S01.E01: Pilot

[Lisin]

When a crisis at LAX prevents dozens of airplanes from landing, the government brings in a group of misfit geniuses to sort things out.

[Chas411]

I'm looking forward to this.

[NYGirl]

To my amazement I actually enjoyed it.  I'm a sucker for nerds.

 

However, I don't understand why the plane couldn't just land and they could have d/l the software from it?

 

Toby bugged during the first half and I was hoping Mcphee didn't have a large part but it looks like she will now.

[SallyAlbright]

Nothing amazing, but I kind of liked it. They incorporated Paige (McPhee) much better than I thought they would, and I liked her here. If the cases of the week are interesting, it could be a solid show. 

[BigBeagle]

Except for the WTF-ery of the climax at the airport, I liked this, and will continue watching.

[nottopbravo]

Highly Improbable. 

[susannot]

WTF? I liked it too.  Liked the character of Walter and his history and interactions with Robert Patrick's character.  As for McPhee, think girlfriend has received acting lessons.  Actually able to project emotion, no more blank deadeyes.  A little fake though how at every turn her real-world "normal" advice was able to turn the geniuses in the right direction.

[Guest Accused Dingo]

Better then expected and highly improbable but this is basically a heist show so probable is not really the name of the game. I like the main cast so i will probally keep it on my DVR until further notice.

[kaygeeret]

I'm a sucker for shows like this - sort of - Hustle, Leverage and Num3ers, so this is right in my wheelhouse.

 

There were some subtle touches of humor too so I also like that.

 

Interestingly - at least to me - in Oct. 2000, I was set to fly out of LAX and when we got to the airport, it wasn't until I got to the ticket counter that I found out that the "tower was down" and all flights were delayed.

 

Nonetheless, they checked me in and sent me to the gate.  They either landed a plane or let a plane take off about every 20-30 minutes.  I will never understand why my flight on a small airline - Midwest Express - was allowed to leave within 30 minutes of the scheduled departure.  Perhaps the plane was smaller or it was the only Midwest flight out of LAX that day.  I don't know, but I was grateful - I had broken my leg while in LA and was flying home, getting home was the only agenda I had that day!

 

I am not claiming that that incident had any relevance to the pilot, but I related in a very weird way.

 

I liked the characters and I really liked the actors.  Everyone made their characters believable. 

 

Good pilot and I hope the show tracks up from here.  Pilots are sometimes the weakest show of all.

 

Hope it lasts and I am in!

[hannah8976]

seriously.  Ethernet net cable dangled out of the plane.  SERIOUSLY????

[kaygeeret]

12 minutes ago

 

seriously.  Ethernet net cable dangled out of the plane.  SERIOUSLY????

 

 

Grant you this one hannah8976...that was more than funny and really lazy plotting!  Kinda' reminded me of the old, old show Mission Impossible.

 

Remember, it's just the pilot.

[Joimiaroxeu]

I wasn't paying 100% attention...did they explain why the guy and girl riding in the sports car under the jet didn't have their eardrums blown out or at least experience a temporary loss of hearing?

Edited September 23, 2014 by Joimiaroxeu

[Trini]

seriously.  Ethernet net cable dangled out of the plane.  SERIOUSLY????

No no no -- ethernet cable AND the co-pilot dangling out of the plane. Seriously??

[BigBeagle]

I'm with NYGirl ... why didn't they just land the stupid plane?

[paigow]

To my amazement I actually enjoyed it.  I'm a sucker for nerds.

 

However, I don't understand why the plane couldn't just land and they could have d/l the software from it?

 

 

That airport runway was too short for jets - forgot which character said so

[threebluestars]

I really liked it. I think the characters are interesting, and I'm looking forward to where they'll go with it in future episodes.

[bros402]

seriously.  Ethernet net cable dangled out of the plane.  SERIOUSLY????

That scene made me laugh so hard.

 

The cable would probably rip out of the laptop before it dragged it.

 

I'm probably going to watch this for the same reason I watched Intelligence: boredom.

[2KllMckngBrd]

I actually had tweeted yesterday how much I was hoping that this show was as good as the commercials made it look. It wasn't. Even for a pilot this was bad. Bad and boring. It looked like 1985, and felt like 2hrs. I had to stop from dosing off half way thru by reminding myself that Blacklist was only 30 minutes away.

