594 replies to this topic

[ScribblerGuy]

Just watch the trailer.

Official Summary:

THE CAPE' - "The Cape" is a one-hour drama series starring David Lyons ("ER") as Vince Faraday, an honest cop on a corrupt police force, who finds himself framed for a series of murders and presumed dead. He is forced into hiding, leaving behind his wife, Dana (Jennifer Ferrin, "Life on Mars") and son, Trip (Ryan Wynott, "Flash Forward"). Fueled by a desire to reunite with his family and to battle the criminal forces that have overtaken Palm City, Faraday becomes "The Cape" his son's favorite comic book superhero -- and takes the law into his own hands. Rounding out the cast are James Frain ("The Tudors") as billionaire Peter Fleming -- The Cape's nemesis -- who moonlights as the twisted killer: Chess; Keith David ("Death at a Funeral") as Max Malini, the ringleader of a circus gang of bank robbers who mentors Vince Faraday and trains him to be The Cape, Summer Glau ("Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles") as Orwell, an investigative blogger who wages war on crime and corruption in Palm City; and Dorian Missick ("Six Degrees") as Marty Voyt, a former police detective and friend to Faraday. "The Cape" is a Universal Media Studios and BermanBraun production from executive producer/creator Thomas Wheeler ("Empire"), executive producer/director Simon West ("Con Air"), the executive producing team of Gail Berman and Lloyd Braun (NBC's "Mercy), and executive producer Gene Stein ("Accidentally on Purpose").

The show is scheduled for midseason, so who knows when and if it will air. Official website link is www.nbc.com/the-cape/ (same link as for the preview trailer).

David Lyons' main TV credits are ER (27 episodes) and as a supporting regular in the Aussie series Sea Patrol (the first season is available on Hulu).

Here's a review of a leaked pilot script from back in February. There are some mild spoilers. Also, the script may have been revised since that particular draft was leaked.

***
Thoughts on the preview trailer: The little person's retort after hitting the bad guy is an instant classic. And, they adapt the Knight Rider thematic quote. (If only The Cape's cape talked back.) Those two lines sealed the deal. I'm at least giving the pilot episode a chance.

In some ways, this feels a bit like Journeyman: both have dads as the protagonist/hero, both are married and have a young boy, both lead heroes are from outside the U.S. (Kevin McKidd is Scottish and David Lyons is an Aussiem and they could probably play brothers, yes?), and both series are NBC shows. So, yeah, I fear for a limited one season run with no DVD release.

Also, there better be an early episode where the publisher of The Cape graphic novels get an attorney to deliver at least a cease-and-desist letter to "The Cape" for trademark infringement.

(Given all the action scenes in the preview, 'Sci-Fi and Action Adventures' seemed like the best fit)

[Blisters]

Oh wow, this looks so fucking good. And I'm not usually into these types of shows but in a fall season where everything else seems pretty blah, this looks amazing. But the fact it's set for midseason doesn't exactly fill me with hope.

[Soleil]

I'm completely geeked over this show, and David Lyons (who caught my eye even while I only channel-surfed over ER's last few seasons) has potential to be my main crush with this role next season.

I'm hoping that they will use the midseason replacement time to fine-tune the show. It walks a VERY fine line between cool and cheesy. Judicious use of the moppet will also be important.

[rove3]

I'll give this a try for Summer Glau's sake but the fact that it's on NBC and seems like one of those niche audience shows (that I personally usually love) that fails more than often than they succeed (or are given chance to succeed) and I'm not getting my hopes up for a long run.

[redshirtx]

I got a faint Birds of Prey vibe out of the promo trailer...but I'm not going to call it a knock. Yet. It looks just interesting enough, so to speak...which means it'll probably crash and burn a la BoP or Kings.

[Last Time Lord]

I loved that promo. Looks like a real fun show.

[lsquare]

The premise seems to be a bit hokey, but I'll watch it for Summer Glau. She did get the best line in the promo. Plus, Keith David's presence isn't too shabby.

[AimingforYoko]

The little person's retort after hitting the bad guy

Vinnie Jones, best known as 'Bullet-Tooth Tony' from Snatch. It looks okay, but I'm not optimistic about its longevity.

