S01.E01: Past Is Prologue

[formerlyfreedom]

Quote

Over the last century at least four thousand four hundred people who were overlooked, undervalued, or otherwise marginalized vanished without a trace off the face of the planet. Last night, inexplicably, they were all returned in an instant to Detroit having not aged a day and with no memory of what happened to them. As the government races to understand the phenomenon, analyze the potential threat, and contain the story, Jharrel , an empathetic social worker, and Keisha, a hardened community corrections officer, are among the civil servants called upon to deal with the uncanny refugees.

Airing Monday, October 25, 2021.

[shapeshifter]

Interesting that this show is premiering on a night when other current scripted network shows are taking a one-week hiatus.
I'm guessing this could artificially boost ratings. 

So, unless we're time traveled away, it should air 13½ hours from now.

[AnimeMania]

It would be interesting if some of the 4400 managed to leave the area before the government started to round people up. The ones on the outside could be trying to help the ones on the inside get out. They could also be the ones leaking the information to the press. I am not really that attached to the people they have introduced so far, I guess that is a good thing since they can always bring more/different characters to the forefront.

[UnoAgain]

Good pilot.. Gave us a bit for each of the players... But not too much... Enjoyed the lawyer and the doctor.. The rev is way too smooth.  Good interplay tween the P.O and the social worker... I'll be back next week

[xfuse]

12 minutes ago, UnoAgain said:

Good pilot.. Gave us a bit for each of the players... But not too much... Enjoyed the lawyer and the doctor.. The rev is way too smooth.  Good interplay tween the P.O and the social worker... I'll be back next week

Didn't like it but I will give it another week because I enjoyed the original so much.

So far I haven't liked any of the rebooted shows; Charmed, Walker, MacGyver, Magnum or Equalizer.

[UnoAgain]

2 hours ago, xfuse said:

Didn't like it but I will give it another week because I enjoyed the original so much.

So far I haven't liked any of the rebooted shows; Charmed, Walker, MacGyver, Magnum or Equalizer.

I've watched charmed.. Don't dislike it.. But it's been meh and my fav character was Macy... So I dunno... I watched macgyver for a while but just stopped... I liked the episodes of walker I've seen.. Didn't like magnum.. Well it didn't keep me interested... Do like the equalizer

[Jenniferbug]

I liked it ok. I don't think I'm as immediately pulled in as I was with the original show, but I'm thinking the original show pilot was 2 hours, so we got more time to get to know more of the characters.

I like Shaniece (the lawyer), and thought LaDonna (? The party girl?) could be fun. The Reverend (whose name I didn't catch) seems kinda fake to me...like maybe he's not really a reverend. I don't know, he gives me Jordan Collier type vibes already. 

Interesting that Mildred and lady from the 60s whose name I didn't catch are already displaying abilities. 

Was the kid who spoke at the end mute? Or did they just assume he was? I wonder if Manny is in some sort of original show Kyle type situation, where he tried to stop an abduction, since the social worker (Jharell?) said something about seeing a green light before his brother was missing. 

It was hard for me to watch and not compare to the original show, but I'm hoping that goes away as the show progresses and characters (hopefully) develop more. 

[AnimeMania]

4 hours ago, UnoAgain said:

The rev is way too smooth.

I was thinking that might be his superpower. +20 Charisma 

[UnoAgain]

28 minutes ago, AnimeMania said:

I was thinking that might be his superpower. +20 Charisma 

That's my rpg build... +20 charm + 15 persuasion +10 stealth

[nokat]

I enjoyed it. I will continue to watch.

[shapeshifter]

The production values were much better than I expected —Looking at you, La Brea.

But the script had a few false notes, IMO, regarding racism and policing.
With regards to the policing: It seemed like the 4400 were supposed to be metaphors for undocumented immigrants——which should work. But showing the guards being sadistic doesn’t really make sense if the guards know these are missing persons from the past. The guards should be more in awe, and, well, more guarded. (pun)

I also had a problem with the pre-Civil Rights era black wife of a preacher doing a Little Richard-style Boogie Woogie on the piano. Her performance was wonderful (the dancing of the other actors not so much) but the performance didn’t seem to fit her character——like if she did that in her regular world, her (church?) people would freak out instead of dance. 