For most of the show, every time the girl genius spoke (see, can't even remember the characters name), if I couldn't see her face I thought it was the little boy talking. Then I would remember he didn't talk. And in case no one was sure-that comment was about her dialogue, not her voice or Autism (or Asperger's, b/c I know they're on a spectrum).

All of that is to say...it sucked. It sucked bad. And that's really saying something 'cuz I sat through what was the disaster named Madame Secretary.

One good thing...that Elyes Gabel is a hottie. And a good actor. Did I mention the hotness factor. I might give it another chance, pilot and all, but I doubt it!

 

[shapeshifter]

That airport runway was too short for jets - forgot which character said so

And LAX was too far away to direct that plane to land????

For most of the show, every time the girl genius spoke (see, can't even remember the characters name)

They had names?

[Kromm]

It's total shit, but of the Shittastic variety. So on balance, in a way, very watchable.  Total mind-candy (which is ironic, given that the show is about geniuses). 

 

Oh... and Robert Patrick's hairpiece?  Disturbing.

Edited September 23, 2014 by Kromm

[rut roh]

And LAX was too far away to direct that plane to land????

 

The geniuses couldn't get to LAX because of traffic. That was why they were at the diner.

[marketdoctor]

 

did they explain why the guy and girl riding in the sports car under the jet didn't have their eardrums blown out or at least experience a temporary loss of hearing?

 

No--nor did they explain the related issue of how they could hear each other at all (even with yelling), or survive in any form standing up in a car allegedly going 200 MPH.  That last part could be explained by the pilot figuring out to slow down as much as possible, because the pilot was smart enough to figure that out.  Why the ethernet cable wasn't blown backwards more is another question.  They were definitely pushing the "actual events" this show was based on.

 

That said, I liked the acting a lot--maybe Kat McPhee is as good as her material (which would also explain why she was better in Community than Smash, though YMMV).  The kid playing the grandmaster in chess (and winning!) was awesome, as was the waitress-fu with the chalkboard.  This is the Mae West of pilot shows:  when it was good, it was very good, when it was bad, it was better. 

[Kromm]

This is the Mae West of pilot shows:  when it was good, it was very good, when it was bad, it was better. 

It's a true sign of Shittasticness when you can nitpick on a hundred things which make no sense, or are even outright stupid... and you totally don't care because it's so damn entertaining. Jet engines and ears?  Who cares.  A 200 MPH car ride being as smooth as a 20 mph drive down to the local 7-11?  Who cares.  Kat McPhee's boobs hanging a bit oddly low in that waitress uniform?  Okay, THERE maybe we care a little.  But overall, the details don't matter.

 

What will ruin this is if the show at any moment starts to take itself too seriously.  It has to remain totally ridiculous. 

[galax-arena]

I saw the pilot at Comic Con, and didn't like it at all. Nothing against mindless fun - I love the Fast & Furious series, after all - but this was just...annoying. I don't really like how the show is dealing with its cadre of insufferable geniuses; when they kept stressing how high their IQs were - such a weak, lazy way of writing, like you can't figure out some other way to show us how rilly rilly smrt these assholes are? - I rolled my eyes so far back in my head I'm surprised they didn't get stuck. 

 

I've seen other people criticize the acting, but to me the acting was fine. Katherine McPhee didn't bother me and the lead guy is cute. But the writing got on my nerves so much lol. I know pilots can be on the rough side, but this one irritated me enough that I'm not sure I want to bother giving the show a second chance. 

[Skycatcher]

 

*It's total shit, but of the Shittastic variety.

 

**you can nitpick on a hundred things which make no sense, or are even outright stupid... and you totally don't care because it's so damn entertaining.

I'm going to be doing a lot of Jedi hand waving, but I really liked the show and will stick with it.  I especially like that it'll fill the (for me) dead hour between 9 and 10 on Monday nights.

 

I agree though, why don't you tell me 700 more times that these people are geniuses? Even the kid?  REALLY??????  Honestly? However did I miss those little nuggets that you pelted me with for an hour?

[hammaboo]

I liked it.  The plane scene was so impossibly ridiculous that I couldn't stop laughing, but I still enjoyed it.

