The second episode of FlashForward‘s first season picked up where the pilot episode left off. Here are 5 Things I Learned from White To Play.
1. Mark is holding out on Olivia.
And I only see that continuing, at least in the near future. I expected Olivia to be more secretive out of the two, due to the intimate nature of her flash forward with Lloyd Simcoe. Instead, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how open she’s been. Whether she can alter her future (or will want to) is another story, but being honest about it is a good start for her character.
Mark, on the other hand, is already keeping things from Olivia. Perhaps it’s these little things that will cause the division between them? Is Mark playing into the hands of fate?
2. Suspect Zero is not alone
He was on the phone to another suspect – D. Gibbon’s – during the flash forward. This is a major reveal that opens up the show to a much wider (and logical) conspiracy.
Not much else to say at the moment, except..I can’t wait to find out more!
3. Sonya Walger is the heart of the show
So far she’s been the most believable performer. Her portrayal of a loving yet guilt-ridden wife and mother is completely on point. I knew she was good as her performances in LOST have proven, but I admit, I didn’t realise quite how good she was.
4. Simcoe’s son is autistic
This could get a bit cliched, but it was a move that took me by surprised. So far, it’s worked – Dylan’s autism has brought an extra layer to both ‘the children are special’ theme and my investment in the Simcoe story. Lloyd is now a far more sympathetic character, largely due to his son’s condition and the fact that his wife has just died.
Last week I felt a coldness to him – he was the villain in the lives of our new protagonists. An episode later and I feel for him more than I do Mark. There’s also a definite connection/attraction between Simcoe and Olivia that makes for great viewing as Olivia tries (and fails) not to feel a connection with him.
5. It’s going to be fun
The episode had several moments of comic relief littered in and out of the more serious aspects of the investigation and human drama. Again, I didn’t expect to enjoy this episode as much as I did on that level. WTP took itself seriously when it needed to, and let its metaphorical hair down when the time was right for it (the “mouth-to-mouth” was a great continuation of the toilet saga from last week).
White To Play may not have been as epic as No More Good Days, but it was funny, cool and very, very watchable.
