The actors seem ill at ease with each other, and even the J's acting is off, as if they don't want to be there. Dean sounds absolutely astonished that there are five monster families in Chicago and I can understand that as there's no way hunters would not have known about such a big thing.
The little British guy has zero charisma IMO and I just can't see him as the hero of the show.
It might turn out okay, but if this clip is supposed to make one eager to tune in to the episode, I don't think it succeeded in its intent. However I'm sure the ratings will be good for the episode as people will watch out of curiosity
I'm uneasy, too. Dean sounds a little too growly - plus it seems like he changes his overall attitude toward 'monsters' every other episode and Sam acts like he's never heard of GPS tracking.
It makes me so angry when these writers do that, dumb down Sam and Dean just to show how much others characters are "smart". It looks like we'll have a lot of it in this episode. But instead of looking cool, it makes me dislike the characters. Sorry, Dabb. (not really sorry)
Tonight's possible 'spinoff episode' has received about 3X the promotion that I've seen since fall and I hope it receives solid ratings (I'm not wishing for the ratings to tank in other words). But I do agree with all of your concerns.
The guy who's playing Ennis is the number one reason I'm dreading this spinoff. I've said it before and I'll say it again. When he was in Big Brother he was vain, arrogant, fame hungry, and an all around person that gets on my nerves. I can't root for his character. My only hope is that there is a big twist and he dies in the first episode.
In my opion a SPN spin-off was a bad idea in the first place because it's the brother dynamic that made the show a success, and the monsters were only the back-drop to the Winchester saga, but if the writers were going to do one, it should have had some kind of call-back to the the original. Throwing in a series of monster families and calling it SPN just isn't enough.
I still see this as a revised edition of Man's Best Friend With Benefits and I'm convinced TPTB would have spun that off if it had drawn good ratings and reviews. It didn't and I feel that this is on a slippery slope too.
Yeah, as much as I normally like Dabb's episodes, this clip isn't a great introduction to two of the 'heroes' of the new show. I think what I will try to do as much as possible is to try to pretend that the spinoff has been picked up and Sam and Dean aren't in the episode and try to narrow focus on only the new characters.
IT TOOK THIS LONG TO GET A SNEAK PEEK. I WAITED ALL WEEK. ARGH. but interesting. honestly im hoping Bloodlines does well. and i don't give a crap what other SPN fans think. ive wanted a spin-off for a few years now and guess what, now we got one. you're gonna have to take this one from my cold dead hands. here's to hoping it goes over well with others .
You're a better person than I am. I have zero intention to watch the spin off. The only reason I'll watch tonight it's because of Sam and Dean being there. These characters should give me a reason to like them and this clip plus spoilers are failing at that. You don't insult my favorite characters and expect me to like you.
Dean's voice does seem extra growly and it's veering into a cartoonish one. I wish he would just go back to speaking as he did in earlier seasons. We know he's bad-ass even without the growling. :)
There was a backdoor pilot like bloodlines. It was an episode of flashbacks to Lilly when she was younger. It didn't get picked up. And that was at the height of gossip girls popularity.
I fully understand how one of the actor's appearances can make you dislike the 'actor' on sight. Take the "Krissy" (7.11/8.18) character (Madison McLaughin) - I cannot stand "Krissy" so I couldn't help involuntarily cringing when I saw Madison guest staring on other shows.
Thanks. Gossip Girl wasn't really my kind of show but I know it was very popular, so the spin-off must have been really poor not to have been picked up.
I'm reading some of these comments and it feels like people are trying to say whatever they want just to make themselves feel better of how this series could fail, such as bringing up the dialogue, which isn't any different than what we've seen in the past on Supernatural.
I decided I'm going to give the backdoor pilot a chance, especially after giving the episode idea as a whole some thought, and it could mean a lot to Sam and Dean as much as the new characters simply because this is a time where you have Sam and Dean training a new guy when they are both on different paths. Sam doesn't trust his own brother and could let the new guy know that he can't trust simply everyone and Dean is all about, really, just killing every bad monster around him, both traits that could actually damage a "fresh" hunter.