11 hours ago, Jenniferbug said:

The Reverend (whose name I didn't catch) seems kinda fake to me...like maybe he's not really a reverend. I don't know, he gives me Jordan Collier type vibes already.…

…I wonder if Manny is in some sort of original show Kyle type situation, where he tried to stop an abduction, since the social worker (Jharell?) said something about seeing a green light before his brother was missing. 

It was hard for me to watch and not compare to the original show

Did you recently rewatch the OG 4400? I barely remember any of it. 

[Sakura12]

I checked this out since I watched the original and of course being on the CW everyone is in their 20's and 30's. 

They seemed a little more disorganized then the original. Which I think had them a facility or maybe it was a prison? A hotel doesn't seem like it can be contained that well. Which I guess it wasn't since one of them got out.

Also did none of the 4400 wonder why some people were wearing masks? They talked about quaranting, but then just ignore it. Either it's a thing or it's not. You can't just talk about it then have no other mentions of it. Maybe telling them that we are in the midst of a global pandemic would make them want to stay in the hotel. 

I'm guessing preacher guy is the Jordan Collier of the group. I think it might even been better to have us listen to some of the interviews so we can know what Era some of the characters are from.

Keisha is a little annoying with her skepticism. Does she think 4400 people came together to make up this giant lie about being from different time periods? And the fact that they have some of them matched with missing persons reports. What lie is she trying to uncover?

I did enjoy it, and I'm interested to see where it goes. 

[Just Here]

(For those who, like me, need a "cheat sheet" with the character's photos and names, see this Media thread post, which has a screenshot of the show's Bios page from the CW's PR website.)

 

I thought that this was a solid pilot and I loved the spectacle of the Returnees dropping into the park and getting their bearings. 

Even though Shanice, the attorney, got the primary focus of the episode, I thought that Claudette, the one with rapid healing, was actually presented as having the most character depth.

 

8 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I also had a problem with the pre-Civil Rights era black wife of a preacher doing a Little Richard-style Boogie Woogie on the piano. Her performance was wonderful (the dancing of the other actors not so much) but the performance didn’t seem to fit her character——like if she did that in her regular world, her (church?) people would freak out instead of dance.

True, but we don't know the circumstances of her marriage.  Perhaps, she was more of a wild child, but forced to settle down due to family pressure, financial concerns, et cetera.  I also thought her line about being a preacher's wife implied some unhappiness regarding her marriage.

 

47 minutes ago, Sakura12 said:

They seemed a little more disorganized then the original. Which I think had them a facility or maybe it was a prison? A hotel doesn't seem like it can be contained that well. Which I guess it wasn't since one of them got out.

The funny part is that the Returnees were dropped onto an actual island, Belle Isle (Google Maps), so setting up a physical quarantine would have been relatively simple.  Then FEMA and/or the military could have been deployed with tents, trailers, et cetera.

[blugirlami21]

I liked it. I didn't feel like it was too woke or too black. I think the original had one black main character, Richard so it's more balanced this time around race. 

I like that the characters seem mostly original this time around. Shaneice does seem to be Lily's counterpart. It's a sad story, there's no easy solution or answer for her or the husband. He's far more sympathetic than Lily's husband who legit just turned her away.

I do think we got a more broad amount of backstories in the original, we actually saw several people get taken.

I'm glad Keisha softened in the end because I was about to drop kick her. 

Two powers so far. Claudette heals ( I do wish she had tried to heal Ladonna) and Mildred can control electronics? I think it's interesting that she doesn't seem to be aware that she's doing it.

I don't like the evil guard thing. Is there no oversight there? Feel like it's unnecessary on top of everything else.

I don't understand why they are holding them for so long. It was so much more interesting to see them experiencing the new timeline with their powers. I hope we don't spend too much time in the hotel.

[Jenniferbug]

10 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Did you recently rewatch the OG 4400? I barely remember any of it. 

Not for many years. I watched the first couple of seasons multiple times so remember them pretty well. The seasons once adult Isabelle appeared are where I lost interest and couldn't really tell you what happens beyond very vague outlines. 

