251 replies to this topic

[TWoP Gadget]

IN THE SERIES PREMIERE, MIKE’S NEW MISSION BRINGS HIM FACE TO FACE WITH PEOPLE FROM A PAST HE DOES NOT REMEMBER– Mike (Justin Bruening) and KITT (voiced by Val Kilmer) are assigned a seemingly easy package delivery – until they realize the package is actually a man with vital top secret code decryption built into his DNA. The mission gets complicated when the enemies, including a mysterious woman (guest star Paula Garces, “The Shield”), seem to know a great deal about Mike and a past he can’t recall. Deanna Russo, Sydney Tamiia Poitier, Paul Campbell, Yancey Arias and Bruce Davison star. Smith Cho recurs.

Edited by TWoP Gadget, Sep 24, 2008 @ 8:23 PM.

[Last Time Lord]

I think I loved it. I've never seen the original nor the pilot/ TV movie, but it had an air of cheesyness and action/adventure fun not seen since Alias.

I approve.

[iamsweetdee]

Oh my. Oh my. Oh my. This was just bad! The car turns into a truck while moving? A truck??!!
How many times was the girlfriend practically naked in the first 30 minutes?
I can't even remember if the backstory they concocted for the series lines up with the movie. Oh well, I am one and done. The mustang was pretty though (Go Ford).

[spike85]

How does KITT transform from a car into a truck? Well I guess I'd rather not know because the explanation would probably be a little too much. The acting was definitely quite cheesy but then again, Knight Rider did first come on in the 80's.

I knew from the second they were looking at his files on the computer that Mike Traceur was not going to exist. It wouldn't be Knight Rider if that didn't happen. Welcome back Michael Knight (sort of).

[Maverick]

When we began at the foreign consulate I knew the cheesiness was back. They only thing cheesier would have been the Moldavian Consulate.

The orginal KR was never high drama, so I didn't have high expectations for them to live up to. But I totally HATE the transformers knock off. KITT was never exactly based in real science butthis has gone into total fantasy.

[Pixels]

It was cheesy like a bad James Bond film. However, I liked it. LOL

The graphics were cool along with the car transformations.

[SugarcultAddict]

It's the Attack Beast!

I kind of missed parts of it running around after my nephew, it was cheesey as heck, but yeah, if it wasn't it wouldn't be Knight Rider.

[cagewench]

Cheesy, cheesy, cheesy... And when "the package" was to be picked up by Mike, when evil girl had her gun pulled on Mike, toupee guy should have gotten into KITT instead.

*rolls eyes*

I think Mike and Sara have taken acting lessons since the TVM but it still was lame.

[While A Coyote]

I think Mike and Sara have taken acting lessons since the TVM but it still was lame.

Taking off their clothes and showing skin to get ratings lessons, at the very least.

How does KITT transform from a car into a truck? Well I guess I'd rather not know because the explanation would probably be a little too much.

Even worse (and possibly grosser) how does he change BACK into a car and manage to dump people intact into the front seats without turning them into hamburger first.

I approve.

In an odd way I sort of do too. In a "its SO bad its fun to watch and point and laugh" way. I may tune in again to see more of that girl getting nearly naked, neat special effects, and Val Kilmer officially ending his career.

[cjuniverse]

I thought the 2 hour pilot had some potential but this was just... Okay. The effects were cool. The acting was better. But it was just missing something. Maybe too much techno mumble jumpo. But I didn't feel like there was any suspense or investment in the characters. They're just walking around saying their lines with no clothes on. Not good enough really. I'm guessing this is the best the show can do given that it already had a 2 hour pilot. I think I'll watch next week just to see how things improve (if they even do). It was just OKAY. Nothing to get excited about.

[sendtoscott]

You know, when Your Hero makes me miss the Hoff as an actor, you're in trouble. I only assumed he was the hero because the camera was following him around in the opening scene - he's too generic looking to be memorable.

[runaway6]

I actually liked it. The opening acton scenes were fun and it looks like Mike is getting some interesting backstory. What happened in Beirut?

My biggest annoyance was that KIT talked too much. The car just wouldn't shut up.

[MsPhil]

I liked KITT. He was so nosey.

I loved the show. It is just mindless entertainment to me. I loved the guy who kept getting the technology wrong and the girl who keeps messing with him.

I will stick around.

[AimingforYoko]

One advantage this show has over Bionic Woman is it knows what it's trying to do. Hot people in various states of undress, cool cars and shit blowing up. It's not trying to make any broad statements other than 'Buy Ford.'

