Below is a list of my favorite episodes from Season One of the Netflix remake of the 1965-1968 science-fiction series, "LOST IN SPACE". Written by Matt Sazama, Burk Sharpless and Zack Estrin; the series stars Molly Parker and Toby Stephens:
FIVE FAVORITE EPISODES OF "LOST IN SPACE" SEASON ONE (2018)
1. (1.10) "Danger, Will Robinson" - The Robinson family scrambles to launch from the dying planet they had earlier crashed on, stage an impossible rescue, and reach the colony starship Resolute before it leaves orbit for good.
2. (1.07) "Pressurized" - Judy Robinson, Don West and a group of other stranded colonists race home across the planet's desert with their precious cargo of fuel from the Jupiter 18 ship, needed to launch from the planet. Meanwhile, John and Maureen Robinson's rover gets stuck in a tar pit and slowly begins to sink to the bottom.
3. (1.03) "Infestation" - Flashbacks reveal the past of con artist June Harris, who is impersonating a colonist named Dr. Zachary Smith. The Robinsons face a natural threat when the ice layer over their ship Jupiter 2 cracks and exposes an eel infestation.
4. (1.08) "Trajectory" - Maureen finds a solution to the colonists' fuel issue, but putting her plan into action proves trickier than expected. Dr. Smith realizes her deception has been blown.
5. (1.06) "Eulogy" - Maureen debates whether to inform the other colonists about the black hole she had spotted in the sky. Don leads a mission to find his crashed Jupiter 18 for fuel, and the alien robot's presence creates tensions within the group.
"JERICHO" RETROSPECT: (1.14) "Heart of Winter"
The previous episode, (1.13) "Black Jack" focused on the town's need to find a way to stay warm during the winter. This need led Jake Green and three other people on a road trip to the Black Jack fairgrounds, which served as newly formed trading post for those living around Kansas and Nebraska. In this next episode, (1.14) "Heart of Winter", found Jericho's citizens searching for more food via various hunting trips.
I must admit that I was a little surprised by this sudden need for more food, considering that the town had received extra food not only from an abandoned freight train discovered by Dale Turner in (1.03) "Four Horsemen" and the supply sent by the Chinese government in (1.10) "Red Flag". So . . . what happened to the food? It is possible that Jericho's citizens had unwisely consumed the food discovered by Dale. Following Gray Anderson's election as mayor in (1.11) "Vox Populi", he had quickly distributed the food from the Chinese without any regard to saving a supply of it for future use. There is a third factor to consider - namely Jericho's recent population growth, due to the arrival of refugees in "Vox Populi". All of these factors led to Jericho in the middle of a food crisis in this episode.
Various hunting teams have been scouring the countryside for game to kill, including Johnston and Eric Green. Upon their return to Jericho, the former expressed both surprise and dismay at the lack of game in the area. Jake and his best friend, Stanley Richmond decided to conduct their own hunting trip further outside of town. The latter also insisted that his new love, former I.R.S. Agent Mimi Clark, accompany them so that she would learn a few survival tips in case something happens to him. However, the trip proved to be more than any of them had anticipated.
The trio first came upon a trail of refugees who had died from hypothermia on the trail. Both Jake and Stanley surmised from the items they were carrying that the refugees probably came from both North and South Dakota. While continuing their hunting trip, the trio encountered a bigger problem when a black Silverado truck ran them off the road and caused Stanley's truck to flip over. Although Mimi recovered from the crash without a scratch, Jake woke up with his legs pinned underneath the truck and Stanley found himself with a broken ankle. The men from the Silvarado truck managed to steal their coats, guns and supplies before Jake is able to get hold of his own pistol. After the marauders left, Jake and Stanley instructed Mimi to walk back to Jericho for help - despite the threat of an approaching snowstorm.
Meanwhile, Robert Hawkins and his former lover/C.I.A. colleague, Sarah Mason decided to search for the leader of their conspiracy - the "old man" - and kill him before he can kill the remaining members of their group. Unbeknownst to Robert, Sarah had been recruited by "the old man" to find Robert's package - the bomb he had taken instead of detonating it - and kill him. Although Robert trusted Sarah, his wife Darcy did not and advised her husband to keep an eye on their guest. Although Robert and Sarah failed to find the conspiracy's leader, the latter managed to kill the assassin who had been murdering the conspiracy's members on behalf of "the old man". Apparently, Sarah had her own agenda.
