All right, I've had four weeks off from
watching JAG. I was again eager and full of anticipation. In fact, today,
I was again doing what I used to do, count down the hours as I checked my
watch over and over during the course of the really long day. I was ready
to watch JAG again!
At 9:00 P.M. tonight, I was not smiling widely, nor was I scowling
horribly. I just felt "ho-hum! So that's Dungaree Justice". Mind you, I
wouldn't have missed it for the world. However, I would characterize this
episode as an innocuous one, that is, guaranteed not to make waves. Come
on, TPTB, engage our minds!
Let's deal with the story first. It was quite obvious that one of the
sailors would turn out to be the guilty one early on. It was just a
question of which one, and how Harm would smoke him out. Lopez's attitude
and reaction to her assault was predictable, and I would venture to guess
that if one were to really investigate, the sad truth is that unreported
sexual assault on women in the military happens with far greater frequency
than we can imagine. This isn't to say that military men are worse than
civilian. The military, after all, is part of the general population, and
we know for a fact that there are many sexual assaults that are never
reported because the woman feels too afraid and guilty "it has to be my
fault, I must have done something to cause the assault" to report it. As
for the reason for the assault - Olin's hatred for women in uniform - what
better way for him to vent his venom than to rape her? Rape is, after all,
not about sex, but assault.
I
just wish that TPTB wouldn't keep making poor Harm spout all these
homilies, this time about the place of women in the military. Listening, I
just felt totally uncomfortable with the way it was done and where it
happened, outside the courtroom. It felt too staged. A bit of subtlety
would be most appreciated. And hey, this is through no fault of DJE's, who
did it as well as it could possibly be done.
There had been some speculation on the mailing lists that Mac's Article 32
hearing would be short and not the subject of an entire episode. Well,
this was certainly short. It's really too bad that it needed to be done at
all. What on earth were TPTB thinking to have even started on this
storyline at all in the first place, only to have second thoughts and
hurriedly tie it up with as little fanfare as possible? So Mac gets off
the hook with a reprimand and an Admiral's Mast. They neatly sidestepped
any question of punishment by withholding her proposed promotion. This way
she's still of equal rank with Harm and yet you know, she has been
punished. Bah! Why did they do that to her in the first place? As the
Admiral said once, "Where's the respect?"
OK, Brumby. They've toned him down a tad, but I think I've figured out
what one of the problems is. Trevor Goddard is over-acting like mad. The
character comes across as totally insincere because the actor is overdoing
it. Thank goodness he didn't get too many lines. Someone should tell him
that the soap opera is over, that they're just trying to get rid of the
soap scum now. Speaking of which, isn't it time for him to go home to
Australia?
It
was heartwarming to see Bud carry on his responsibilities as big brother.
Of course, he is still Bud, so we have those scenes with him burbling way
out in left field, while all around him are stupefied. Only Pat L. could
be both and still present a consistent character.
We're still in the ensemble mode. I don't like it. I find the many threads
done in sound bite chunks too scattered for good dramatic effect. It's
like the difference between watching a good in-depth interview with one of
the actors, say, and one of those unsatisfactory little snippets on
Entertainment Tonight. Stick with a couple of storylines, if you must TPTB,
but don't go jumping all over the place. You're not doing justice to
anything.
Finally, this is a two-parter? My guess is that CBS wanted a top-notch
show to lead in their new programme on Wednesday night (someone has sense
at CBS <VBG>), and felt that a JAG two-parter would be perfect. So TPTB
cut short whatever they were planning for Dungaree Justice, and slapped
the last little bit on at the end. Plaster "to be continued" across the
screen, and abracadabra! We have a two-parter!
I
just wish that TPTB wouldn't keep making poor Harm spout all these
homilies, this time about the place of women in the military. Listening, I
just felt totally uncomfortable with the way it was done and where it
happened, outside the courtroom. It felt too staged. A bit of subtlety
would be most appreciated. And hey, this is through no fault of DJE's, who
did it as well as it could possibly be done.
hearing would be short and not the subject of an entire episode. Well,
this was certainly short. It's really too bad that it needed to be done at
all. What on earth were TPTB thinking to have even started on this
storyline at all in the first place, only to have second thoughts and
hurriedly tie it up with as little fanfare as possible? So Mac gets off
the hook with a reprimand and an Admiral's Mast. They neatly sidestepped
any question of punishment by withholding her proposed promotion. This way
she's still of equal rank with Harm and yet you know, she has been
punished. Bah! Why did they do that to her in the first place? As the
Admiral said once, "Where's the respect?"
It
was heartwarming to see Bud carry on his responsibilities as big brother.
Of course, he is still Bud, so we have those scenes with him burbling way
out in left field, while all around him are stupefied. Only Pat L. could
be both and still present a consistent character.