Jericho: Patriots and Tyrants (2.7)

It's a shame really. One of the best television shows to come along in a very long time came to its conclusion tonight because the hard headed woman who runs CBS Television, Nina Tassler decided it was not worthy of continuing.

Personally, and this is my own little private venting on the matter, I believe the decision was partly political in nature. It was political for all the reasons I will lay out below. Oh, this was going to be a review of the last episode in which Jake and Hawkins take the remaining nuke out of the hands of the renegade government of Cheyenne, Wyoming and deliver it to the Governor in Texas. What does this act accomplish? Firstly, it proves that this was NOT an act of international terrorism, but a well thought-out and executed plan from within to decapitate the government and take over the country. The bomb is the proof. It was made from nuclear material stolen from domestic sources and had no sourcing in Iran and N. Korea, two countries in this fictionalized world that we have eliminated from the world map through retaliatory nuclear ICBM strikes.

Second, it gives the government of Texas a large chip to hold in the Post-Apocalypse world of U.S.A. politics. It can veer away from the Cheyenne, Wyoming pretenders and align itself with the remnants of the true, democratic government of the US. It now knows the truth. Is there a 2nd American Civil War brewing? Something that we've seen hints of, in Season 2 of Jericho?

It continues to amaze me, how well this show captures some of the subtleties of the hidden politics in the arena of public life in this country. Most people will admit, they wake-up in the morning, eat their breakfast, go to work, try to earn a decent living, so that they can go home and maybe enjoy some quality time with their children and their husbands or wives. Most people are good people. I have always felt that. The people that I meet day to day are just average Joes, just like you and me, with their own set of problems, but they have happiness in their lives too. They go about wanting the same things; a better education for their children, a retirement for themselves, a vacation now and then. Some used to call all of that "The American Dream". But somewhere along the way, the dream got hijacked.

It got hijacked by the special interests, by the corporations, by the powerful in America. The powerful keep promising the same things they have always promised, but those are only broken promises now. And why is that? Because most people are in a sort of a haze, in a funk, in a daze. Oh, they are mostly happy with where they are -- and don't you dare threaten God and Country. Don't you dare speak badly about the Bible. But that's not the point, is it? The thieves have already come into the house, stolen the valuables and desecrated the altar. And you didn't even know it. It's already to late to do something about it. When Dr. King was marching on Washington the thieves were plotting their take-overs from CEO boardrooms, from Fifth Avenue penthouses and from executive suites overlooking beautiful palm trees in many different locations. They had carved-up the world, declared a victor and passed-out the spoils. And you, me and the average Joe, we're just bit players in the drama, aren't we? They've already shipped our jobs somewhere else, somewhere the labor rates suit their tastes, and they get better profits and larger bottom lines.

So, why couldn't a whole country be hijacked? What is the "check" and the "balance" in the system to stop the hijacking? This was the basic and underlying premise of Jericho. In the REAL, post-9/11, tragic world, anything is possible, anything is plausible. If "We The People" do not keep-up our vigilance, then who is to say that our Democracy can not be hijacked? And do not argue with me that we are a Republic and not a Democracy. We are a "Republic" with a "Democratic" form of government, but for some reason, we're reverting to what a "Republic" stood for in the ancient tradition; the rule of the few, the rule of the "monarch", or in this case, the rule of the "Ploutarch" -- the Rich (the Oligarch)!

So, as season 2 of Jericho came to conclusion, detailing these obvious truths, and showing the actions of true patriots, one must wonder, what does the 40% (or more in some cases) of Americans who don't vote think about the issues that Jericho presented? Do they perceive that because this was a fictionalized account, "leave me alone, I don't want to be bothered, I am watching 'American Idol' or any of the myriad other Reality TV shows, and have no time to think?" Or, do they only want to think that hard, when they are in the voting booth, after they've been beaten up by propaganda from either the left or the right and they are about to pull their little lever or write down their little choice for president? Whatever the case may be, the wonderful show Jericho, is no more, and one is left to ponder why? Because, I think, plenty of good people watched it and appreciated it.

The fight for Jericho lives on at Jericho Rally Point. I thank, Callisto925 especially, for the wonderful covers I used on my episode synopsis/reviews. Major props!

And shame on you Nina Tassler for lying to us fans, first bringing the show back for a shortened second season, then not giving it a half way chance to succeed and bowing to other interests and canceling it.

Major congratulations to the creators for what they achieved with this show. I WILL BE buying the DVD Boxed sets! Thanks!

Jericho: Sedition (2.6)

Jericho continues it's run into the sunset with the next to last episode of the second, shortened season called: "Sedition". An 'Act' of Sedition of course, is an act of insurrection against the established order, in the case of Jericho, the citizens of Jericho rebelling against the lawful authority of the U.S. Government. Except of course, things are not that clear cut in Jericho any more. There is NO MORE U.S. Government, as it was destroyed when the nuclear bombs flew in the first episode of season 1. Jericho has been ruled from the Western States capital of Wyoming. And, it clearly appears now that the head of that 'fake' government calling itself the 'Allied States' of America is really a puppet of 'Jennings & Rall' and 'Ravenwood'.

In this context, 'Jennings & Rall' and 'Ravenwood' of course stand for 'KBR' and 'Blackwater' and the message is clear. We have sold our country and our freedoms to the giant behemoth multi-nationals, with the power to not only finance elections, but to actually BUY elections for their clients. And, after buying them, they can make it stick, by simply using their private contractor army, called 'Blackwater'.

