Exclusive Interview with Jason Isaacs
Interview by Jamie Ruby
Written by Jamie Ruby
Jason Isaacs is everywhere these days. Whether you know him as Lucius Malfoy from Harry Potter, or you've seen his face on a billboard recently advertising his new series, Awake, it's likely you've seen him. Isaacs is not new to the industry by any means. He's appeared in such films as Event Horizon, Armageddon, The Patriot, and more recently Abduction, as well as on television in The State Within, Brotherhood, and Case Histories.
Right now Isaacs can be seen back on television on the new NBC series, Awake. He stars as Detective Michael Britten, who has recently been in a car accident and as such lives in two realities. In the "green" reality, his son Rex survived the crash, and his wife Hannah died. He goes to sleep and when he wakes up in the "red" reality, his wife is with him, but they lost their son. Unwilling to accept either reality, Britten lives in both, not knowing which is real.
Living in both realities, Britten often gets clues in one that can help him solve cases in the other. Sometimes what he learns may be of a more personal nature and help him to understand something about his son or wife that he previously did not.
Earlier in the week Jason Isaacs talked to Jamie Ruby of SciFi Vision in an exclusive interview about his new series, Awake, which airs Thursdays on NBC.
Interview by Jamie Ruby
Written by Jamie Ruby
Jason Isaacs is everywhere these days. Whether you know him as Lucius Malfoy from Harry Potter, or you've seen his face on a billboard recently advertising his new series, Awake, it's likely you've seen him. Isaacs is not new to the industry by any means. He's appeared in such films as Event Horizon, Armageddon, The Patriot, and more recently Abduction, as well as on television in The State Within, Brotherhood, and Case Histories.Right now Isaacs can be seen back on television on the new NBC series, Awake. He stars as Detective Michael Britten, who has recently been in a car accident and as such lives in two realities. In the "green" reality, his son Rex survived the crash, and his wife Hannah died. He goes to sleep and when he wakes up in the "red" reality, his wife is with him, but they lost their son. Unwilling to accept either reality, Britten lives in both, not knowing which is real.
Living in both realities, Britten often gets clues in one that can help him solve cases in the other. Sometimes what he learns may be of a more personal nature and help him to understand something about his son or wife that he previously did not.
Earlier in the week Jason Isaacs talked to Jamie Ruby of SciFi Vision in an exclusive interview about his new series, Awake, which airs Thursdays on NBC.
This weekend Syfy will be premiering their newest Saturday Original Movie, Seattle Superstorm. In the film, unusual and deadly weather is caused by what is believed to be a UFO crash. As the superstorm spreads further, a scientist, played by Esai Morales, must help stop it, while protecting his family, including his children, played by MacKenzie Porter and Jared Abrahamson.
All of the characters grapple with fantasy versus reality in this large, though very welcome, return for "Mad Men". What they think they're getting in their lives clashes with the reality that comes afterward. There's a certain expectation that is demanded from everyone and they are continuing to struggle to meet those demands. It is the middle of the 1960's decade, a time of great social upheval and change, and it's finally coming for the occupants of Madison Avenue. What is really great about this show, something that I would never expect from a drama about advertising executives, is that this episode doesn't just establish the status quo like many season premieres do, but the story moves forward.
All of the plots in this show move forward in this episode in small ways. There's the ongoing struggle to move Will out of his place at the head of the firm with Diane. It was a power struggle that was getting repetitive so Will made a move to ensure that there would be no more power plays to cause further chaos at the firm. Alicia goes ahead with the IRS investigation into Kalinda's possibly illicit activities. Plus, Alicia is at the center of the Case of the Week and trying to buy her old house with her bigger salary bonus that was given to her in the previous episode.
A fresh focus doesn't quite cover up the fact that "Lost Girl" is showing signs of stress around the seams. This episode should have been a tight little mystery and a feather in the show's cap, but instead there are too many rough touches in the writing, little moments where things don't come together. It's not without merit, but too often the immersion is broken, the fun slithers away, and it feels like a great little show is being let down.
After dealing with the immediate issue of the Reaper in the previous episode, the long-term problems are explored a bit more in this installment. Meanwhile, Josh’s relationship status gets complicated, to say the least, and Aiden finds himself in an unexpected flight for freedom.
And now that secret that wasn’t much of a secret is fully revealed. Frankly, anyone who didn’t see this coming a mile away just wasn’t paying attention. That it happened to coincide with the return of another old favorite at the same time was icing on the cake. And since Head Lucifer is involved, that cake is probably on fire and trying to eat you.
Coming on the heels of one of the most revelatory episodes of “Fringe” yet, this episode feels like a bit of a step down. That the central case for the episode wasn’t particularly involving didn’t help the matter, but there was also something lacking in the overall package, especially in how certain expository elements were handled. Even so, this are minor quibbles overall, and the episode continued the winning streak for this season of “Fringe”.
With just a few relatively minor apparent deviations from the historical record, “Spartacus: Vengeance” has managed to set up the climactic battle between Glaber’s Roman forces and Spartacus’ rebels with dramatic flair. I think it’s safe to say that anyone who complains about “lack of action” after this episode should have their head examined.