After my latest viewing of "Heart of Winter", I realized that it was one of those episodes that I had underestimated during my first viewing. It will never be one of my favorite episodes of the series, but it turned out to be a lot better than I remembered. Perhaps when I first saw this episode, I had focused most of my attention on the subplot featuring Robert Hawkins and Sarah Mason. Although this subplot ended up having major consequences on the series' narrative, what occurred in this particular episode only seemed mildly interesting to me, due to their inability to achieve their goal. Or should I say . . . Robert's goal? The episode eventually reveal that Sarah was actually working with "the old man" in setting up Robert to be killed. Only that last scene featuring Sarah's murder of her leader's personal assassin made me realize that she has her own plans regarding both Robert and his "package".
I did come away with a few thoughts regarding this particular subplot after viewing this episode. It finally occurred to me that Sarah may have deliberately made her way to Jericho in order to get close to Robert on the orders of "the old man". Neither he or his assassin could reach Robert alone, while the latter resided within Jericho - especially since the latter spent a good deal of time interacting with the town's other citizens during a series of crisis. Perhaps I am wrong after all. Who knows?
But I must admit that I found the episode's major subplot a bit more interesting. And I did so for a few reasons. Jake, Stanley and Mimi's discovery of the dead refugees and their encounter with the road scavengers really drove home the point on how dangerous the country had become in the months following the September attacks. It made me realize how lucky those refugees who had arrived at Jericho with Roger Hammond two episodes ago had been. As for poor Mimi - I could understood the terror she must have felt, while being forced to return to Jericho for help . . . by herself.
Due to the scavengers' attack, Jake found his legs pinned underneath Stanley's truck and suffering from a nearly severe case of hypothermia. Fortunately for both, Mimi managed to encounter Johnston and Gail Green, who had grown worried about the hunting party. While Gail drove Mimi and Stanley back to Jericho, Johnston remained with a barely coherent Jake. While the latter eased in and out of consciousness, he made a startling confession. During his time as a military contractor in Iraq for Jennings & Rall, Jake had killed an innocent Iraqi girl in the heat of battle. Following his return to Jericho, Jake asked Johnston to forget what he had confessed, but the latter refused to do so. While Jake sobbed with grief and regret, Johnston made it clear that as a Vietnam War veteran, he realized what war can do to anyone caught up in combat.
Did Jake's confession led me to lower my opinion of him? Not really. His efforts to protect Jericho and his reaction to the wrecked car that he and his brother Eric Green had spotted in (1.08) "Rogue River" reflected a ruthless pragmatism that I have always suspected he possessed. And that same ruthlessness had also been expressed in a negative way during those brief years as a criminal with Emily's father, Jonah Prowse; reared its ugly head when he killed that girl in Iraq. And yet . . . my opinion of Jake did not sink when he finally confessed to his father. Why? Based upon his reaction, it seemed pretty obvious that he felt a great deal of guilt . . . shame, actually, over that girl's death. Not even Johnston's words that combat can drive just about anyone to terrible acts could alleviate his guilt. And I am glad for it told me that Jake had matured a great deal during those five years he had been away. He knew how to take responsibility for his actions. I could not say the same for a good number of other fictional protagonists - including those from shows like "CHARMED", "24"and "POLDARK".
As for the performances featured in "Heart of Winter", I must admit that I was very impressed. Well . . . with the exception of Kenneth Mitchell. Although the actor, who portrayed Eric Green, made a brief appearance, he barely said a word in the episode. However, I did enjoy some very competent performances from Lennie James as Robert Hawkins, Pamela Reed as Gail Green, Ashley Scott as Emily Sullivan, Brad Beyer as Stanley Richmond, and Christopher Wiehl as Roger Hammond. But there were performances that really impressed me. One came from April D. Parker, whom I believe did a great job in conveying Darcy Hawkins' suspicion and dislike of Sarah Mason. Speaking of the latter, Siena Goins gave an enigmatic and slightly sinister portryal of the character. I really enjoyed Alicia Coppola's performance as the usually sardonic Mimi Clark, who really found herself outside her comfort box in this particular episode. Gerald McRaney was outstanding as a compassionate Johnston Green, who must have been both shocked and saddened by Jake's confession. But for me, the best performance came from leading man Skeet Ulrich. The latter did a superb job in conveying Jake's emotional journey in this episode. Thanks to his skillful performance, audiences not only saw another look at his hardcore survivor skills, but also saw how his physical situation led him to finally face the ugliness of his past as a military contractor.
