Terra Nova - 1x08 & 1x09

I can blame the holiday, but I was mostly just lazy about writing this.  So two episodes this time around, both rather quickly.  The second of the two was actually pretty decent, too.

1x08 - Proof
This episode actually started out pretty great with Taylor and Jim out for a fishing trip.  The fact that they were fishing huge dino fish was a great example of the show actually having fun with its premise.  When Taylor was helping out the banished Curran (from murdering a guy a few episodes back, I wouldn't blame you for forgetting) was also really great.  The awesome guy from Avatar (movie, not cartoon) facing down dinosaurs was exactly what I signed up for when I started watching this show.  Everything back at Terra Nova, on the other hand, blah.  Especially Maddy's story of uncovering the scientist who wasn't who he said he was.  Josh being all angsty about his future girlfriend was only marginally better.  At least that had some tie in with the mythology.  Mira can really talk with 2149 and Lucas is the reason.  I'm glad Josh actually told the truth about him being the one who stole the meds at the end of the episode instead of that being dragged out.  I just wish the show was like crazy Taylor in the jungle more often.

1x09 - Vs.
Now here was a good episode.  While the residents of Terra Nova are celebrating the founding of their colony, the audience gets a look back into the pas as well.  Finding out that some shadowy figures from the future want Taylor gone so they can exploit Terra Nova (like they've exploited future Earth!) may not be satisfying, but it's forward movement that this show really needed.  Now we have a better idea who the Sixers are working for, at least in the sense that they're some high ranking people, such as Taylor's late mentor/commanding officer.  Finding out some motivations at all is a whole lot better than the vague innuendo we've had in the past.  Taylor turning out to be just as good as he portrays himself to be may be too nice, but this isn't the kind of show to delve into darker themes.  Jim looking into the bones he found while trying to keep it from Taylor added some good tension to the episode, and how the final resolution of the spy bug plot tied into that was nicely done.  I think Lucas is being handled pretty poorly, though.  Why is he with the Sixer's shadow future leaders?  We seriously need some backstory there to understand his motivations.  He acts all evil, but there has to be more to it than that.  All in all, an improvement, and Zoe sure was adorable as Commander Taylor.