8 hours ago, Just Here said:

(For those who, like me, need a "cheat sheet" with the character's photos and names, see this Media thread post, which has a screenshot of the show's Bios page from the CW's PR website.)

...

True, but we don't know the circumstances of her marriage.  Perhaps, she was more of a wild child, but forced to settle down due to family pressure, financial concerns, et cetera.  I also thought her line about being a preacher's wife implied some unhappiness regarding her marriage.

Thank you for the reference! 

I thought a couple of Claudette's comments about her marriage implied her husband was physically abusive. The doctor said something about her being in pain or injured, and she gave a response that implied she was used to it. Then she made a comment about being married to someone who appears one way in public but isn't who others think.

[MagicCat]

When the doctor mentioned that Claudette's leg injury was so much better so quickly, I thought they were going to make him a super-healer.  I was a little disappointed when they didn't.  It's a little less common.

As a Detroit-area resident, it was fun to see some of the local references.  Belle Isle, the DIA, Vernor's, Palmer Woods....   I don't think they'll make it out to my neck of the woods, but it's still fun to hear some familiar place names.

 I swear the first time someone asks for a  "soda", I'm turning it off.  I saw that in another show that supposedly took place in Detroit and it takes you right out of the story.

 

 

[peachmangosteen]

I didn't watch the original but I absolutely love this. I'm excited for more.

27 minutes ago, MagicCat said:

I swear the first time someone asks for a  "soda", I'm turning it off.  I saw that in another show that supposedly took place in Detroit and it takes you right out of the story.

What do they call it in Detroit?

[MagicCat]

3 minutes ago, peachmangosteen said:

I didn't watch the original but I absolutely love this. I'm excited for more.

What do they call it in Detroit?

Pop 

[shapeshifter]

8 minutes ago, MagicCat said:

Pop 

But are we sure they called it "pop" in the 1950s in Detroit too?
I'm just thinking about "soda shops" and "soda fountains."

 

2 hours ago, Jenniferbug said:

once adult Isabelle appeared are where I lost interest and couldn't really tell you what happens beyond very vague outlines. 

40 minutes ago, MagicCat said:

Claudette's leg injury was so much better so quickly

So Claudette is the new version of Isabelle, right?

 

Edited October 27, 2021 by shapeshifter

[MagicCat]

26 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

But are we sure they called it "pop" in the 1950s in Detroit too?
I'm just thinking about "soda shops" and "soda fountains."

They probably did.  I wasn't alive in the 50's but all the oldies I know call it pop.  The term pop has been around forever.  Detroit classic Faygo Pop has been around since at least the early 1900's and their number one flavor is literally called redpop.  I doubt the show runners or writers have done extensive research on it either and I would side-eye anything from this show that would pretend to be historically accurate to that extent. They are trying , though, to be accurate to the area where the show takes place and it is appreciated.  There was a (bad) show called Detroiters that I loved only because it was so accurate.  One of the companies in the show was an actual advertising agency in Southfield and in one episode the main characters walked in and they were in the actual building, which I knew because I'd been there before and I recognized the cool front doors.

So far, the fifties and earlier characters have been from the south and New York.  They (or any of the non-local characters) can ask for a soda as long as a local looks at them strangely and asks why they want soda water.  "Wouldn't you rather have a pop?"

[xfuse]

13 hours ago, blugirlami21 said:

I liked it. I didn't feel like it was too woke or too black. I think the original had one black main character, Richard so it's more balanced this time around race

It's not balanced. There is a black cast with one white returnee. I don't expect to see the husband or the lead's girlfriend much. There are no other people of color or ethnicity. These people are supposed to be from around the world. I know the original wasn't good for that either but it has been 17 years and now I expect to see more than two different ethnicities on a show. 

My problem with the show is:

1. People appear out of thin air and Homeland Security calls in social workers and parole officers (or is she a cop).

2. They put them in a hotel. 

3. They got rent-a-cops or patrol officers to guard them.

4. They had to go there with the racist vibe. Evil white cop against the black people.  

5. Biggest problem with it is for a sci-fi show with people disappearing and appearing in a swishing light. It doesn't feel very sci-fi

People appear out of thin air and Homeland Security is locking that down. No civilians is getting anywhere near them. They would have been put somewhere they couldn't get out and no civilian would see them. 