And the point of having them get out of the car to have that discussion was... what? Dabb is the master of canon butchering so the fact that this show completely ignores/re-writes everything we know about the SPN universe makes Dabb the perfect choice to write it... Doesn't sound like this is a lock to go to series at all - as The Flash was. I'm trying to keep an open mind, I really am...
Dabb may say he knows why Spn is a success but I don't think he does, or he' s ignoring the true reason. It's not any buddy twosome that will appeal to viewers. Sam and Dean are special and I think everyone would agree with that. They drew one in from the first moment they appeared on the screen. They had such a natural charisma that will be very difficult to duplicate with other actors.
As for the theme of the show, TPTB are coming in late with a vampire/bitten theme when simiar shows like TO as you pointed out, and even the Vampire Diaries, are beginning to struggle, which to me is why the writers should have tried to find something more original and untried for this spin-off. It's not as if there weren't interesting ideas that they could have taken from SPN
That annoyed me too. They're tryng to set this guy up as a sympathetic Dean clone by putting Dean's exclamations into his mouth, but there's only one Dean and he can't be duplicated.:)
Yeah, uh...I thought they were getting out because they'd arrived at their destination or something. They couldn't have this discussion while driving? Awk.
Interesting observation. Most 'buddy pairs', even female ones, contain one character who's great with one liners and has a 'hero complex' that's almost OTT and a more serious one who typically things through before taking action. If "Ennis" is the Dean/Steve McGarrett/Jane Rizzoli type character, David probably is the Sam/Danny Williams/Maura Isles type character. It's a common trope.
But you're right - that's not what drew most of us to SPN in the first place. TV Buddy pairs are common but Buddy Pairs willing to go to Hell for each other and be tortured for eternity - not so much (or enduring any other non-stop normal human torture) that's what made SPN special.
I don't really care what "Nate" deserves because I haven't watched any of his other shows. I'll give it a try, because it's Supernatural. But if I don't like the pilot (1x01), I probably won't stick around for 1x02.
I have posting updates on my primary forum prior as the spinoff date grew closer and I was posting the only way I can watch the spinoff (because I do enjoy much of Dabb's writing) is IF it's picked up to series is 'pretend' as much as possible that the two shows are just separate, paranormal shows. Many "pilots" are 'rough' because the audience is still learning who the characters are - maybe 920 will be better than some of are imaging.
The problem with this spinoff is that it isn't fresh enough. I'd be interested if they were going in a completely new direction...i.e. female lead characters. But this? This just feels like a cheap ripoff. No thanks.
What is wrong with the writers? Even beginners know that you can't make the characters do things that no-one does in real life just to make a scene seem more "intense". No-one stops a car just to have conversation. So what if monster families run Chicago! They had far more intense conversations IN the car while they were trying to stop the f-ing Apocalypse!
Dabb isn't as bad some of the current writers, he's just building on their so-canon. But I agree with you and Erica, this scene seems tailor made for the purpose of fleshing out Ennis and David out a little more and it's very awkward.
The Js had limited time in Chicago so maybe they couldn't be available at the same time as the actors so the show filmed the interior car scene with 'doubles' and saved the 'awkward dialog' for when all four could film (clever editing).
Per their "wiki's" Nate is about an inch taller than Lucien - they must be using weird camera angles because both Js look much taller than David/Ennis when Nate is only inches max shorter than JA.
Let's exchange the spin-off for an extra season or two of SPN. (I'm seriously going to need counselling when SPN ends, when there's no more new jokes from Dean, or funny Sam moments, or brotherly angst, or horrible Winchester situations...no more Winchesters... Gaaa *cries*)
As I pointed out already, these are "brand new characters". You mention the name David Lassiter, no one has a clue who you are talking about. You mention the name Klaus Mikaelson? Bit of a different story.