[Lead Magnet]

I agree with everyone else that it seems to be very niche, and unfortunately that probably means "soon to be dead." My other thought from watching the trailer is that while "framed, left for dead, trains hard, comes back as vigilanted for justice" thing has been done before, the important part is how it's done. Hard to judge that from a three-minute trailer.

I am of course going to try to look because of the Summer Glau factor (hey, it's worked for other shows that have Firefly cast members).

[ScribblerGuy]

According to The Hollywood Reporter's Live Feed, Vinnie Jones has been added as a series regular. There's a little bit of info about his character in the article.

***

My other thought from watching the trailer is that while "framed, left for dead, trains hard, comes back as vigilanted for justice" thing has been done before, the important part is how it's done. Hard to judge that from a three-minute trailer.

I think this show has the potential to have a lot of heart based on the Dad angle and the Knight Rider-esque thematic quote. And, that's the principal reason why I'm optimistic about the show.

[Turkish]

I really liked David Lyons on ER so I was already going to tune in but then I saw that my beloved Jennifer Munson(from ATWT) is playing his wife so I am definitely watching.

[caper24]

Hmnn. It's about a super-hero, the moves are cool, and it has Keith David and Summer Glau as supporting characters.

Yeah, I'm in.

[The Mad Maple]

Hmnn. It's about a super-hero, the moves are cool, and it has Keith David and Summer Glau as supporting characters.

Yeah, I'm in.

Keith David, Summer Glau, and Vinnie Jones.

I'm definitely in.

[binturite]

Keith David, Summer Glau, and Vinnie Jones.

I'm definitely in.

Me too. Because, as I said elsewhere on this board, James Frain (Chess) and Keith David (Max) are on my, "Will Watch Anything He/She Is In At Least Once" list.

I do like what little I've seen of Summer. So that's also a plus. And while I don't think I'm familiar with VJ, I'm open to being won over by him. Time will tell.

Also, thanks again, to another JF fan from a different TWoP tv series thread, who originally posted the link to this interesting sneek peek/interview article about The Cape.

Be warned, though. It is very spoilery.

Edited by binturite, Aug 18, 2010 @ 8:10 AM.

[stillshimpy]

Oh boy, well, I'll watch because it is the sort of thing I like and my husband will likely love it.

Unfortunately I think this poor show has the shelf-life of room temperature milk in Las Vegas. Also, since they replaced Conan, I literally haven't watched anything on NBC. Not out of some boycott, but because that was all I was watching on NBC so I haven't had a reason to watch the network since February.

Just mentioning that because not only is this a niche show, and they always struggle, I'm pretty sure I'm far from alone in not having any idea of what NBC is launching this fall. I wouldn't have bothered watching this preview from the synopsis if Summer Glau wasn't involved. There aren't any names in this, are there? I know James Frain, but I seem to be entirely immune to whatever makes him appealing to so many, and I'm pretty sure he has a level of recognition about on par with Summer Glau.

So, hardly anyone is watching NBC, which they have to know at this point because of their ratings, or lack thereof. It's a premise that always does well in feature length films, but generally bombs on TV, and the main draw is a young woman whose main claim to fame is three scifi/action shows (Firefly, Terminator and a well publicized guest spot on Dollhouse) all of which bit it over ratings issues?

Oh jeez, the poor show. I'm in, but I think the most that can be hoped for is that they'll actually let us see a thirteen episode run. The premise is too overtly action/scifi/comic book to attract any kind of mainstream audience, I'm afraid.

[svimouse]

So, hardly anyone is watching NBC, which they have to know at this point because of their ratings, or lack thereof. It's a premise that always does well in feature length films, but generally bombs on TV, and the main draw is a young woman whose main claim to fame is three scifi/action shows (Firefly, Terminator and a well publicized guest spot on Dollhouse) all of which bit it over ratings issues?

Though Summer isn't generally well-known, she is very well known in the niche market from which this show is most likely to draw its core audience. It just needs to expand that audience a bit and maybe they could have another first season Heroes hit on their hands. As anemic as Firefly, Terminator: SCC and Dollhouse ratings were, the former spawned a wide-release movie and the latter two made it through at least one renewal. Terminator, I believe, actually started out with solid ratings and lost its momentum over a long hiatus; I firmly believe the show could have remained a hit with better luck and marketing. (I watched all three of these shows to the bitter end.) NBC is guilty of a lot of things, but failing to market itself is not one of its problems (unless your show is called Life), and the Leno fiasco left a lot of holes in its primetime schedule. Certainly if ABC can keep V around for a second season, NBC can keep The Cape around until it finds its feet.