[alissapril]

runaway6:

My biggest annoyance was that KIT talked too much. The car just wouldn't shut up.

Amen! I don't remember the original KITT having so much to say.

I tuned in to this just because I heard Paul Campbell was on the show and I've missed him since his BSG days. Not sure I'm going to be able to sit through another episode though. Maybe one more...

[Dinya]

I'd thought the pilot was pretty decent, not great, but decent. However, this? Was just bad! I felt my IQ lower watching it. I love KITT, the car is the best part (just as it was in the 80's series), however, I do NOT like the new feature of being able to transform into a truck. I know I'm supposed to seriously suspend my disbelief with this show, but that is just too far fetched. Being able to change colour was a little more believable! Justin Breuning is pretty hot, but that ain't going to be enough to keep me interested.

[Drygo]

I tuned in to this just because I heard Paul Campbell was on the show and I've missed him since his BSG days. Not sure I'm going to be able to sit through another episode though. Maybe one more...

Speaking of which, wasn't he also named Billy on BSG? I thought that was him and thought that was a strange coincidence. (Maybe it wasn't a coincidence?)

At any rate, it was okay. I mean, it wasn't horrible, it's something to watch when there's nothing else on. But, I was really just killing time until Pushing Daisies returns next week. I might DVR Knight Rider or watch it Saturday nights if I'm home alone or something.

As someone else says, mindless entertainment, and sometimes that is just fine.

[Tandemonium]

I absolutely HATED the 2 hour movie. And I think I even commented on everything I wanted but didn't see in the movie...all of those were addressed in this one episode.

KITT calls him Michael NOT Mike. A show called Knight Rider actually has someone with the last name Knight in it again. More snark from KITT. AND Mothereffing Turbo Boost!!! I even like how the new people involved are paying attention to how the original series framed certain shots...like Michael talking to KITT while driving and how there was a visual cue (the orb) center dashboard of KITT communicating.

The show is supposed to be silly and campy so I dig. What I did hate though....and wow...

The editting. By far the worst editting I have seen on anything, probably since my Intro to Video Editting class in art school. The pacing was so bad, especially in the beginning. The choices made by the editors throughout the show was WOW...I don't know what to say. Ridiculously bad editting.

[eatisgreat]

It was even worse than Bionic Woman. I didn't think that was possible.

Edited by eatisgreat, Sep 25, 2008 @ 6:19 PM.

[chesslover]

I gave up after about 5 minutes. And I'm not one to quit thi

[Maverick]

like Michael talking to KITT while driving and how there was a visual cue (the orb) center dashboard of KITT communicating.

I hated the orb. a) did KITT's voice indicator really have to be CGI? I really it's overused these day when traditional effects work and don't look so cartoony and b) it reminded me of Ziggy on Quantum Leap, another AI personification I wasn't thrilled with.

[USGrant]

It's one thing to bring back the 80s cheese - it's another to bring back the 80s schmaltz. There is no excuse for the following dumb-itudes:

- sucking the oxygen out of the tunnel stops combustion all right, as in internal combustion engines, peut-etre? KITT doesn't seem to mind

- those are some lovely mountains surrounding the airfield in Washington, DC

- funny how the Washington Metro, one of the most architecturally distinctive subways anywhere, can be accessed via a single track freight train track in the suburbs, looks a lot like stock footage of the Chicago El above ground, and a lot like an LA subway station underground.

I soooo wanted this series to be fun, enjoyable and full of itself, but not like this. This is all cringe, all the time.

[pennywit]

funny how the Washington Metro, one of the most architecturally distinctive subways anywhere, can be accessed via a single track freight train track in the suburbs, looks a lot like stock footage of the Chicago El above ground, and a lot like an LA subway station underground.

I live just outside DC, so that part really, REALLY bugged me. What made it damn surreal, though, was that the intercom voice mentioned a train going to Shady Grove ... which is one end of the Red Line. If they could bother with they little detail, why couldn't they get a genuine DC Metro station and a genuine Metro train?

Another bit that bugged me. If the leads had to take off their clothes to avoid burning, why did Our Heroine still have on her necklace? And why didn't it leave at least some angry red skin behind?

Aside from that, it was outlandish, badly acted, poorly written ... and I approve. Without bad writing, bad acting, and poor pseudoscience, would it really be Knight Rider?

[TheLabRat]

Aside from that, it was outlandish, badly acted, poorly written ... and I approve. Without bad writing, bad acting, and poor pseudoscience, would it really be Knight Rider?

That's where I'm at. Heh.