Dabb isn't "building" on canon - he simply ignores it. I did figure out why they had to get out to do the scene, however. In Vancouver they have a special set up for filming the interiors - plus a cut away - neither of which they had in Chicago.
I did answer my own question while watching. In Van they have a special set up for filming the in-car scenes and they have a cut away car - neither of which they would have had in Chicago... but still. Awkward.
Thanks for the information, Lisa. I assumed there was a reason to explain the awkwardness of the scene - what characters get out of car, have an exposition chat exchange, then the characters pile back into the car.
NOTE: Name-calling, personal attacks, spamming, excessive self-promotion, condescending pomposity, general assiness, racism, sexism, any-other-ism, homophobia, acrophobia, and destructive (versus constructive) criticism will get you BANNED from the party.
I think people should at least give it a try.
ReplyDeleteSneak peek looks so good! I seriously can't wait for tonight's episode.
ReplyDeleteI will give it a try, but it still looks a bit forced and the dialogue a little clunky.
ReplyDeleteSorry but that's embarrassingly poor.
ReplyDeleteThe actors seem ill at ease with each other, and even the J's acting is off, as if they don't want to be there.
Dean sounds absolutely astonished that there are five monster families in Chicago and I can understand that as there's no way hunters would not have known about such a big thing.
The little British guy has zero charisma IMO and I just can't see him as the hero of the show.
It might turn out okay, but if this clip is supposed to make one eager to tune in to the episode, I don't think it succeeded in its intent.
However I'm sure the ratings will be good for the episode as people will watch out of curiosity
I'm uneasy, too. Dean sounds a little too growly - plus it seems like he changes his overall attitude toward 'monsters' every other episode and Sam acts like he's never heard of GPS tracking.
ReplyDeleteYep, totally agree.
ReplyDeleteThe kid saying "awesome" with Dean shouldn't bother me as much as it is, though. :\
"Sam acts like he's never heard of GPS"
ReplyDeleteIt makes me so angry when these writers do that, dumb down Sam and Dean just to show how much others characters are "smart". It looks like we'll have a lot of it in this episode. But instead of looking cool, it makes me dislike the characters. Sorry, Dabb. (not really sorry)
Nate does, the show I don't think so. I'll give it a shot but still: DROP THE SUPERNATURAL from the title
ReplyDeleteTonight's possible 'spinoff episode' has received about 3X the promotion that I've seen since fall and I hope it receives solid ratings (I'm not wishing for the ratings to tank in other words). But I do agree with all of your concerns.
ReplyDeleteI'm thinking this will definitely go the way of the Gossip Girl backdoor spinoff 'Valley Girls'
ReplyDeleteThe guy who's playing Ennis is the number one reason I'm dreading this spinoff. I've said it before and I'll say it again. When he was in Big Brother he was vain, arrogant, fame hungry, and an all around person that gets on my nerves. I can't root for his character. My only hope is that there is a big twist and he dies in the first episode.
ReplyDeleteIn my opion a SPN spin-off was a bad idea in the first place because it's the brother dynamic that made the show a success, and the monsters were only the back-drop to the Winchester saga, but if the writers were going to do one, it should have had some kind of call-back to the the original.
ReplyDeleteThrowing in a series of monster families and calling it SPN just isn't enough.
I still see this as a revised edition of Man's Best Friend With Benefits and I'm convinced TPTB would have spun that off if it had drawn good ratings and reviews.
It didn't and I feel that this is on a slippery slope too.
Yeah, as much as I normally like Dabb's episodes, this clip isn't a great introduction to two of the 'heroes' of the new show. I think what I will try to do as much as possible is to try to pretend that the spinoff has been picked up and Sam and Dean aren't in the episode and try to narrow focus on only the new characters.
ReplyDeleteI didn't see him in BB but from the few scenes I have seen, I really don't see this actor as being able to carry the show.
