No Ordinary Review of No Ordinary Family

Fox's brand new, spanking show, No ordinary Family, is basically Pixar's The Incredibles --just in case you want to see them in human form.

Frankly, a rip-off was my first impression of this TV show.  Really, the super-powered characters of the show are even called 'Supers' --a term that was also used to label super-powered CG characters on the cult cartoon blockbuster.  Thank God, spandex-use was spared!

Eventually though, I did realize I was being unfair.  No Ordinary Family can actually hold its own.   Since it's a weekly TV series, it has more time to flesh out its story into several very interesting plot lines per episode.  So it kept me interested.

All is well and then the show had to reveal a mastermind on top of all the super-powered mutations sprouting all over the city.  So now... it's an X-Men rip-off.  *sigh*

You know what, I'm overanalyzing this.  At the end of it all, No Ordinary Family is another family show with the same gender wars between husband and wife, the same drama and rivalry between teen-aged siblings... but with a very unique, high-octane twist.  Unlike X-men and The Incredibles, No ordinary family doesn't focus on super powers.  It focuses on relationships.  On family.  On friends.
BUT unlike any other family show, it doesn't do soap opera or slapstick to get these warm, familiar messages across.  It uses super powers.   So you can relate to the reality of every episode's story, and enjoy extraodinariness and empowerment at the same time. 

And what family doesn't believe they're unique and powerful in their own right?

So that's what makes No ordinary Family extraordinary.   It's real and surreal at the same time.   Kinda like your family, huh?

The Primeval Prime Cut

Hands down, the family's favorite TV show of the moment is the fantabulous British blockbuster on FOX, Primeval.

Kenji likes it for the dino overload.  Just think --he used to have to wait for the seasonal dinosaur specials on Discovery Channel.  But now, with Primeval, he gets his daily dose of gargantuan growls, mayhem, and bloodshed.  What more could an 8-year old ask for!

Miro likes it for its time traveling aspect.  Being the science geek that he is, the concept of anomalous doors opening and closing intrigue him.  Although dinosaurs don't really rock his boat that much, the show is inspiring him to put a time traveling machine on top of his to-do list for when he grows up.

Jing likes it for nothing more than critique.  His keen artistic eye suspiciously checking out if the prehistoric creatures are matted on properly for every scene.  If they have well-designed textures and shadows.  If they move seamlessly.  If the T-Rex has enough spit in his mouth (He's once ruined it for all of us when he pointed out that the Jurassic Park dinosaurs' mouths were dry ...and therefore were unrealistic.  Bummer.). 

I like it for the conspiracy theories overlapping one another.  I love that kind of induced migraine.  It's so difficult to read who can possibly be the real bad guy, who can possibly die next, and then who can possibly return.  The show's characters come back from the dead just as easily as coming back from the mall.  Hey, the show's premise is on time and space meddling so that's expected.

The story is quickly winding and evolving --which is a good thing for a series.  If you miss one episode, you miss a lot.  The creature feature is also growing.  From making us somewhat nostalgic with the appearances of childhood heroes like the Mastodon and the Pteranodon to shiny, brand new mutations from the future and even from some alternate dimension.  The writers do their antediluvian homework, too.  Raptors are portrayed as the most clever of the beasts, and the sabre-tooth tiger as a likely house pet... IF you keep him full.

If you're not squeamish, Primeval is a definite family show epic.  Just don't get too attached to the characters. Because once you do, a raging Carnotaurus will kill them off. 
It's like that.