 

Though I did tell the other half that they have to fail a time or two in the course of the series, otherwise it will become too phoned in.

[roomtorome]

I found that a bit embarrassing for all involved.  If you are going to write dialogue to be said by purported geniuses - they really should hire someone who can pull that off - I winced through most of it.

 

Yeah - I also don't get why that plane just didn't go ahead and land but then, oh the drama, we would have missed.

 

Oh well - another "one and done" for me - they are piling up fast for me this year.  

[Ketzel]

The geniuses couldn't get to LAX because of traffic. That was why they were at the diner.

But-but- the pilot had the uncorrupted software and probably several hundred available laptops on the plane. He could have landed the plane at LAX, and handed off the software, downloaded onto his own or someone else's laptop, to whoever could do whatever needed to be done with it to get the system up again. Or, if that could only be done by the geniuses who weren't at LAX, it could be emailed at that point to them, no? [No, I'm not overthinking this! I'm just plain thinking!!]

[Lukeysboat]

I was disappointed that Elyes Gabel's character didn't retain a little Irish accent. (That said, I'm not sure how much accent the real Walter has kept--perhaps not much.)

[willow2tree]

My understanding was that there were so many planes stacked up around LAX that no one could land safely for the danger of running into another plane.  Can someone answer a couple of questions for me?  First, did we ever learn if the glitch was just a random occurance or if it was sabotage/terrorism?  Second, when the math genius was talking to genius kid mom, he said something about parents not understanding these kids.  She asked what his parents did, and I missed his answer as dear hubby started talking just then.  Does anyone know what he said?  Thanks!

[Kromm]

But-but- the pilot had the uncorrupted software and probably several hundred available laptops on the plane. He could have landed the plane at LAX, and handed off the software, downloaded onto his own or someone else's laptop, to whoever could do whatever needed to be done with it to get the system up again. Or, if that could only be done by the geniuses who weren't at LAX, it could be emailed at that point to them, no? [No, I'm not overthinking this! I'm just plain thinking!!]

I think what we were supposed to take from that sequence was that the landing tower needed the software for it to be effective and what was on the plane was kind of a derivative that couldn't simply magically work FROM the plane.   The plane couldn't actually land at the landing strip our heroes were at because the strip was too short.  It could't land at LAX, because the air traffic at LAX was too dangerous and uncontrolled without the software running.

 

Or SOMETHING like that.

 

What I would have done was see if the software really was transferable to a laptop (or even better a USB memory stick) and then strap the computer bag the laptop was in into a parachute (or if it was the USB stick you could do so much more to protect it).  I have to think that even though commercial airplanes aren't really equipped to be jumped from, that it's much less of a ridiculous writing wank to suggest that one of those planes might have ONE parachute tucked away somewhere than the scene we did get with a long CAT5 computer cable, a copilot standing on the landing gear, and Kat McPheever in a 200MPH car taking the handoff.  Then again, if they HAD used a parachute it wouldn't have been as gloriously ridiculous and over the top--so they probably DID make the right writing choice after all.

Edited September 23, 2014 by Kromm

[Artsda]

I really liked it, it was fast paced and held my attention for the entire pilot. 

[LoneHaranguer]

 

He could have landed the plane at LAX, and handed off the software, downloaded onto his own or someone else's laptop, to whoever could do whatever needed to be done with it to get the system up again.

I think the whole point was for the writers and production staff to be able to have fun driving around in a Ferrari for an afternoon. Having the backup disk get corrupted was BS; why would they even take the time to drive it back when they could just email what they needed from where they were? BTW, pulling out the drive shouldn't have generated any sparks. It's designed so that you can do that whenever you want, so that you don't have to shut down the whole server to replace a failing drive.

 

They may have made a tactical error scheduling this show after The Big Bang Theory. That show has good technical advisers. It looks like this one is using the ones from Under the Dumb.

[marketdoctor]

The ratings were pretty positive--especially outside the 18-49 group:

 

http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2014/09/23/tv-ratings-monday-the-voice-sleepy-hollow-return-down-gotham-scorpion-debut-well-forever-gets-a-slow-start/306198/

 

Chance of success just went up a few percentage points.

[Ohmo]

I'm a sucker for shows like this - sort of - Hustle, Leverage and Num3ers, so this is right in my wheelhouse.