ReplyDeleteIT TOOK THIS LONG TO GET A SNEAK PEEK. I WAITED ALL WEEK. ARGH. but interesting.
ReplyDeletehonestly im hoping Bloodlines does well.
and i don't give a crap what other SPN fans think. ive wanted a spin-off for a few years now and guess what, now we got one. you're gonna have to take this one from my cold dead hands. here's to hoping it goes over well with others .
You're a better person than I am. I have zero intention to watch the spin off. The only reason I'll watch tonight it's because of Sam and Dean being there. These characters should give me a reason to like them and this clip plus spoilers are failing at that. You don't insult my favorite characters and expect me to like you.
ReplyDeleteDean's voice does seem extra growly and it's veering into a cartoonish one. I wish he would just go back to speaking as he did in earlier seasons. We know he's bad-ass even without the growling. :)
ReplyDeleteGossip Girl had a spin-off?
ReplyDeleteThere was a backdoor pilot like bloodlines. It was an episode of flashbacks to Lilly when she was younger. It didn't get picked up. And that was at the height of gossip girls popularity.
ReplyDeleteI fully understand how one of the actor's appearances can make you dislike the 'actor' on sight. Take the "Krissy" (7.11/8.18) character (Madison McLaughin) - I cannot stand "Krissy" so I couldn't help involuntarily cringing when I saw Madison guest staring on other shows.
ReplyDeleteI do not think a 'spin off ' was necessary. I do not know the actors so cannot judge them .
ReplyDeleteThanks. Gossip Girl wasn't really my kind of show but I know it was very popular, so the spin-off must have been really poor not to have been picked up.
ReplyDeleteI'm reading some of these comments and it feels like people are trying to say whatever they want just to make themselves feel better of how this series could fail, such as bringing up the dialogue, which isn't any different than what we've seen in the past on Supernatural.
ReplyDeleteI decided I'm going to give the backdoor pilot a chance, especially after giving the episode idea as a whole some thought, and it could mean a lot to Sam and Dean as much as the new characters simply because this is a time where you have Sam and Dean training a new guy when they are both on different paths. Sam doesn't trust his own brother and could let the new guy know that he can't trust simply everyone and Dean is all about, really, just killing every bad monster around him, both traits that could actually damage a "fresh" hunter.
And the point of having them get out of the car to have that discussion was... what?
ReplyDeleteDabb is the master of canon butchering so the fact that this show completely ignores/re-writes everything we know about the SPN universe makes Dabb the perfect choice to write it...
Doesn't sound like this is a lock to go to series at all - as The Flash was. I'm trying to keep an open mind, I really am...
Dabb may say he knows why Spn is a success but I don't think he does, or he' s ignoring the true reason.
ReplyDeleteIt's not any buddy twosome that will appeal to viewers. Sam and Dean are special and I think everyone would agree with that.
They drew one in from the first moment they appeared on the screen. They had such a natural charisma that will be very difficult to duplicate with other actors.
As for the theme of the show, TPTB are coming in late with a vampire/bitten theme when simiar shows like TO as you pointed out, and even the Vampire Diaries, are beginning to struggle, which to me is why the writers should have tried to find something more original and untried for this spin-off.
It's not as if there weren't interesting ideas that they could have taken from SPN
That annoyed me too. They're tryng to set this guy up as a sympathetic Dean clone by putting Dean's exclamations into his mouth, but there's only one Dean and he can't be duplicated.:)
ReplyDeleteI agree and I'm by your side :)
ReplyDeleteYeah, uh...I thought they were getting out because they'd arrived at their destination or something. They couldn't have this discussion while driving? Awk.
ReplyDeleteInteresting observation. Most 'buddy pairs', even female ones, contain one character who's great with one liners and has a 'hero complex' that's almost OTT and a more serious one who typically things through before taking action. If "Ennis" is the Dean/Steve McGarrett/Jane Rizzoli type character, David probably is the Sam/Danny Williams/Maura Isles type character. It's a common trope.