What else can I say about "Heart of Winter"? It has never been one of my top favorite "JERICHO" episodes. But this latest viewing of the episode finally led me to appreciate it a lot more than I did when I first saw it, thanks to an intelligent screenplay and direction from both Nancy Won and Steve Gomer, respectively. But it was Skeet Ulrich's harrowing performance as a very haunted Jake Green that made this episode memorable for me.
"KNOWING" (2009) ReviewOver five years ago, Nicholas Cage starred in a science-fiction disaster film with a plot that took me by surprise, when I saw it. Directed by Alex Proyas and written by Ryne Douglas Pearson and Juliet Snowden, the movie proved to be a surprise box office hit, despite mixed reviews. "KNOWING" told the story about M.I.T. professor John Koestler, whose son Caleb stumbles across a piece of paper from a time capsule that had been dug up at his son's elementary school fifty years ago. In it are some chilling predictions of disasters - some that have already occurred and others that are about to occur in the near future. This discovery leads Koestler to believe his family plays a role in the events that are about to unfold, as he sets out to prevent the ultimate catastrophe.I must admit that I had not been that eager to see "KNOWING", when it first came out in 2009. Cage’s previous movie, "BANGKOK DANGEROUS", had been such a piece of crap. And if I must be brutally honest, his movie choices have been mixed for quite some time. But after learning that the movie had managed to reach the number one spot on the U.S. box office, I decided to give it a shot. Fortunately, "KNOWING" turned out to be somewhat of an improvement from "BANGKOK DANGEROUS". Pearson’s intriguing story, along with the screenplay co-written with Snowden, Alex Proyas’ direction and Cage’s performance helped a bit. I was especially impressed by one sequence that featured a commercial plane crash that occurred not far from where Cage’s character was stuck in a traffic jam, in the middle of a highway. I liked how Proyas and cinematographer Simon Duggan hinted the horrors of the crash’s aftermath through the use of rain, fire, smoke and soot-covered bodies, instead of giving the audience more graphic images. It was probably the best moment in the film.In the end, what started as a mystery surrounding a series of natural and man-made disasters turned into one of those "end of the world" stories. It seemed a group of aliens have been using the codes found on the list of disasters to warn children all over that the world was about to end, due to a massive solar flare that will have a global affect. This turn in the plot seemed to have a negative affect on the movie, transforming it from an intriguing mystery into a rather depressing and frantic tale. Rose Byrne, who portrayed the daughter of the young student who first left the mysterious piece of paper in the time capsule, did not help matters when her performance spiraled into a hammy rendition of a frantic mother trying to save her daughter and herself from being caught up in the oncoming apocalypse. Even worse, the story's narrative ended up reminding me of the plot for 2008's "THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL". And I found that rather unoriginal on the screenwriters' parts. Most of "KNOWING" proved to be . . . okay. The movie's three stars - Nicholas Cage, Rose Byrne and Chandler Canterbury - gave solid performances. So did the supporting cast that included Ben Mendelsohn and Liam Hemsworth. And yes, the movie spiraled into a theatrical "end of the world" story. But despite the movie’s over-the-top ending and switch from an intriguing mystery to a badly handled disaster film, I found "KNOWING" rather tolerable. I would not mind watching it again . . . on cable television.
