For many struggling shows, the best remedy for flagging ratings is to widen the scope of its mystery.
In the second
season of “Jericho,” CBS’s post-apocalyptic thriller, the isolated residents of
the small Kansas town are now wholly aware that they are not the only survivors
of the barrage of nuclear attacks that destroyed much of America during the
show’s first episode. We last left them on the verge of a war with a
neighboring town and a run-in with the newly reformed Federal government flying
a completely unfamiliar flag. The question of whether or not “Jericho” is alone
has been answered, but their future (the town’s and the show’s) is still
anything but decided.
Who’s that?: Skeet Ulrich (one of the many ghost-faced killers of the “Scream” franchise)
plays Jericho’s newly appointed Sheriff, Jake Green. Jake is
joined by his brother, Eric (Kenneth Mitchell), and the two pretty points of
his love-triangle, Emily and Heather (played by Ashley Scott and Sprague
Grayden respectively). British actor Lennie James joins the cast as CIA agent
Robort Hawkins; and Alicia Coppola and Brad Beyer offer up some supporting
schmaltz as happy couple Mimi and Stanley.
Buzzed about:
When CBS announced their Fall 2007 lineup, “Jericho” was not on it. Fans responded to this cancellation by
sending over 20 tons of sunflower seeds as part of a campaign to bring the show
back, and, in a shocking turn of events, the network actually listened. This
season’s seven-episode run is completely owed to the dedication of its
fans.
The “ooh”
factor: The question of who is responsible for the nuclear attacks on the
United States remains to be the most compelling aspect of the show. Signs
pointing towards a domestic conspiracy and the presence of a new Federal
government make the potential answer a lot more interesting than the first
season’s suggestion of terrorism.
The “eh” factor:
Jericho makes zero sense if you're not entirely familiar with the first season.
So unless several million people caught the fever over the last nine months,
fans didn't save their show so much as delay the inevitable.
The verdict:
It's an interesting look at what might happen to a country divided by
catastrophe, but there are plenty of prematurely cancelled shows a lot more
deserving of “Jericho’s" stay of execution.
”Jericho”
returns Tuesday, Feb. 12 at 10 p.m./9c on CBS.
