The Pretender ‘Flyer’: Versatile Putty

After a bit of a flat second episode, The Pretender bounces back in a major way with ‘Flyer’, a great showcase piece for the show’s procedural-heavy formula of its earliest episodes. It does a much better job balancing out the case of the week plot with the happenings at The Centre, having the relaxed feel of a show getting comfortable with itself.

Part of this comes from the guest stars, particularly Robert O. Cornthwaite (in what would really be his last notable role in either television or film), who absolutely steals the episode as Mr. Hollis, the paranoid old conspiracy theorist living out in the desert near the airfield at the center of the episode. One thing The Pretender always had a knack for was the little eccentricities of characters and highlighting them in a very humorous and heart-warming fashion – like Broots and his twitchiness, or Jarod and his obsession with candy and children’s toys. Some of this is because of the great acting talent of the characters I’m talking about, but a lot of credit goes to the show’s ability to be both funny and emotional at the same time.

It all culminates in fantastic dramatic sequences: last week it was Miss Parker answering the phone, and this week its Mr. Hollis (lots of proper titles here, playing into Jarod’s child-like view of the world) revealing the root of his conspiracy-fueled life: he was a scientist on the Dr. Manhattan project. A lot of shows would take this and run wild with it – and The Pretender is no different, as we see quite often in the melodramatic broken families and children in each episode – but it always works best when used in ‘Flyer’, and it provides some context into why these people are disturbed and living on the fringe, humanizing them rather than pitying them as objects of bad luck and the evils of corporations.

When it tries to do that, its much more unsuccessful. The one place ‘Flyer’ suffers is the complete absence of its antagonists, except in bookend scenes to put a name to a face, then bring it down with swift justice later on. Characters like Kendall and Lawson are all but absent as well, putting a lot more emphasis on Jarod constructing his plan for vengance, with the background of the story mostly told in a few passive interrogation scenes (one of Jarod’s trademarks). The only real notable part of the time spent at the air field is seeing Jarod conduct a simulation for the first time, which was shown in a very “stylized” (I mean, this is 1998, long before Final Cut Pro, we’re talking about minor shit here) form.

It’s important for the show to establish the emotional stress these simulations puts Jarod in as an adult – using the DSA flashbacks are only useful to a certain point, akin to looking at an object in a glass case as opposed to holding it in your hands and examining it. Most of the time, these flashbacks are less about Jarod’s simulations, and more about the people around the fringes of them, revealing important dates and events in the show’s mythology.

And that’s where ‘Flyer’ is really at its best; when it’s away from Jarod and at the Centre. The relationship between Broots and Miss Parker is probably my favorite of the show, and watching him shiver with the mention of her name always cracks me up. But more importantly, ‘Flyer’ does a lot to establish that this group of people are not only talented, but highly motivated to capture Jarod and bring him back (Sydney: “You’re afraid of losing your job.” Broots: “I’m afraid of losing my life.”). This point is REALLY nailed home with the first appearance of Mr. Raines and his fucked up vocal cords, making a silent appearance in Jarod’s simulation (which brings in a number of unnecessary scenes with Jarod learning to read lips), and quite a dark and raspy one at the conclusion, reminding Miss Parker that the stakes are in fact, pretty fucking high.

I’ve got a few other things to talk about, but I want to keep this review short (after topping 1000 words again last week), so I’ll keep them to the bullet points at the bottom. But ‘Flyer’ is a big improvement over the melodramatic second episode, mainly because it focuses less on the bad guys of the week (which are always poorly written) and a lot more on Jarod and the chase to hunt him down, one that is only beginning.

Grade: B+

Other thoughts/observations:

– cast trivia of the week: Lawson the tech guy with the stereoscopic pictures (that Jarod apparently invented) is Ray McKinnom, who recently played Agent Lincoln Potter in an arc on Sons of Anarchy.

– Jarod loves Silly Putty, not only because it’s useful and versatile, but because it’s just like him: a chameleon of identity.
pretends this week: guy interested in wind mills, fighter pilot, and symphony conductor.

– The family moments always fail for me. It’s a bad balance of slow motion family moments, sad scrunchy Jarod face (complete with chest hair) and bad piano scores. To top it off, the visual style of these moments in ‘Flyer’ completely throws it out of rhythm with the rest of the episode, and it just feels exploitative.

– a young Jake Lloyd plays the fatherless child, and I don’t want to hate on child actors, but he butchers the dialogue in his only scene. Painful to watch.

– when Sydney laughed at Broots, it really captured the feeling of joy it seems Patrick Bauchau got from playing this character. Such an authentic moment.

– best line goes to Broots (this was an easy choice): “You want to play political parcheesi with the Ice Queen? Go right ahead; leave me out of it.”

– also in that scene: a single shot of a growling mini poodle with a muzzle over its mouth. What the what?

– Not only was the bad guy blind with greed, his name in the sky was “Manhunter.” Let’s stack the deck a little more against him.

What did you think of ‘Flyer’, and the first appearance of Mr. Raines? Feel free to leave your thoughts below, and stop back next Thursday, when Jarod goes to Vegas.