Edited by svimouse, Aug 18, 2010 @ 9:09 AM.

[stillshimpy]

I watched all three shows until the bitter end too, svimouse, and depending on whether or not it's any good (which I can't tell from the trailer) it may stand a chance. It does have something rather large to overcome and that's the actual cape. Heroes did well it's first season, but when costumes become involved, I think it's more difficult for a show to find it's footing on TV. That generally does well on the big-screen, but any kind of costume tends to make mainstream audiences take a pass.

We'll see and for the sake of everyone involved on the show, I hope they have a surprise hit, or at least a solid, dependable ratings maker on their hands.

I was a really big BSG fan and whereas I did manage to convince a fair few people to watch the show, the element that was hardest to overcome was that it was set in space. Space and costumes are really difficult things on TV.

[cyberducks]

Summer Glau and James Frain in the cast - I will watch it.

It's on NBC - oh dear.

[Turkish]

As far as major networks go, I think it's a better fit for NBC than the other 3 major networks. The only scifi show Fox has stuck with in recent years is Fringe. That said, this show probably would have a better chance at longevity as a SyFy show. They would have given it a few seasons for sure. Look how quick they were to renew SGU and that show is bombing big time.

[scarynikki12]

At Comic Con, they basically showed us a 30 minute trailer for the show, and I must say that it looks like a lot of fun. Like many of you, though, I fully expect NBC to cancel it before it has a chance to find its footing, though I'm keeping myself hopeful for a SyFy move as an outside possibility.

What sold it for me was Summer and Bear McCreary doing the music (I have a picture from CC of them sitting together!), but I completely love James and Keith and with the rest of the cast, I'll definitely be watching. I really hope that NBC proves all of us wrong and gives it a genuine chance.

Edited by scarynikki12, Aug 18, 2010 @ 7:31 PM.

[svimouse]

What sold it for me was Summer and Bear McCreary doing the music

I forgot Bear was doing the music. I love him and I'll even say it bodes well for the show. (I believe in luck and most of his shows at least make it to a second season.) Man, he is quite the busy beaver.

[Turkish]

I don't know how Bear finds the time to do music for all these different shows. Last I checked he was doing the music for Caprica, Eureka, Human Target, Trauma and Step Up 3D all around the same time.

Edited by Turkish, Aug 18, 2010 @ 8:40 PM.

[Selianth]

Bear was fired from Human Target, so that frees up one slot, at least.

[svimouse]

Bear was fired from Human Target, so that frees up one slot, at least.

But he picked up The Walking Dead along with The Cape so he's all booked up again. On a side note, I'm shocked Human Target let Bear go. His music was one of the better things about that show.

[scarynikki12]

Bear was fired from Human Target

Blasphemy! Oh well, The Walking Dead is, IMO, a much better choice for his many, many talents.

[The Mad Maple]

I don't know why everyone's panicking. NBC's at their lowest point in about 30 years right now. You ask me, good reviews and a niche audience should be enough to keep the show on the air for a couple of seasons, at least. I mean, it's not like it's on Fox or ABC....

[nerdygeek]

I am willing to give this show a chance, even though its on NBC, mainly because I love James Frain, Keith David is pretty bad ass and like Martin Kleba since Pirates of the Caribbean. Vinnie Jones is pretty bad ass too. The premise is pretty interesting and since I am a sucker for this type of shows, I will watch it.

[scarynikki12]

Has anyone heard any news about the show, such as its premiere date?

[rove3]

Funny you should ask...

EW is reporting today that The Cape will premiere on Sunday, January 9th with a two hour episode. Regular shows will commence on January 17. Link here.

[Eruantien]

When I first read that Summer Glau was going to be in a superhero show, I was excited. Then I read the summary and thought it sounded moronic. Now that I've watched the preview, I'm cautiously optimistic. It's treading a fine line between cheesy and clever, so hopefully the writers are good enough to pull it off.