And for those that didn't like the lead, lemme tell ya he was way worse when he was on "All My Children." Sucked the life right out of every scene he was in, just about. I think he's just the right type of actor for this -- a not great but enthusiastic soap actor, much like Hasslehoff himself was at the time -- but he needs to punch up his charisma to 11, stat.

[John Potts]

I have a nitpick about the whole "Car on fire" thing - did it not occur to any of the super geniuses running FLAG to have the car run into a river? What self respecting supercar can't operate underwater these days? And even if for some reason it doesn't put the fire out (it's superfire! - go with me here) at least it would act as a heat sink and stop your heroes from boiling alive. OK, you're still being harried by a helicopter, but you're in the USA, so call the cops, who probably take a dim view of helicopters flambeing cars (if FLAG is some sort of quasi governmental organisation, it shouldn't be too difficult to keep control of the operation). I'm sure you can think of some other reason that your leading man & woman need to strip to their underwear.

[I should point out that I haven't actually seen the episode, just read the recap - that point just leapt out at me. I will watch when & if it comes to the UK.]

[TWoP Gadget]

MIKE MUST INFILTRATE A RACING GANG WITH THE HELP OF AN OLD ARMY BUDDY – Mike (Justin Bruening) reunites with a former Army buddy (guest star Johnny Messner, “The O.C.”) to bring down a drag racing gang that is smuggling weapons overseas. Sarah (Deanna Russo) joins Mike and KITT (voiced by Val Kilmer) on this dangerous undercover mission, much to her father’s (Bruce Davison) dismay. Paul Campbell and Yancey Arias star. Smith Cho recurs.

[mandigirl]

Well... wow. This show was just... the word being tossed around here is cheesy, so yeah, I'll go with that. At first, I thought it was a joke or something, like they were making fun of those action shows and then it would go 'cut!', and we'd get the real show. I'm not being flip-- I really was expecting that. But as it went on... yeah that really is the tone.

It's actually a decent, escapist piece of cotton-candy. There's absolutely no substance there. Sadly, while it reminds me of Fastlane in some respects, it doesn't have the flash or the sharp writing that made that show so entertaining. Still, if there's space, I'll leave it on my tivo.

My one huge nitpick was that Mike allowed that woman to drive up and take 'the package' guy away from him. He was like 'Whew! It's just a girl! I can just put my gun down. Because a girl could never do anything!' What a dumbass.

Speaking of which, wasn't he also named Billy on BSG? I thought that was him and thought that was a strange coincidence. (Maybe it wasn't a coincidence?)

Yeah, his name was Billy on BSG too. In fact, that was really distracting to me- I wish they'd changed it. I kept on waiting (wishing?) for Mary McDonnell to show up.

I have a nitpick about the whole "Car on fire" thing - did it not occur to any of the super geniuses running FLAG to have the car run into a river?

Maybe it was too hot for that? Like water wasn't going to get the job done? Or they were too far from water? I'm kinda just fanwanking it here.

[Myrrhine]

It was TERRIBLE! It was like a bunch of writers or you know, 15 year old boys, sat around and came up with some ideas and then they just translated that directly into the show. "OK, so the car catches on fire, and it sticks to KITT, so he can't put it out. And Michael and Sarah get hot and have to take off their clothes..." "And then the package is a person, not the suitcase, and his dna is a cipher, and then the subway..."

The pacing was just so bizarre, and all of these official agency types kept making demands on Michael, seemingly at random. And I felt like when KITT was coming in hot into the facility (?) they needed all of these overides - the gov't agent gave one immediately (talked out of her hesitation in 2 seconds), but for some reason the other one required all of this technical / computer-fu.

Anyway, it was terrible, but I can't look away. Not yet at least.

eta I thought of the water option too. Surely being immersed in water would at least deprive the fire of oxygen (although I believe it doesn't extinguish napalm)

Edited by Myrrhine, Sep 26, 2008 @ 10:26 PM.

[Richard Burns]

Not sure I'm going to be able to sit through another episode though. Maybe one more...

Try it with alcohol. It makes everything better.

I'm convinced this is a ploy by NBC to make us appreciate Bionic Woman.

[dutchsofa]

What. The hell. Was that? I couldn't get past the fire exstinguishing. I understand that there needs to be a suspension of disbelief, blah, blah, blah, but Christ, there wasn't a bead of sweat on those two while they were in a 136 degree car. They sat there, talking comfortably, and didn't even need to do more than unbutton the top of his tux until it was close to 140. I just can't hang with that. I also appreciate the inclusion of every possible piece of foreign costume so I could be totally certain that it was indeed the Foreign Consoulate.

I think I'm done.