All entries for Friday 12 October 2007

TV Chat: The Unit

I’ve written about The Unit before: an action show about a special forces unit with added soap opera from thier wives. But Season 3 has just started airing and it’s interesting in that it seems desperate to change it’s tone entirely. I’ve only seen the first two episodes, but I’m predicting that from here forth the show will be focused primarily on US domestic issues and missions in other developed countries. The evidence:

1. The first two eps play out like that, dealing with inter-agency espionage and setting up a running CIA-centered plot.

2. The title sequence defining ‘team’ shot is of the five of them in suits and dark glasses like they just stepped off the set of ‘Spooks’, rather than in military camoflage. There’s very few shots of desert-based shenanigans too.

3. The marching song title music is gone, replaced by some bland yet surprisingly catchy soft rock number.

Perhaps the network bosses have decided that reminding people about Iraq all the time isn’t conducive to great ratings anymore, or maybe I’m just barking up the wrong tree. Be interesting to find out.

(Oh, and check out the brilliant gag in the first episode where Bob’s CIA handler asks him on the phone where he is: “Vancouver” he replys, and the handler says something like “Yeah right…”. Vancouver, of course, being where they film all these shows….)

Dean Love : 12 Oct 2007 02:34 |  Tags: TV |  Comments (4) |  Close comments |  Report a problem