"JERICHO" RETROSPECT: (1.13) "Black Jack"This next episode of "JERICHO" began with a topic, which had been the hallmark of the series' earlier episodes - namely another town crisis. In (1.13) "Black Jack", newly elected Mayor Gray Anderson and other town officials become aware that numerous citizens are either suffering or dying from hypothermia, due to low power and gas supply. The town engineer suggests that Jericho should convert to wind power and create new windmills. However, the lacks the parts like a regulating governor for even one mill. One of the newly arrived refugees - Emily Sullivan's fiance, Roger Hammond - reveals that a fairgrounds in southern Nebraska called Black Jack has been the site of a trading post and a place to gather information from around the country. Gray asks for volunteers to go to Black Jack and use the town's salt supply to trade for parts needed for new windmills. In the end, four people go - Jake Green, his father Johnston Green, science teacher Heather Lisinski and young Dale Turner. Johnston volunteers due to curiosity about the world outside Jericho. Heather volunteers because she feels she is the only one who can recognize a regulating governor and Dale volunteers in order to barter new items for the store he had inherited from Gracie Lee.Upon their arrival at Black Jack, the four travelers discover that the camp is guarded by heavily armed men, who are willing to retaliate violently against anyone who causes trouble. They also discover that other countries throughout the world have been sending supplies to the United States. And thanks to the fairground's bulletin boards, they learn a good deal of information about the outside world, including the fact that the country has been divided into six Federal regions, with many people are trying to stake claims to the presidency. Jake, Heather, Johnston and Dale also meet citizens from the neighboring town of New Bern; Heather's original hometown. The quartet learn that New Bern had an ugly encounter with John Goetz and his band of Ravenwood mercenaries after Jericho had driven off the latter in a previous episode, (1.09) "Crossroads". Heather's New Bern acquaintances prove to be a godsend when Dale endangers them all with an act of theft."Black Jack" featured other story arcs. Tension rises in the Hawkins household when Robert Hawkins allows one of the new refugees, his former C.I.A. colleague Sarah Mason, to stay at his home. Darcy Hawkins immediately senses that Robert and Sarah were former lovers. She not only develops an instant dislike toward the other woman, but also begins to suspect that the latter might be a threat to the Hawkins family. Darcy's instinct proves to be accurate. While Robert plots with Sarah to permanently deal with the leader of the conspiracy behind the September bombs - their employer, Sarah schemes with "the old man" to use the Hawkins family to coerce Robert in giving up the bomb in his possession. And finally, Gail Green has a confrontation with Mary Bailey over the latter's affair with Eric Green. Their confrontation leads to Mary's revelation that her own mother cuckolded her father with another man before abandoning the Bailey family. I would not regard "Black Jack" as one of my favorite episodes. There is nothing really wrong about it, if I must be brutally honest. For the first time since the series' seventh episode, (1.07) "Long Live the Mayor", Jericho citizens and the series' viewers get an idea of what is going on outside of the town. And judging from Jonathan E. Steinberg and Dan Stolz's screenplay, matters have grown exceedingly grim - not only for Jericho, but also the country. This sense of a growing post-apocalyptic world had been featured in episodes like "Long Live the Mayor" and (1.08) "Rogue River". But the Black Jack Fairgrounds setting and the bulletin boards in this episode, along with Sarah Mason's plot against the Hawkins family and Roger Drummond's recollection of how a light led him to the safety of a refugee camp in Nebraska really drove home how grim the country had become. More importantly, the narrative for "Black Jack" served as a starting point for the grimmer plot arcs that played out for the rest of Season One and Season Two. The four Jericho travelers' encounter with citizens from New Bern and the deal created between the two groups served as a major continuation of a story line that began in episodes like "Rogue River" and "Crossroads". This deal consisted of New Bern providing windmills for Jericho in exchange for much needed salt. Also included in the bargain is for Heather to return to her hometown and construct governors for the windmills. Sarah Mason's dealings with Robert and the Hawkins family is another story line that will continue in a major way - probably a lot bigger than the one between Jericho and New Bern. More importantly, an important piece of information on one of Black Jack's bulletin boards - a name, actually - will play a major, major role in the series' future narrative in Season Two and beyond.Considering how "Black Jack" played a major role in the series' narrative, why is it not a big favorite of mine? I