Numb3rs meets The Big Bang Theory!
A group of smart, socially awkward people banding together to solve crimes while throwing in some intellectually comedic hijinks.
Although I'm now on episode 3 and I can testify that it does get better, I can't help but feel that there is something that is lacking here. The cast is fifty-fifty percent likable. Toby sums up the team in episode 3 best, so I'll use his words to explain it to you:
From left to right: Sylvester, Paige, Gallo, Toby, Walter, Happy
Walter: Textbook intellectual megalomania and anti-disobedience syndrome.
Paige: Not a genius, but 'translates' normal people to the Scorpion team while they 'translate' her genius son for her.
Happy: Mechanical prodigy. Suffers from hostility and Anger Dissonance Syndrome.
Toby: A behaviorist narcissist who has addictive tendencies.
Sylvester: A human calculator who suffers from anxiety, OCD, and has more phobias than “you can shake a stick at.”
Gallo: Scorpion's handler.
Of all the characters introduced so far, Toby is my favorite because his behaviorist skills coupled with his douchebag personality make for a very interesting viewing. Paige is the least interesting character and her role on the team is called into question, even lampshaded on the show by Toby who just has to ask 'What exactly is her purpose on this team?' No doubt I was asking the same thing at home.
Taking on a crime of the week format, the show plays around with the characters by periodically allowing them to play 'Scorpion' or the star of the moment, but it also treats it like it's a game and the people are just taking turns being the smart one. By episode two, you can almost predict the sequence in which the characters will get to shine. It's not bad though as you need to have everyone contribute, but to certain viewers, this can become grating unless they shake up the order.
Still on the topic of the crime of the week, the show utilizes some interesting ideas such as 'Bio-Hacking' or the Internet crashing. Some of it comes off as junk science, but the stuff they feature actually does exist to some degree in real life. Bio-Hacking I found especially disconcerting to know it actually is possible in the real world.
One thing that really brings the show down is the immediate will-they-won't-they love story going on between Walter and Paige. It's made so obvious there is something that it feels like they're shoving it down our throats. They even setup unnecessary scenes to 'develop' this storyline.
Another thing that's hard to ignore is how easy solving some of the different obstacles the plot throws at them comes to these guys. Sure they 'struggle', but they are so clever, it's like the plot has no chance of beating them. If the stakes aren't raised, the characters will end up OP which is not a good thing if the show is not a parody or comedy.
First impressions: 7.5/10. Slightly better than Forever, but still room for improvement.
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