If you don't think it can happen in this country, then you obviously just fell out of the apple tree...

The beauty of the episode 'Sedition' is to show that might does make right. Major Beck, the local army commander knows some of the self-evident truths about the situation that has developed. He believes that his actions are helping to put the Old Country, the USA, back together. During the situations he is encountering, is he discovering otherwise? Because by know he has had sufficient conversations with Hawkins, Jake and Heather to understand that things are not what they appear to be.

I like Jake's resistance to the 'isolation' - sensory deprivation tank he's placed in. He survives it by conjuring his grandfather in his mind, who helps guide him through his resistance. Grandfather explains that what some people call a terrorist or resistance, other people call a revolutionary. The people in Wyoming, who are running 'Jennings and Rall', are called Usurpers. They took power by destroying. They took what did not belong to them. The only way to take it back is by fighting them, by launching what is in effect a revolution. That government might call the people of 'Jericho' terrorists, but they are not.

Isn't it interesting when you contrast this episode with a book review for a book I recently finished, Empire by Orson Scott Card to notice how much better, the writers of Jericho handle the subject matter? Not only do they present a cautionary, morality tale, but they play a lot of role reversals and teach us about our own society today. It's all right there on the screen. It does not have to be interpreted by an essay at the end of the book.

There is late breaking news that CBS is canceling the show Jericho. There is no accounting for taste, I guess... I wonder if there is accounting, or room for conspiracy theories, anyone?

You think the real corporate money got to CBS and told them that they were uncomfortable with the way they were being portrayed on their TV show? I'll think about it some more and post later. I hope not.

Jericho: Termination for Cause (2.5)

Jericho is the best show on television. It's true, I do go through some phases, and I have previously declared that XYZ show was the best, and before that UVW and so on... So, I have cycled, through 'Heroes' which severely disappointed through its sophomore season, 'Lost', which almost lost me (forgive the pun) during the end of the second season and beginning of the third season, and '24' which after a brilliant first season has almost fizzled. After all, how do you overcome the brilliance of that story? With more torture of course!

Then again there is always Babylon 5, quite simply, a glorious concoction of brilliance in television film-making. But I won't go there.

No, instead, I just want to discuss this brilliant episode of Jericho (Episode 2.5). For those who have not watched Jericho from the beginning, I have to tell you, you have missed the most frightening, the most prophetic, the most well written cautionary tale of television, EVER!

Good television should entertain, but should also instruct and educate. This is the reason I grew up watching cartoons, but I also grew-up watching all the Disney nature shows and all the documentaries. Documentary watching turned into historical and political and social documentaries and other educational shows, and my entertainment got more extreme! Very few shows however have managed to combine the intelligence of both.

Babylon 5, as I mentioned was one. It easily cautioned about the abuses of power and the extreme avarice it brings. Power begets the need for more power, and sometimes the protectors are very few and a line must be drawn. Those who state that they defend freedom might not be the true defenders of freedom, and in truth, they might me usurpers that must be defeated first. It is difficult to tell who is who. 'Wolf in sheep's clothing'. This is why Babylon 5 was such a great show.

Jericho has achieved that excellence in a lot less time that Babylon 5. It had to be, because the poor show was under the gun from the CBS network from the beginning. This great show about an attack on our nation (a Fifth Column if you will), from the inside has supposedly struggled for ratings since day one. Yet, people who have watched this show know, it's not about the ratings, it's about the story-- and the quality of the story. It's the story of some simple people caught in the literal and figurative cross-fire after a terrorist nuclear attack on our nation. Of course we retaliate. But that's not the point. The point is is this: How are the lives of these people affected?

Don't read beyond here if you don't want to be spoiled about this episode.

Episode 2.5 is Stanley's episode for me. At the end of episode 2.4, Bonnie is killed by 'Ravenwood' (aka Blackwater) while defending Mimi over the ledger that purports to show the $10,000 in stolen money by the 'Ravenwood' director Goetz. Goetz is of course responsible for the murder. And by the end of Episode 2.5 events reach a point where Goetz is fired from 'Ravenwood' AND Stanley exacts his revenge on Goetz by pulling the trigger and killing him.

When I watch such intense scenes on TV sometimes, I often ask myself, WHAT WOULD I DO in that person's place? To be honest, if my sister had been murdered like that by someone like Goetz, I am not sure, I would not have lost it like Stanley did--no matter how Christian I promote myself to be. Was that the right thing for Stanley to do? Of course not! That's not the point! But I can definitely understand where he came from. And I never actually promote capital punishment--I think it's an outmoded method of punishment. Yet, there are cases, such as this, where it it imperative, and the only step left.

But the real lesson of this episode was the "Boston Tea Party" moment of the episode as I called it. The moment when the 'Rangers' (so called Jericho protectors made up from the town volunteers) united to confront the 'Ravenwood' police presence threatening both Mimi's life and the town's security.

As I said before, sometimes the danger lurks within and does not come from without. If we're not prepared to defend our homes, our freedoms and our livelihoods against all comers it will be too late. The unfortunate part in all of this is that such a great cautionary tale has not been watched by a greater number of Americans, so that we'd all be prepared. Instead, I am afraid, we will be led, like sheep to slaughter, without protest as they take our country from us.

It might be soon....