Stephen King says he doesn't plot. He just starts out with a situation in mind - one that can usually be described as a 'What If?' situation - and lets the story grow from there. It works for him.
This show also had a 'what if' situation in mind: 'What if dead people started returning?' Well. Great. Now you've got a premise. Lets see what happens next, shall we?
NOTHING! Nothing happens next! Well, of course some things happen, but it's more of a regular drama now - with love triangles and such - and it has hardy anything to with the premise anymore. I mean, sure, some of the people involved are now 'returned'. That fact registers, but it doesn't affect the drama. (The Australian show 'Glitch', which has the same premise, does this better.)
Sure, we get SOME 'hints of development' here and there, creepy kid is indeed creepy and such, but there is no actual progress in the development of the basic premise. If that's point A, we don't get to point B. We find out nothing as to why, how, who, and/or what's next. We're basically stuck watching a regular soap opera.
A badly written one at that. If you 'break up a fight' not by pushing or holding people away from each other, but by almost bashing someone's skull in with a heavy and blunt object, the guy whose skull you almost bashed in is obviously going to be a bit grumpy, isn't he? You're going to at least have some words about that. In this show too? Naah. Bash someone's skull in, guy says nothing about it. Doesn't even blame you. After all, you were breaking up a fight weren't you? Therefore you meant well by almost murdering me.
Also, apparently you can shoot unarmed people for no reason and still be the good guy. Woman who loved your victim all her life to the point of obsession won't even blink, lie to the cops for you.
Both of these scenes are bad enough on their own, what makes them worse is that they are completely out of character. Both of these guys are supposed to be the boring, sensible ones. Were we viewers wrong about them? Were they actually psychos and it's only now revealed? Nope. They go back to being boring and reasonable as if nothing happened. No reveal. Just bad writing.
More I think about it, more terrible it was.
This show also had a 'what if' situation in mind: 'What if dead people started returning?' Well. Great. Now you've got a premise. Lets see what happens next, shall we?
NOTHING! Nothing happens next! Well, of course some things happen, but it's more of a regular drama now - with love triangles and such - and it has hardy anything to with the premise anymore. I mean, sure, some of the people involved are now 'returned'. That fact registers, but it doesn't affect the drama. (The Australian show 'Glitch', which has the same premise, does this better.)
Sure, we get SOME 'hints of development' here and there, creepy kid is indeed creepy and such, but there is no actual progress in the development of the basic premise. If that's point A, we don't get to point B. We find out nothing as to why, how, who, and/or what's next. We're basically stuck watching a regular soap opera.
A badly written one at that. If you 'break up a fight' not by pushing or holding people away from each other, but by almost bashing someone's skull in with a heavy and blunt object, the guy whose skull you almost bashed in is obviously going to be a bit grumpy, isn't he? You're going to at least have some words about that. In this show too? Naah. Bash someone's skull in, guy says nothing about it. Doesn't even blame you. After all, you were breaking up a fight weren't you? Therefore you meant well by almost murdering me.
Also, apparently you can shoot unarmed people for no reason and still be the good guy. Woman who loved your victim all her life to the point of obsession won't even blink, lie to the cops for you.
Both of these scenes are bad enough on their own, what makes them worse is that they are completely out of character. Both of these guys are supposed to be the boring, sensible ones. Were we viewers wrong about them? Were they actually psychos and it's only now revealed? Nope. They go back to being boring and reasonable as if nothing happened. No reveal. Just bad writing.
More I think about it, more terrible it was.