honestly do not know. Perhaps it felt more like a source of information and a narrative device than a story with any real emotional connection to me. One is bound to point out the confrontation between Gail Green and Mary Bailey, Darcy Hawkins' hostility toward her family's new house guest or Roger Hammond's recollection of finding a refugee camp as story arcs with real emotional connection. Perhaps. These story arcs, although rather interesting, simply fail to personally click for me. The screenwriters even added a moment between Jake Green and Heather Lisinski, in which the latter brought up the brief kiss they had shared near the end of "Long Live the Mayor". But considering that I have never really sensed any romantic chemistry between Jake and Heather, I only felt relief when they finally dropped the topic of the kiss.The performances in "Black Jack" were top notch, as usual. The episode benefited from some excellent performances from Skeet Ulrich, Lennie James, Sprague Grayden, Siena Goines, Ashley Scott, Candace Bailey, Michael Gaston and Dustin Seavey. But for me, the best performances came from Gerald McRaney and Erik Knudsen, who created an interesting mentor/protege chemistry between Johnston Green and Dale Turner; Pamela Reed and Clare Carey, who were fantastic as the two women in Eric Green's life at odds with each other; and April Parker, who was superb conveying Darcy Hawkins' anger at the intrusion of Sarah Mason in the lives of the Hawkins' family.In the end, "Black Jack" proved to be a very interesting episode. I did not exactly find it emotionally compelling, but I must admit that it conveyed a strong image of the grim world beyond Jericho, following the September attacks. More importantly, it set the stage for uglier turn of events for the rest of Season One and Season Two for "JERICHO".
Usually I would list my ten favorite summer movies of any particular year. However, since I had only watched ten new releases during the summer of 2016. Due to the limited number, I decided to rank the films that I saw:
RANKING OF MOVIES SEEN DURING SUMMER 2016
1. "Suicide Squad" - David Ayer wrote and directed this very entertaining adaptation of the DC Comics series about a group of anti-heroes and villains forced by the government to battle a supernatural sorceress bent upon world conquest.
2. "The Nice Guys" - Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling starred in this comedy mystery about an enforcer and private detective in 1977 Los Angeles investigating the connection between a missing girl, the porn industry and the automobile industry. Shane Black directed.
3. "Ghostbusters" - Paul Feig wrote and directed this funny reboot of Ivan Reitman's 1980s supernatural comedy about ghost chasers in New York City. Melissa McCarthy, Kristin Wiig, Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon starred.
4. "Love & Friendship" - Kate Beckinsale starred in this adaptation of Jane Austen's 1794 novel, "Lady Susan", about a wry and calculating widow who pursues wealthy husbands for both herself and her daughter. Whit Stillman wrote and directed the movie.
5. "X-Men: Apocalypse" - Bryan Singer directed this ninth X-MEN movie about the band of mutants trying to stop a re-awakened mutant from Ancient Egypt from conquering the world in the 1980s. James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender starred.
6. "Now You See Me 2" - Jon M. Chu directed this sequel to the 2013 hit film in which the magicians known as "the Four Horsemen", who are forced by a tech genius to pull off an almost impossible heist. Mark Ruffalo, Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco and Lizzy Caplan starred.
7. "Star Trek Beyond" - Justin Lin directed this third entry in the rebooted STAR TREK movie franchise in which the U.S.S. Enterprise crew deal with a ruthless enemy with a grudge against the Federation. Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto starred.
8. "Captain America: Civil War" - Chris Evans starred as Steve Rogers aka Captain America in the Marvel film in which political interference in the superheroes' activities causes a rift between the Avengers. Anthony and Joe Russo directed.
9. "Jason Bourne" - Matt Damon, Julia Stiles and Paul Greengrass re-teamed for this fifth installment of the BOURNEmovie franchise in which the former amnesiac CIA assassin is drawn out of hiding when fellow fugitive Nicky Parsons discovers a secret from his past. Alicia Vikander and Tommy Lee Jones co-starred.
10. "Independence Day: Resurgence" - Dean Devlin and Roland Emmerich reunited to produce this sequel to the 1996 blockbuster in which a group of Humans deal with a second invasion from the same aliens that tried to invade Earth twenty years ago. Directed by Emmerich; Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman and Liam Hemsworth starred.
"JERICHO" RETROSPECT: (1.12) "The Day Before"
In compare to a television series like ABC's "LOST", "JERICHO" rarely featured any flashbacks, let alone a flashback episode. I said . . . rarely. For to my knowledge, there were at least two flashback episodes. One of them was called (1.12) "The Day Before".