ReplyDeleteBut you're right - that's not what drew most of us to SPN in the first place. TV Buddy pairs are common but Buddy Pairs willing to go to Hell for each other and be tortured for eternity - not so much (or enduring any other non-stop normal human torture) that's what made SPN special.
I hate it when they do that. It makes me think of teenagers who think that adults can't use technology. We *created* your goddamn technology! /rant
ReplyDeleteI'll watch the pilot (1x01) if the characters don't seem too annoying in tonight's episode.
ReplyDeleteI don't really care what "Nate" deserves because I haven't watched any of his other shows. I'll give it a try, because it's Supernatural. But if I don't like the pilot (1x01), I probably won't stick around for 1x02.
ReplyDeleteI have posting updates on my primary forum prior as the spinoff date grew closer and I was posting the only way I can watch the spinoff (because I do enjoy much of Dabb's writing) is IF it's picked up to series is 'pretend' as much as possible that the two shows are just separate, paranormal shows. Many "pilots" are 'rough' because the audience is still learning who the characters are - maybe 920 will be better than some of are imaging.
ReplyDeleteThe problem with this spinoff is that it isn't fresh enough. I'd be interested if they were going in a completely new direction...i.e. female lead characters. But this? This just feels like a cheap ripoff. No thanks.
ReplyDeleteWhat is wrong with the writers? Even beginners know that you can't make the characters do things that no-one does in real life just to make a scene seem more "intense". No-one stops a car just to have conversation. So what if monster families run Chicago! They had far more intense conversations IN the car while they were trying to stop the f-ing Apocalypse!
ReplyDeletelol The Nate character is even taller than Dean/Ennis, al la Dean and Sam!
ReplyDeleteDabb isn't as bad some of the current writers, he's just building on their so-canon. But I agree with you and Erica, this scene seems tailor made for the purpose of fleshing out Ennis and David out a little more and it's very awkward.
ReplyDeleteThe Js had limited time in Chicago so maybe they couldn't be available at the same time as the actors so the show filmed the interior car scene with 'doubles' and saved the 'awkward dialog' for when all four could film (clever editing).
The video won't load at all. So i say screw it.
ReplyDelete:(
Per their "wiki's" Nate is about an inch taller than Lucien - they must be using weird camera angles because both Js look much taller than David/Ennis when Nate is only inches max shorter than JA.
ReplyDeleteim all for spin offs but the castin and that one scene im not likin the characters from the spin off
ReplyDeleteLet's exchange the spin-off for an extra season or two of SPN. (I'm seriously going to need counselling when SPN ends, when there's no more new jokes from Dean, or funny Sam moments, or brotherly angst, or horrible Winchester situations...no more Winchesters... Gaaa *cries*)
ReplyDeleteYeah, because it's also 'The Vampire Diaries: The Originals' and 'Arrow: The Flash' or 'Buffy: Angel', right ?
ReplyDeleteAs I pointed out already, these are "brand new characters". You mention the name David Lassiter, no one has a clue who you are talking about. You mention the name Klaus Mikaelson? Bit of a different story.
ReplyDeleteExactly. My guess is if the spinoff is picked up to series the "Supernatural" part may be dropped shortly after.
ReplyDeleteLOL. Transformer, lol.
ReplyDeleteDabb isn't "building" on canon - he simply ignores it. I did figure out why they had to get out to do the scene, however. In Vancouver they have a special set up for filming the interiors - plus a cut away - neither of which they had in Chicago.
ReplyDeleteI did answer my own question while watching. In Van they have a special set up for filming the in-car scenes and they have a cut away car - neither of which they would have had in Chicago... but still. Awkward.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information, Lisa. I assumed there was a reason to explain the awkwardness of the scene - what characters get out of car, have an exposition chat exchange, then the characters pile back into the car.
ReplyDelete