Keiran McEwen
Keiran McEwenWhy was it that in the mid-2000s it was seen as conventionally attractive for young men in their 20s to have that childish, American Dennis the Menace, haircut? Directed by Mike Rohl, unless you are a fan of Netflix-budgeted Hallmark-flix, you might not know the name. Providing a career resurgence for Sa5m “The 5 is silent” since she fell off after singing in high school, The Princess Switch series directed by Rohl is that The Parent Trap, It Takes Two, and Trading Places thing. Meanwhile, writer Johanna Stokes starts a 5 episode run with Eureka, later becoming a writer and story editor for The Tick and No Good Nick.
So we’ve gone from belittling what Vanessa Hudgens has been doing lately (other than being at the wrestling), to saying David Paetkau looks more attractive now with a proper haircut and beard. Again, focused around Carter’s inability to be an actual parent and instead being a TV trope of an idiot that belittles his kid’s every bit of expression, Zoe rebels by being attracted to the “rough” babyface that just walked into town. Don’t worry, like last time, it is another one of those “we’ll see you once and you’ll be gone by the end.”
Turns out The Littlest Hobo has decided to walk back into town, and magically (literally) there are a bunch of problems suddenly cropping up all over the place. These problems are mostly where Callister Raynes is or has been. Maybe if he got a proper name, a haircut, and a proper sense of self, I’d be willing to give him a little more rope to hang himself with. Is that not a saying everywhere? Either way, for Callister it wouldn’t make any difference.
If you can’t quite read between the lines, I’m not really a fan of “Right as Raynes.” I know, shocking! From Carter’s “I’m the parent, I’m always right” to the magical mystery tour we go on about all the mysterious malfunctions going on throughout Eureka. I don’t like saying this, but it feels very lazy from a writing/directorial standpoint in how everything early on feels very mythical and supernatural. How is it snowing in Café Diem? Or why is it an “electric fence” turned into a magnetic one? I’d even forgive the question, “Why is the traffic light on the blink?”
A lot of “Right as Raynes” hinges on one establishing shot that lasts at most two seconds, roughly around the 1:52-1:56 point. It is one instance that is supposed to establish the whole episode, though you can easily guess who it is centered around, and isn’t properly explained afterwards until thirty-two minutes in. The trouble with this sort of “mystery” is that if you miss that one shot, say you’re eating, look to your right after being asked something, or you blink, “Right as Raynes” treats you like you are dumb.
Even with the establishing shot of Callister (awful name) touching the button to cross the road, you are at best-guessing everything until that thirty-two-minute mark. Maybe you’ll work it out when there is an inexplicable virus on the Eureka operating systems around seventeen minutes in, but from the ground up, the so-called mystery doesn’t feel strong. The entire episode feels like clippings of shredded scripts of yesteryear cobbled together to make what is effectively a subpar mystery, a mediocre piece of teen drama, and a single piece of Eureka history that everyone can remember almost two decades on.
The Callister mystery is paced like a bulldozer with no fuel, and the parental responsibility storyline functions like a roadblock at every turn for the humorous, heartwarming, and generally good plots Eureka can offer. It is what I’ve said a lot about the show in the last several episodes, say it with me children: Eureka is still finding its feet in this first season. I’m not saying that as an excuse, I genuinely don’t care that much for the episode, but I do know where it is trying to go.
Sadly, with Beverly Barlow, it makes me want to veer left and dive into a ditch full of cacti, snakes, lemon juice, salt, and razor blades. Honestly, I have nothing against Debrah Farentino, but I have everything against a character that takes up time, energy, and plot lines that are vague at best and paper-thin most of the time. She returns as Zoe’s therapist due to an off-screen agreement between Jack and Zoe, while she’s also a sort of confidante for Callister.
This leads up to a single point where, for once out of the several episodes so far, Jack and Nathan come to an agreement due to character stuff and spoilers. The truth is, I don’t hate the character bits between the two, it just feels a little too short and a little too late. Similar can be said about the whole “Zoe’s a troubled teen trying to do her best to be around her dad” plotline, which falls flat either through airing order and written order being screwed up, or something else. We’ll go from this butting heads story to actually having an understanding next time out with no problem.
Ultimately, “Right as Raynes” isn’t terrible, we can save that for next time out. It is more or less just there as an episode. It doesn’t make anyone but Nathan look good. David Paetkau isn’t really exciting as an actor, and the whole plotline is fine, but it needed either clearer writing to establish the why or a better direction to highlight how the town’s systems are broken. I think the problem with “Right as Raynes” is that I’m not excited to watch another one after it, not because of what is next but rather how tired I am of family drama handled poorly.
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10 Eureka "Right as Raynes"
Pros
- At least Nathan isn't completely annoying.
- That one fence scene.
Cons
- Go away, Beverly!
- Carter's parenting.