The episode basically covered the last 36 hours in the lives of Jake Green, Robert Hawkins, members of their families, and other Jericho citizens like Emily Sullivan and Stanley Richmond before the bombing attacks. Thirty-six hours before the attacks saw Jake Green in San Diego trying to get a legitimate job as a pilot. But due to Jake's unwillingness to help the U.S. government investigate Ravenwood, his passport is flagged, making it impossible for him to be hired as a pilot. An old friend and fellow ex-mercenary named Freddie Ruiz tries to recruit him to participate in a cargo run operation. But since the job is sponsored by Ravenwood and involves Afghanistan, Jake rejects the job offer. Jake tries and fails to prevent Freddie from taking the job, but the latter ends up being shot and killed by the military company. Jake helps Freddie's pregnant wife Anna get out of San Diego, before traveling back east to Kansas . . . hours before the bombs detonate across the country.
Robert Hawkins' tale begins with a mysterious meeting that involves him and a group of people who are each assigned to a truck carrying a bomb. Robert is ordered to detonate his bomb in Columbus, Ohio. However, Robert and a fellow agent named Sarah Mason make plans to betray the group. He also kidnaps his estranged wife Darcy Hawkins and their two children - Allison and Samuel - in order to get them out of Washington D.C. Sarah mysteriously disappears, but the Hawkins family makes it to Kansas in time. After their arrival in Jericho, Darcy finds a weapon and tries to force Robert to let her and the kids go. But the Denver bombing diffuses the family feud and the Hawkins find themselves citizens of Jericho.
"The Day Before" also featured on other stories. A physical checkup by April Green reveals that Johnston's health might be in question. He considers having younger son Eric Green run for mayor in his place. Meanwhile, Eric has already begun his affair with Mary Bailey, unaware that wife April has secretly filed for divorce and had just received the divorce papers. Emily Sullivan discovers that her fiance, banker Roger Hammond, is considering a new job in Chicago. The couple quarrel, due to her desire to remain in Jericho. And Mimi Clark arrives in Jericho to audit Stanley Richmond's farm.
"The Day Before" never made my top ten list of favorite episodes of "JERICHO". I have nothing against the episode. To be honest, I found it very interesting. But I would never regard it as one of my ten favorite episodes from the series. I would probably rank it somewhere between eleven and thirteen. And that is pretty close. When I said that it was very interesting, I was not kidding. As far as I know, "The Day Before" might be one of three"JERICHO" episodes that heavily featured flashbacks. "The Day Before" is the only one that is basically a flashback episode.
Of the minor story arcs featured in this episode, the one featuring Mimi and Stanley's first meeting inside Bailey's Tavern struck me as amusing . . . especially Stanley's initial attempt to make a pass at her. I barely paid any attention to the one featuring Eric's affair with Mary and April's receipt of her divorce papers, due to the small attention paid to Eric and April's marriage in this episode. On the other hand, discovering that Emily nearly ended her engagement to Roger in order to remain in Jericho made me realize how fully attached she was to the town. Of course, Roger going behind her back to apply for a job in Chicago did not help matters. I suspect that this lack of mutual interest between the two made me realize that Emily and Roger were unsuited for each other . . . something they might be forced to learn for himself, now that he was back in Jericho. I found the story arc featuring the Greens and the town's mayor race very interesting. One, I had no idea that Gail Green wanted Johnston to give up the idea of continuing as Jericho's mayor. I got the feeling that she used his health scare as an excuse for him to consider it. But what I really found interesting was Johnston's inability to give up political power . . . on his own initiative. He was willing to drop out of the race for Gail's sake. But he was willing to use Eric to maintain that power. I never realized this before . . . or perhaps I had never paid attention in the past. But for the first time, I found myself wondering if Johnston was a controlling man who found it difficult to give up power of any kind.
