The CW's "Reaper" (8 tonight, WPCW) began last season with a strong pilot whose format was copied a little too closely in subsequent episodes. The series didn't really start to find its legs until the second half of its first season (not altogether unusual for a freshman show) when it started paying more attention to its characters and their relationships rather than the case-of-the-week. The show also placed more of an emphasis on comedy.
It appears the show will follow that approach in season two as Sam (Bret Harrison) continues to be at the beck and call of the Devil (Ray Wise), who continues to get the funniest bits of dialogue.
"Well, look at that, the prodigal son returns," the Devil says when Sam comes back from a road trip following the supposed death of his father. "I knew the real prodigal son, ya know. Dude was an ass. Super-needy."
Wise is clearly still having fun in his performance, a career-defining role he's been aiming toward since his evil turn on "Twin Peaks."
Tonight's season premiere doesn't deal with the "death" of Sam's father (viewers saw him claw his way out of the earth at the end of last season). Sam still thinks he's dead. Future episodes will deal with dad's fate.
New characters include Sock's step-sister and Ben's new girlfriend, who's showcased in episode three.
Creatively, the show seems to be in pretty decent shape. We'll see how the ratings turn out. Given that The CW renewed six series last week and seems to be skewing even more heavily toward female-skewing series, "Reaper" may be a long-shot to live beyond this second season.
Posted
Mar 03 2009, 01:37 AM
by
Rob Owen