 

Edited October 27, 2021 by xfuse
more thoughts

[Sakura12]

The sense of urgency is lacking in this version. There is barely any chaos and no one seems to care that a bunch of missing persons returned suddenly and the missing don't seem that bothered that they are in a different time. Now maybe there will be chaos in the next ep with the whole world finding out. But you'd think the people involved now would be more interested. Keisha seems to think she's uncovering some mass prank with 4400 people. I guess the interesting stuff could be happening off screen with Keisha's girlfriend. 

Also if this is during the pandemic and with the masks it seems like it is. Wouldn't Shanice be put in quarantine to not infect the others, since they didn't know where she went and who she talked too.

[Tachi Rocinante]

I'll have to go back and watch, but the original seemed to have better production, locations, and casting (Gretsch, Coyote, Ali). 

I'll give it a few more episodes, but it's not showing a lot of promise yet.

 

[Demian]

Quote

It's not balanced. There is a black cast with one white returnee.

From the episode description at the top of this thread, emphasis mine:

Quote

Over the last century at least four thousand four hundred people who were overlooked, undervalued, or otherwise marginalized vanished without a trace off the face of the planet.

And in this pilot, we've met only five or six of the total 4400.  So, you know, we all might want to wait and see where all of this is going.

That bit noted, the actor playing the doctor from the 1910s or 1920s is dreadful.  I'm sure his mother's very proud of him right now, but his line readings suck.

Edited because my formatting skills are seriously out-of-date.

Edited October 28, 2021 by Demian

[nokat]

Since we're doing pop versus soda, I got made fun of for saying Pop and have said Soda ever since.

[cdnalor]

54 minutes ago, nokat said:

Since we're doing pop versus soda, I got made fun of for saying Pop and have said Soda ever since.

Some people just say "soda pop," although I've haven't heard that in a while.

[AnimeMania]

20 minutes ago, cdnalor said:

Some people just say "soda pop," although I've haven't heard that in a while.

I say it to people that demand that you say one or the other.

13 hours ago, MagicCat said:

I thought they were going to make him a super-healer.  I was a little disappointed when they didn't.

I think that she is, she heals faster and faster with each injury.

[MagicCat]

26 minutes ago, AnimeMania said:

 

I think that she is, she heals faster and faster with each injury.

No, I meant I thought that the doctor could be a healer, that is he could instantly heal people who were injured.  Claudette can only heal herself, as far as we know.  Boring and played out.

I think I was traumatized by that damn cheerleader in Heroes.

[AnimeMania]

1 hour ago, MagicCat said:

No, I meant I thought that the doctor could be a healer, that is he could instantly heal people who were injured.

This isn't an episode of "The Nevers".

[MagicCat]

6 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

This isn't an episode of "The Nevers".

I know.

I didn't watch "The Nevers".  Did they have a cheerleader too?  Was it a steampunk cheerleader? That would almost be cool.  

Edited October 28, 2021 by MagicCat

[Ziggy]

On 10/27/2021 at 9:16 AM, MagicCat said:

So far, the fifties and earlier characters have been from the south and New York.  They (or any of the non-local characters) can ask for a soda as long as a local looks at them strangely and asks why they want soda water.  "Wouldn't you rather have a pop?"

I lived in Toledo for a few years, and no one was ever confused by me calling it soda.  They sometimes did a double take, but they always knew what I meant.  I never met anyone who thought I was referring to soda water.

It's a regional thing, for sure.  People in the South usually call it Coke (no matter what flavor the drink is).  If you order a Coke in Central Illinois, you get regular Coke.  If you order a Coke in the South, they'll say, "What kind of Coke do you want, regular, diet, orange, root beer?"

[DearEvette]

On 10/26/2021 at 9:58 AM, Jenniferbug said:

Was the kid who spoke at the end mute? Or did they just assume he was? I wonder if Manny is in some sort of original show Kyle type situation, where he tried to stop an abduction, since the social worker (Jharell?) said something about seeing a green light before his brother was missing.

