TV Review of AlcatraZzz

Wednesday, January 18, 2011
By Frank Murgia
Photo Source Credit: IMDB
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‘Alcatraz’ is NO ‘Lost’ but it feels lost in many ways.

I am not a television critic, just a blogger who watches way too much television. This post will not go in to any of the show plot or deeply into the characters. If you watched the show then read on, if not you will be lost. (No pun intended…yet)

From the creator of “Lost” (J.J. Abrams) you will find a few familiarities but not in a good way in my opinion.

• A character with a beard shadow named Jack.
• Jorge Garcia (‘Hurley’ from ‘Lost’) plays the unassuming innocent sad-sac who finds himself pulled into a mystery. (He will always be Hurley and his range will never change)
• The same music team from 'Lost' and it feels forced and out of place. (Like taking the score from 'Star Wars' and using it in ‘Battlefield Earth’.)

I thought each hour was boring and especially unappealing and uninteresting when the timeline goes back to the early Alcatraz days. I know these shows that want to be 'Lost' try to be confusing and laden with subliminal number-clues and pay attention to detail dialogue. 'Try' being the key word as great shows develop organically and create new ways to stimulate the viewer and 'Alcatraz' locks you up behind bars and forces the engine of a Ferrari into a Gremlin and asks you to believe it is a Ferrari.

‘Lost’ was relatable in a small way that many people fly and planes have and do crash and this is a real-life happening that creates a real-life fear and emotion. Trying to relate to 1960’s Alcatraz prisoners is not everyday relatable and to me narrows the target audience. Does anything in this show appeal to female viewer? (6-7 Killings per episode, Dirty Alcatraz, Jorge Garcia?)

Did you watch the 2-hour television premiere of  “Alcatraz” on FOX?

If so, will you watch again?

Thoughts? (Feel free to bang the comments box below)

I close with “The lead girl is cute and frumpy but Hurley is still fat and Lumpy”