 

 

I really tried hard not to like this because the rumor mill about Katherine's personal life is very unflattering, and is unfortunately becoming a trend.  I didn't want to get drawn into anything that she's in.  However, I swear the guest casting was done on purpose because add Alimi Ballard and Elyes Gabel together, and I seriously felt like I was in a Numb3rs flashback.  Walter completely reminded me of Charlie.  Then, enter Robert Patrick, and it was like Numb3rs and The Unit merged together somehow, and dangit if I became hooked in spite of myself.

 

I agree that it made no sense for the plane not to just land at the airport.  The pilot obviously could see the runway, and that barricade that the car almost slammed into didn't appear to have been capable of damaging the plane too much if the plane hit the wall, but whatever.  It's not like I'm kidding myself that I'm watching a documentary here.

[MostlyC]

I liked the characters and I really liked the actors.  Everyone made their characters believable.

 

I've been sucked in, and have added it to my dvr.  

 

Nor a fan of Cat McPhee, but hopefully the character will suddenly have an injury, need surgery and come back a new actress.  But I'll begrudgingly put up with her because I like there rest of the cast so much.

[willow2tree]

I forgot to add how scary Robert Patrick looked in the flashback when he first met young Walter!  Was that some kind of weird CGI trying to make him look younger?  Cause DAMN!  He looked like his face was melting!  I actually shrieked out loud!

[shapeshifter]

Having just watched the interview with the real Walter (http://www.examiner.com/article/scorpion-based-on-true-story-walter-o-brien-inspired-cbs-show) I can see why they didn't make show Walter more socially dysfunctional, but to me, he seemed too normal for the backstory.

Edited September 23, 2014 by shapeshifter

[alexvillage]

I liked it because it values divergence - neurodivergence

Autism wasn't mentioned, but there are similarities with the workings of the brain. Wish the kid had been completely non-speaking.

It is hard to see autism fairly portrayed in shows and not all Autistcs are geniuses, but how the mother didn't know the kid was a genius but still presumed his competence was good to see

I hope they don't mess up

[Trini]

So is this show this year's Intelligence? AKA: Crazy Problems Solved by Superhumans in Highly Implausible Ways.

[thuganomics85]

Caught it On Demand a few minutes ago.  Not bad, but preposterous as hell.  It's like this and Sleepy Hollow are having a time-slot battle, to determine which show can be more insane at 9 p.m.  This wasn't enough to keep me from switching allegiances, but I've seen worse.  

 

I liked Elyes Gabel on Game of Thrones and Body of Proof, so it's nice seeing him as the lead this time, and I hope it works for him.  I only know Katherine McPhee from her American Idol days, since I avoided Smash like a plague, so I didn't mind her here.  Granted, I don't know many single-parent waitresses that look that good, but, hey, it's Hollywood.  Robert Patrick was awesome and has some good lines and reaction shots.

 

I noticed that Justin Lin directed this, which it explains why big set-piece at the end, totally reminded me of his preposterous set-piece in Fast & the Furious 6, that also involved a plane and some cars.

[Morrigan2575]

It was fairly predictable and at time highly improbable but it was mostly fun and entertaining. I liked most of the characters except the Harvard trained Psychologist...he's annoying and I actually like the actor (usually). I'll give it a few more episodes to see how it goes.

[Kromm]

So is this show this year's Intelligence? AKA: Crazy Problems Solved by Superhumans in Highly Implausible Ways.

I liked this better than Intelligence.  That show as silly as it came off, took itself oddly seriously.  It came off like they didn't realize what was happening was ridiculous, and so there was no sense of joy to it.  It was silly because the writers were so clueless, but what happened was the audience laughing AT the show, not WITH it. Scorpion, at least at first blush, seems to so far understand it's ludicrous.  If the actual post-pilot episodes forget that though?  It will stop being Shittastic and begin to simply be shit, the way Intelligence was.

 

(The overall plot conceit wasn't even the same actually.  On Intelligence our hero wasn't all that smart, but had been gifted with some MacGuffiny implanted computer chip--that was just a threadbare excuse to proxy superpowers.  Intelligence was a horrid variant of a Superhero show, badly disguising itself as a spy show.  Scorpion is a so-far less horrible variant of a caper/heist show--sure they're the "good guys" on the side of right and all that but the basic conceit is "group of oddballs beating the odds).  