I wonder if he is some sort of vessel who speaks for other people?  It just seemed so odd that he was so very completely silent (and originally wearing all white as if he was in some sort of cult) and only spoke to speak for Manny. 

 

On 10/26/2021 at 9:01 PM, shapeshifter said:

But the script had a few false notes, IMO, regarding racism and policing.
With regards to the policing: It seemed like the 4400 were supposed to be metaphors for undocumented immigrants——which should work. But showing the guards being sadistic doesn’t really make sense if the guards know these are missing persons from the past. The guards should be more in awe, and, well, more guarded. (pun)

I also had a problem with the pre-Civil Rights era black wife of a preacher doing a Little Richard-style Boogie Woogie on the piano. Her performance was wonderful (the dancing of the other actors not so much) but the performance didn’t seem to fit her character——like if she did that in her regular world, her (church?) people would freak out instead of dance.

Yeah, I thought they were very heavy-handed about the policing.  It was huge false note for me.  I get they were probably trying to draw some parallels to the way border guards etc, are treating immigrants (the recent pix from Haiti refugees, e.g.) but in a hotel in Detroit where most of the people look clean and well groomed? It is obvious they haven't been trekking for miles across a border in desperate straits.  Party girl had on a prisitne pink party dress and her nails were perfect.  Claudette's hair and dress were flawless.  

Even the non-police bureaucrats should have been looking at this group of people and been more puzzled than antagonistic. 

Regards Claudette, she made a snarky remark about her husband.  My impression was that she was married to a slick preacher that was a habitual liar and she herself probably wasn't really cut out to be a preacher's wife.  She wouldn't be the first preacher's wife to want to privately listen to honky tonk or rock and roll.

On 10/26/2021 at 9:30 PM, Sakura12 said:

Keisha is a little annoying with her skepticism. Does she think 4400 people came together to make up this giant lie about being from different time periods? And the fact that they have some of them matched with missing persons reports. What lie is she trying to uncover?

I found her so annoying.  They interviewed everyone separately.  If they all talked about a green light sucking them away then girl start using your brain.  Meanwhile they have evidence that the people have been missing over years.  Did no one think to wonder how all these people ended up together on an island.

This is where I think the show could have done better with having a longer establishing arc in the beginning instead of jumping feet first into the personal stuff.  It  tried to do too much too soon.

For instance, I would have liked to know how all the big government types knew all these people were there on that island in the first place.  We see them getting spit out of the light and suddenly the black SUVs are there.  Who told them? And why weren't there any lookie-loos with phones out posting stuff on social media where someone looking would say 'Hey Marvin that looks like Cousin Henry who disappeared ten years ago.  It's gotta be him, he's wearing my hat I let him borrow!"

And I assume Shanice's car was still at the intersection, still on,  with her purse still in it.  Why wouldn't her husband at least have some doubt that she left even with an oh so  convenient letter. 

Even so.. I was still interested and am curious as to how they will discover their different abilities and where this will all go.  And even with my complaints I did enjoy it.

I am really liking Shaniece, Claudette and Party girl so far.

I watched the original but only remember Mahershala Ali being in it.  And Billy Campbell was kinda evil.  That's all I remember so this is practically new.

[Chicago Redshirt]

On 10/26/2021 at 8:01 PM, shapeshifter said:

The production values were much better than I expected —Looking at you, La Brea.

But the script had a few false notes, IMO, regarding racism and policing.
With regards to the policing: It seemed like the 4400 were supposed to be metaphors for undocumented immigrants——which should work. But showing the guards being sadistic doesn’t really make sense if the guards know these are missing persons from the past. The guards should be more in awe, and, well, more guarded. (pun)

I also had a problem with the pre-Civil Rights era black wife of a preacher doing a Little Richard-style Boogie Woogie on the piano. Her performance was wonderful (the dancing of the other actors not so much) but the performance didn’t seem to fit her character——like if she did that in her regular world, her (church?) people would freak out instead of dance. 

Did you recently rewatch the OG 4400? I barely remember any of it. 

I dunno. It seems like you're faulting the guards for being sadistic and yet not guarded enough, which seems like a contradiction. The guards know that these people are claiming to be people from the past, but they can't really know that they are actually people from the past rather than aliens, robots, clones, interdimensional duplicates or some other sci-fi explanation. I think it would be natural for some guards to be freaked out and sadistic toward these weirdos, some to be in awe, some to maintain their racism towards a group of seemingly 99 percent black people, etc.