But the episode also featured two main story arcs featuring both Jake Green and Robert Hawkins. In the episode, (1.08) "Rogue River", Jake had seemed familiar with the private military contractor Ravenwood. I had assumed that he had simply heard about the company, while in Iraq. But "The Day Before" revealed that Jake had his own personal brush with Ravenwood, when his friend Freddie Ruiz tried to get him a job with the company. The situation takes a tragic turn when a Federal agent warns Jake that that U.S. government was investigating Ravenwood, resulting in Freddie's death. Watching this sequence made me really appreciate how much Jake was at the end of his rope when he had returned to Jericho to unsuccessfully collect his inheritance from his late grandfather in the (1.01) "Pilot" episode.
If you want my opinion, the real star of this episode was the story arc involving the Hawkins family. To a certain extent, audiences finally learned that Hawkins was part of a terrorist cell responsible for the bombs that were detonated in the series' first episode. Audiences also learned that Robert did not detonate the bomb given to him and instead, forced his estranged family to accompany him to Jericho. And apparently, Darcy was not the only one having an affair. This episode also revealed Robert's mistress at the time, a fellow "terrorist" named Sarah Mason. Only she disappeared before he could head for Kansas with his family. What made this particular story arc rather fascinating to me was the revelation on how low Robert's relationship with his family had sunk. When he had arrived in Washington D.C. to collect them, they wanted nothing to do with him. Worse, they seemed so fearful of them that they ended up summoning two Washington D.C. police officers to help them escape . . . from him.
I had one major problem with "The Day Before". Most of the episode covered the 36 hours before the bombs dropped. And this time period had me questioning both Jake and the Hawkins family's journey to Jericho. I barely found it hard to believe that it took the Hawkins family less than 36 hours to travel from Washington D.C. to Jericho, Kansas. Barely. Perhaps Robert drove all day and night. But I absolutely found it impossible to believe that it took Jake less than 24 hours to travel from San Diego, California to Jericho. The "Pilot" made it clear that Jake had arrived in Denver, Colorado via the train, before he drove the rest of the way to Jericho on the day the bombs dropped. Both he and Anna Ruiz had traveled from San Diego to Albuquerque via a bus. Whereas Anna traveled on to Houston, Texas; Jake allegedly headed for Denver via rail. However, if Jake really did arrive in Denver by train, he would have been forced to make connections in both Los Angeles and Oakland, and skip Albuquerque altogether. And it still would have taken him at least 24 hours or more to reach Denver alone. Someone should have consulted the Amtrak route map before writing this episode. Also the show's producers and the episode's writer should have extended the time period for this episode by at least another 12 hours or so.
"The Day Before" featured some solid performances from the likes of Kenneth Mitchell, Pamela Reed, Brad Beyer, Alicia Coppola, Clare Carey, Jazz Raycole, Darby Stanchfield, Erica Muñoz, Siena Goines, Christopher Wiehl and James Parks. However, I feel that the more outstanding performances came from the following - April D. Parker, who did an excellent job in conveying Darcy Hawkins' fear and anger toward her estranged husband; Mark Adair-Rios, who portrayed Jake's friendly yet more morally flexible friend Freddie Ruiz; Gerald McRaney, who gave a skillful performance as Mayor Johnston Green, reluctant to give up power; and Ashley Scott, who did a great job in conveying Emily Sullivan's emotional attachment to her hometown. But the two stars of this episode were the show's leads - Skeet Ulrich and Lennie James. For the first time, since the series' beginning, audiences get a hint of Jake Green's past in both Afghanistan and Iraq. Ulrich did a superb job in not only conveying Jake's emotional state at what seemed to be the nadir of his life, but also how a personal experience in Afghanistan continued to traumatize him after such a long period of time. Lennie James gave an equally superb performance as the enigmatic Robert Hawkins, who seemed hellbent in not only upsetting his "terrorist" cell's plans, but also getting his family out of danger. At the same time, James was very skillful in conveying how frightening Robert was to his family on the eve of the bombings.
The previous episode, (1.11) "Vox Popoli", ended with a group of wandering refugees arriving in Jericho. One of those refugees turned out to be Emily Sullivan's fiance, Roger Hammond. "The Day Before" not only repeated that scene, but also revealed another surprising figure . . . namely Robert's former mistress and colleague, Sarah Mason. This episode not only revealed how far Jake, Robert and many other characters had come since the series' first episode, it also hinted some future conflicts to come - especially for Jake, Robert, Emily and the other members of the Hawkins family.
