entirely predictable.

What is learned in this episode? Caffrey already knew that the “infected” were trying to broadcast the signal by any means possible, so why did everyone seem so shocked at the idea? As soon as they knew that microchips were involved, they should have figured out what Park’s goal was. That part of the story was clearly designed to force the showdown at the end of the episode.

Now, one thing I do recognize is that a plan is only as good as the people who implement it, and in this case, Threshold is getting a mixed bag of support. But Caffrey’s decision to keep the threat completely hidden from public knowledge is clearly not the best play. There are other ways to accomplish the same goal, and this episode exposes that gap in logic. Caffrey was able to give Rossi a good enough cover story to gain her cooperation, so why not the public?

I’m not saying that she should say anything about the alien incursion or even the signal. But the public could be alerted regarding the missing crew member as if they were fugitives, terrorists, or even suspects in a child abduction. It just takes creativity, and that’s what I don’t see happening. Maybe some of these things are happening, but I haven’t gotten a strong sense of it. (Like…why not just smash the damn transmitter with a big rock and be done with it?)

What have we seen so far, in the course of five episodes? A team changing in unexpected ways, due to exposure to the signal that they are trying to stop from spreading. The one person who knows the ins and outs of the plan, who constantly runs out into the line of fire. A contingency plan that is entirely reactive, based on incomplete analysis of the scope of the threat. And that’s just scratching the surface.

I hold out hope that this is something the writers are doing intentionally, and that the tide will turn in the near future. But I’m concerned, because there’s plenty of reason to believe that this is the way the series is going to progress. This series needs to tighten up the plot a bit and deepen the character development. Right now, in my point of view, there’s not enough to sustain a long-term series.

Writing: 1/2
Acting: 2/2
Direction: 2/2
Style: 1/4

Final Rating: 6/10