If anything, I think that the guards are probably too lenient. In the real world if 4400 people showed up out of the green, claiming to be from different time periods, there's little chance that the authorities would allow them to freely congregate amongst each other, provide social workers to support them.

I rewatched the OG 4400 at the beginning of the pandemic. Honestly, the best thing about that show was the theme song. This show doesn't seem to have all that much in common with it, other than a premise of 4400 people were mysteriously taken from various times and places and returned with some sort of abilities. I hope that it doesn't follow the path of the OG 4400 too closely, because that became kinda a mess.

On 10/28/2021 at 4:53 PM, DearEvette said:

And I assume Shanice's car was still at the intersection, still on,  with her purse still in it.  Why wouldn't her husband at least have some doubt that she left even with an oh so  convenient letter. 

It sounds like Shanice concedes she had post-partum depression or something going on and she was acting out before she started to get things together. For Logan to get a letter that says essentially "I can't take this any more," learn of her abandoned car and purse and not hear from her for 16 years, it seems like there's only a couple takeaways that normal people might have:

1. Her mental issues drove her to commit suicide somewhere, and her body was never found.

2. Her mental issues drove her to abandon her family and never contact them for 16 years.

[mythoughtis]

On 10/28/2021 at 3:22 PM, Ziggy said:

  If you order a Coke in Central Illinois, you get regular Coke.

Unless they only serve Pepsi.  In which case, they check to make sure you still want it. They also know that diet means Diet Coke. 

As to the show - having recently watched the original 4400, this one didn’t sit well with me. The haphazard return, one at a time, bouncing over each other.  The sloppy way they are just shoved in a room and ignored.   The over zealous guard ( it’s 2021 and there are cameras everywhere ).  Did some group get together and create a checklist of required diversity: same sex  relationship, check, interracial relationship, check,  domestic violence survivor, check.  Can we please just have a show that entertains us? 

 

[BooBear]

On 11/1/2021 at 9:56 PM, mythoughtis said:

As to the show - having recently watched the original 4400, this one didn’t sit well with me. The haphazard return, one at a time, bouncing over each other.  The sloppy way they are just shoved in a room and ignored.   The over zealous guard ( it’s 2021 and there are cameras everywhere ).  Did some group get together and create a checklist of required diversity: same sex  relationship, check, interracial relationship, check,  domestic violence survivor, check.  Can we please just have a show that entertains us? 

 

I thought it was horrible. The acting was some of the worst I have ever seen and there better be a good reason for why the entire show is african american people.  Is it because it is in Detroit?  The lead actress has one acting range, angry. 

The over zealous guard was insane and the entire thing didn't seem to make sense. Why would they have them, at what appeared to be a hotel, but like not give them hotel rooms?  They should have been at a secure facility. You know the gov't has them.

Why was a probation officer / social worker examining them?  

As people have pointed out above the lead was pulled out of her car in the middle of the street, why would the husband ever think she left voluntarily? 

I was lost as to why none of the returnees questioned the masks everyplace.

Something that irked me was that there was just no compassion for these people with their "captors" which I think is silly.  Not to mention the captors appeared to have a staff of 3. 

This whole thing reeeked of a script that I was written in a day and never edited.

Embarrassing.

 

[peachmangosteen]

2 hours ago, BooBear said:

there better be a good reason for why the entire show is african american people.

The original show was overwhelmingly white; was there a reason for that?

[BooBear]

4 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

The original show was overwhelmingly white; was there a reason for that?

The population of America is overwelmingly white.  So if this show had a main cast of Indian people it would raise eyebrows as well. Besides I think it is some sort of allegation within the show that everyone in Detroit is black.

[UnoAgain]

6 hours ago, peachmangosteen said:

The original show was overwhelmingly white; was there a reason for that?

