Writer: Tracey Stern
Director: Jeremiah Chechik
Cast: Natalie Morales (Wendy Watson), Matt Keeslar (The Middleman), Brit Morgan (Lacey Thornfield), Mary Pat Gleason (Ida), Jake Smollett (Noser), Clint Culp (Dr. Gil), Patrick Fischler (Dr. Rollin Newleaf), Allison Dunbar (Doris Schon), Timothy Thomas Brown (Manicoid Guard), Joseph Ferrante (Manicoid Guard), Melissa McCarty (Newscaster), Christina Ogunade (Dr. Gil's Guest), Blayne Weaver (Dean Schon) & Vincent Ward (Policeman)
Director: Jeremiah Chechik
Cast: Natalie Morales (Wendy Watson), Matt Keeslar (The Middleman), Brit Morgan (Lacey Thornfield), Mary Pat Gleason (Ida), Jake Smollett (Noser), Clint Culp (Dr. Gil), Patrick Fischler (Dr. Rollin Newleaf), Allison Dunbar (Doris Schon), Timothy Thomas Brown (Manicoid Guard), Joseph Ferrante (Manicoid Guard), Melissa McCarty (Newscaster), Christina Ogunade (Dr. Gil's Guest), Blayne Weaver (Dean Schon) & Vincent Ward (Policeman)
Wendy and The Middleman investigate a decapitated body found in the street..."There's acing it, and there's what you did.
Kind of like shooting a cow with a Howitzer."
-- The Middleman (Matt Keeslar)
It just occurred to me how similar this show is to The Avengers -- minus the equality in the Wendy/Middleman partnership, compared to Peel/Steed. For some reason it also passed me by that Jeremiah Chechik (a regular director here) once failed, spectacularly, to translate the surreal '60s spy series to the big-screen in 1998...
The Middleman's fourth episode is a nadir for the series, which is failing to build on its agreeable Pilot. Most of the effort seems to go on the blithe references to genre shows. To wit, "The Manicoid Teleportation Conundrum" fixates on Back To The Future, with The Middleman (Matt Keeslar) using BTTF character names as aliases during his investigation. Cute. But beyond the rib-poking, there's not much else going on of any interest...
It's training day for Wendy (Natalie Morales), which means she's asked random questions by her boss, and discovers her weapon's always had the safety on. It's a little disappointing, but the story really wants to get on with another crazy murder mystery -- this time involving people mysteriously vanishing and being returned without heads. The headless victims all have one thing in common: they were all clients of plastic surgeon Dr. Rollin Newleaf (Patrick Fischler) and consequently share inflated facial features.
Of course, the full story soon expands to involve a hunting-obsessed TV doctor Dr. Gil (Clint Culp), a race of immigrant aliens called Manicoids, and a teleportation beam -- that whisks victims to the Vasquez Rocks location famously used in an episode of Star Trek and Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey.
In retrospect, there's enough craziness to satisfy young kids, but Tracey Stern's script doesn't develop at a satisfying pace, and becomes laborious very early on. I've acclimatized to The Middleman's nutty vibe and shoestring FX, but nothing seems to be developing or getting more interesting. The plot lacks the depth and nuance of a Pushing Daisies episode (another series that deals with bizarre, credibility-stretching murders), and Keeslar's eponymous boy scout still isn't leaping off the screen. Morales remains a refreshing burst of smart-talking cool, but the required chemistry with Keeslar isn't there yet.
The supporting cast are surplus to requirement, but they crop up throughout the episode to stretch out the thin storyline. I like Brit Morgan as Wendy's "photogenic" housemate, and Jake Smollett makes me smile as chilled-out Noser, but both are on the outskirts of the action and the show crawls whenever Wendy interacts with the bland normality of her life outside of Middleman HQ. The secret life aspect to the series is terribly clichéd, but it should still work better than this. Was anyone interested in Wendy discovering her ex-boyfriend posted their break-up video on the internet?
The make-up for the inflated faces is amusing, weird and creepy (if not a seamless join on the actors' faces), but that's the only positive in an episode that didn't hold my interest. The explanation for all the goings-on was ridiculous and full of holes, too. Why teleport decapitated bodies back to the crime scene, when keeping and disposing of them would make the perfect crime? I know The Middleman is fundamentally a summer time-waster, not to be taken very seriously, but I just feel there's more potential in the concept than what we're seeing delivered.
7 July 2008
ABC Family, 10/9c pm
