FLASHFORWARD 1.4 - "Black Swan"

[SPOILERS] "Black Swan" was the worst episode so far, mainly because it contained too many tedious subplots and is still repeating its premise for the benefit of latecomers. But, while I was considering washing my hands of this series at certain points (or at least not blogging about it as regularly), the writers once again threw us an enticing cliffhanger to ensure I'll tune in next week. Quite how often that trick will work is anyone's guess...

I like the idea of returning to view "the event" from different vantage points, as it's a good way to keep FlashForward's most compelling moment a part of the ongoing story. Here, we see a bus crash into a park's lake to the eerie strains of Bjork's "It's Oh So Quiet" and watch a conspicuously calm passenger called Ned (Keir O'Donnell) rescue fellow commuters from the depths when he regains consciousness. Weeks later, meek Ned's in hospital for unrelated treatment, but Bryce (Zachary Knighton) becomes intrigued by Ned's curious lack of fear over the brain surgery he requires, and the fact his flashforward involved him dancing in a nightclub as an African-American! While Ned has apparently put his faith in the future and claims he no longer fears anything because of the certainty and security his flashforward bestowed on him, Bryce has trouble convincing Olivia (Sonya Walger) that Ned's blasé nature and flashforward anecdote are signs of a disease that will put his life at risk if he goes under the knife...

Admittedly, I quite enjoyed this storyline because it was a fun slant on the problems that arise from having future knowledge, while also playing like an admittedly undercooked House plot. However, Olivia proved infuriating with her absolute disregard of facts staring her in the face, because she refuses to accept the flashforwards contain information worth taking seriously, as she's intent that her relationship with Lloyd Simcoe (Jack Davenport) won't happen as predicted -- so much so that she's trying her best to avoid him, but fate appears to be conspiring against her...

The FBI storyline was the biggest dud, though, as Mark (Joseph Fiennes) was pushed into accompanying partner Demetri (John Cho) on a wild goose chase to Indio, California because he was fed duff information by the surviving terrorist they captured in the pilot, whom they still think had something to do with the blackout. While I was glad to see that part of the pilot hadn't been forgotten about, there wasn't much to get excited about here, beyond some predictably vague comments made to Mark about the titular "black swan".

Subplots were short, imparting information that will come into play later. Most notably, the Benford's babysitter Nicole (Peyton List) revealed she saw herself being drowned by someone in her flashforward (and knowing she deserved it.) An intriguing piece of information, sure, but I was a little distracted by the fact this episode failed to latch onto a far more promising storyline at the church Nicole visited. I was hoping for some fascinating insights into the religious repercussions of the recent blackout, with church attendance skyrocketing or the priest making full use of "the event" to push his beliefs on her... but nothing really came of the scene. Maybe a future episode will give us some insight into what various faiths are doing after the blackout, as this is undoubtedly the kind of "divine work" religions would be using to their advantage.

So, it was all a bit dull and offered very little in the way of fresh information or character development. It did manage to provoke a slight gasp with the cliffhanger, however, when we see Lloyd accept a call from a fellow Brit called Simon (Lost's Dominic Monaghan), who within seconds reveals that both were in some way responsible for the global blackout. That's good, solid progression, I guess -- if a little cliché to have Englishmen playing the bad guys -- but enough to keep me around to see if they can pull all this together and start demonstrating they know where they're going. At the moment, it's a great premise that's struggling to find a way to make the characters very compelling in the aftermath, but it has a few ingredients and reveals prepared to keep us on the hook. How many it has up it sleeve remains to be seen, as there's still not much reason to care about Mark, Olivia, Demetri, et al.


19 October 2009
Five, 9pm

written by: Lisa Zwerling & Scott M. Gimple directed by: Michael Rymer starring: Joseph Fiennes (Agent Mark Benford), John Cho (Agent Demetri Noh), Brian F. O'Byrne (Aaron Stark), Courtney B. Vance (Agent Stanford Wedeck), Jack Davenport (Lloyd Simcoe), Sonya Walger (Dr. Olivia Benford), Christine Woods (Janis Hawk), Zachary Knighton (Bryce Varley), Cynthia Addai-Robinson (Debbie), Keir O'Donnell (Ned), Genevieve Cortese (Tracy Stark), Justin Dray (Meade), Barry Shabaka Henley (Agent Vreede), Rizwan Manji (Maneesh Sandhar), Sean O'Bryan (Father Seabury), Keir O'Donnell (Ned), Elizabeth Pea (Sally), Rachel Roberts (Alda Hertzog), Arjay Smith (Louis), Peggy Stewart (Secretary), Adam Tsekhman (Vlad), Gabrielle Union (Zoey), Kathy Vara (TV Reporter), Julia Wackenheim (Cashier Girl), Lennon Wynn(Charlie), Ryan Wynott (Dylan Simcoe) & Lee Thompson Young (Agent Gough)