[Wilson Cat]

Must admit I didn't watch it.  But I loved this from the television critic with Chicago Sun Times:

 

"Note to TV Producers:  Please stop trying to make Katharine McPhee happen."

[SlovakPrincess]

I enjoyed it. I'll give this show a chance.

My only nitpick was some of the dialogue - for example, the waitress came across as judgmental in the middle of the episode, when she was all "you have to save everyone, what's wrong with you?!" (Like, what was she doing that was so helpful at that moment? Back off lady - it's not like they WANT anyone to die!)

[wayne67]

Is it just me or are all geniuses introduced the same way these days? By noticing small details of some unknown and extrapolating their entire back stories out loud to that person as proof of genius. This is the second show to introduce a character in the exact same way in the same week. Lead guy on this show and on Forever.

 

I kept asking them if they were done yet. It seemed they had to pile on the problems to compensate for how fast these people could hack into things. I'll give it another episode to see which direction the show goes in.

 

I am weary of the 'normal' person having to interpret interactions for geniuses cliche/trope? At least in Monk his normal added some comedy value. The Waitress came off as tiresome and overly critical most of the time. For someone who is supposed to be the 'heart' of the group she's coming off across as more rude than the people with the emotional intelligence issues she's insulting. 

Edited September 24, 2014 by wayne67

[alexvillage]

 

I am weary of the 'normal' person having to interpret interactions for geniuses cliche/trope? At least in Monk his normal added some comedy value. The Waitress came off as tiresome and overly critical most of the time. For someone who is supposed to be the 'heart' of the group she's coming off across as more rude than the people with the emotional intelligence issues she's insulting.

That's a good point. I still think this show does it better than most (or all I have watched) but the Emotional intelligence thing is also a fallacy. What neurodivergent individuals have trouble with is EXPRESSION of feelings, not the actual feelings. They usually need a little time to process the intensity of certain emotions, so it might seem that they lack the ability to interact. But in some cases it is an advantage to have what some call "cognitive interpreter", someone who helps some people in situations potentially overwhelming. This also cannot be imposed, or the interpreter cannot simply intrude, but needs to be invited and asked to help. 

[shapeshifter]

...At least in Monk his normal added some comedy value. The Waitress came off as tiresome and overly critical most of the time. For someone who is supposed to be the 'heart' of the group she's coming off across as more rude than the people with the emotional intelligence issues she's insulting.

Both of Monk's assistants lost patience with him at times; the first one frequently belittled him. But, yeah, this show could easily throw in a a lot of comic relief is they are smart enough to go there.

[galax-arena]

Is it just me or are all geniuses introduced the same way these days? By noticing small details of some unknown and extrapolating their entire back stories out loud to that person as proof of genius. This is the second show to introduce a character in the exact same way in the same week. Lead guy on this show and on Forever.

Right? It's such a cliche. Newsflash, Hollywood: Sometimes smart people don't notice all of that shit. Being a genius is not synonymous with being an FBI profiler.

 

It didn't bother me when Sherlock did it on Elementary, because he's Sherlock and that's his ~area. But Walter is a computer genius. That does not necessarily correlate with being able to do the Sherlock Scan on people. 

[Ohmo]

What neurodivergent individuals have trouble with is EXPRESSION of feelings, not the actual feelings.

 

 

This comment made me think of something else.  I know that Scorpion is inspired by a true story, and there actually is a Walter O'Brien.  However, I kinda wish there had been a handwave so that Ralph was a girl.  I realize that there was a heavy inference to autism, and autism-spectrum disorders do affect more boys than girls.  However, there are instances of girls with genius IQ levels and/or an autism-spectrum disorder.  These types of stories always seem to be told about a boy.  Going back as far as St. Elsewhere, Tommy was a boy.  More recently, there's been Charlie Epps and Jake from the short-lived FOX series with Kiefer Sutherland (Touch, I think).

 

Scorpion does have Happy, but her skill set is not the same as Walter, plus she's older.  I would have liked to see how an intellectually-gifted female comes of age with her abilities.

 

ETA: Bones does come to mind as well, but again Tempe's already an adult.

Edited September 24, 2014 by Ohmo