Smh... These ppl.. One show.. Manages not to look the way they're used to and it's "Agenda this.. And woke that" can't wrap their heads around a show centering black/ non-whites.... Especially one that doesn't have Black in the name or who's marketing wasn't solely aimed at a POC demographic 

[Chicago Redshirt]

On 11/4/2021 at 6:00 AM, BooBear said:

 

I thought it was horrible. The acting was some of the worst I have ever seen and there better be a good reason for why the entire show is african american people.  Is it because it is in Detroit?  The lead actress has one acting range, angry. 

The over zealous guard was insane and the entire thing didn't seem to make sense. Why would they have them, at what appeared to be a hotel, but like not give them hotel rooms?  They should have been at a secure facility. You know the gov't has them.

Why was a probation officer / social worker examining them?  

As people have pointed out above the lead was pulled out of her car in the middle of the street, why would the husband ever think she left voluntarily? 

I was lost as to why none of the returnees questioned the masks everyplace.

Something that irked me was that there was just no compassion for these people with their "captors" which I think is silly.  Not to mention the captors appeared to have a staff of 3. 

This whole thing reeeked of a script that I was written in a day and never edited.

Embarrassing.

 

The acting seems to be about on par with the rest of the CW. You're not going to find a Meryl Streep in the bunch, but mostly people are serviceable. That said, I don't know if it's fair to judge anyone's acting (or really, much of anything) on a pilot because pilots have to juggle so many different things.

I wouldn't be surprised if we never find the reason why these particular 4400 people were abducted, let alone why they are disproportionately African-American. The original certainly never got around to explaining except in the broadest terms what the abductors were attempting to do or why. 

The in-show reason at a guess would be that someone might realize that if the 4400 people are at all who they claim to be, it would make sense to have a dual track approach and provide social services in addition to taking security measures and an investigatory approach. The  real world reason is that the showrunners want to compare and contrast the police approach with the social service approach and show that the social service approach is better. 

Assuming no eyewitnesses, there were no signs of foul play and no reason to think that someone would have abducted her. It's a perfectly reasonable conclusion that she bailed. Most people wouldn't think she had been kidnapped by aliens or displaced through time. 

Honestly, even if this wasn't a pandemic thing, it seems like it would have made sense to wear masks around the 4400. Who knows what their deal was, what contaminants they might be carrying, etc.?

[Zonk]

This was mostly good and interesting.

But: "You are a cop who believes in the system over peoples humanity" I mean, come on, heavy handed much? It's not like we didn't get the jist from the whole conflict there. Did you have to spell it out?

On 11/4/2021 at 2:25 PM, UnoAgain said:

Smh... These ppl.. One show.. Manages not to look the way they're used to and it's "Agenda this.. And woke that" can't wrap their heads around a show centering black/ non-whites.... Especially one that doesn't have Black in the name or who's marketing wasn't solely aimed at a POC demographic 

I don't have anything against a black show. There are a bunch of good ones around. But it doesn't quite work with the premise. Just because the original show was bad about it, doesn't mean this one is better. It's just as bad.

Edited November 12, 2021 by Zonk

[Chicago Redshirt]

On 11/12/2021 at 4:58 PM, Zonk said:

I don't have anything against a black show. There are a bunch of good ones around. But it doesn't quite work with the premise. Just because the original show was bad about it, doesn't mean this one is better. It's just as bad.

Why does it not quite work with the premise?

It just suggests that, assuming one or more entities chose and enhanced the 4400 deliberately, whoever/whatever that was disproportionately picked African Americans. There's nothing inherent in the premise that says that it could not have deliberately done so for some reason.

Even assuming that the selection and enhancement of the 4400 was purely random, a state where 4400 people selected out of the 40 billion worldwide (or whatever the actual figure might be, I have no idea) in the seeming time frame we are talking about (since roughly 1900 to 2015) were 95 percent African-American, compared to the 2 percent (again just making up a number) people of African descent who happen to live in America might be, could still happen by chance even though that it is statistically unlikely to do so. 

[Demian]

On 10/29/2021 at 1:17 PM, Chicago Redshirt said:

Honestly, the best thing about that show was the theme song.

Heh.  I think the best thing about the original version of this show was the opening credits in general.  Creepy, yet melancholic at the same time, and all the while capturing the basic premise of the series.

On a related note:  I really miss opening credits.

Edited November 19, 2021 by Demian