Monday, September 16, 2013

(Spoilers) Sleepy Hollow: Fall 2013 TV S1E1 Pilot Impressions

***SPOILER WARNING: Spoilers may be found in the post below about VARIOUS ITEMS. And I'm going to add in a bit of filler text here to limit how much of the main article gets shown in a preview. That should take care of most of it. Hopefully. And away we go. SPOILER WARNING. ***

I thought I was going to miss this because 2 Broke Girls was on. Luckily, that show premieres next week. The good and bad news is that I think I've just added another show to my DVR.

Overview
The show starts off during the Revolutionary War with Ichabod Crane in the midst of a battle. He's fighting for the Americans, runs into the Headless Horseman, and ends up decapitating it after being mortally wounded.

Both the Horseman and Ichabod arrive in the present, 250-ish years later, and run into cops. The Horseman kills one cop and Ichabod is arrested. No one believes his story, obviously. Ichabod is told he's 250 years in the future, no one but Abbie, the partner of the cop who died, has remotely any faith in him. The important thing is that it's revealed that the Horseman is one of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Also, Ichabod was sent 250 years ago by General Washington to kill it.

Ichabod's wife was apparently burned at the stake for witchcraft and the Horseman is after his head. The town priest is also apparently immortal -- meaning he lives forever unless killed, which the Horseman does. In a dream, Ichabod meets his wife who is really a witch and not dead, just trapped. She confirms the Four Horsemen thing, and tells him to find its head in her grave.

Abbie and Ichabod get the head, meet the Horseman at the grave, and survive long enough before the sun comes out, which it can't survive. One cop helped the Horseman and is later beheaded by an invisible minotaur, not the Horseman.

Highlights
The opening battle at the Revolutionary War is interesting. Over the intro where it transitions to the modern day, "Sympathy for the Devil" plays, and it felt just like the ending of Interview with the Vampire. And the Horseman armed to the teeth borders on stupid/cool --  I think it stays on cool...

Impressions
Brand new show, brand new season of TV. This is the first of a bunch of series premieres to come and we're off to a good start -- in my mind at least. There's some feel good stuff like Ichabod being for the emancipation of slaves and how he defected from the British to the American side during the war. I'll let that go...

The only other references I have for Sleepy Hollow stories are children's books and the movie with Johnny Depp -- mainly the Depp movie. It's still a story about the Headless Horseman and Ichabod Crane, but this one obviously has a twist with it being set in the present day. The Horseman also uses firearms this time around. Both the movie, this show, and the books I "read" (picture books) only have him using a blade. I don't recall a musket or even a blunderbuss ever being used.

Everything has gotten "bigger" as well, probably due to it being a television series with, potentially, multiple seasons. It's not just about the Headless Horseman, it's also about some big fight between good and evil. The Horseman is but one of four and if he gets his head, the three others, and the apocalypse, will apparently come.

John Cho getting into bed sealed with the Horseman sealed his fate. His career seems to be kicking off, so I was really surprised to see him cast in this show. I kind of guessed when the beginning credits said he was only a guest star. Yep, dead by the end.

Oh, no she didn't
On the "seriously?" front, two people got beheaded in this first episode in what looked like a stupid fashion. Both the cop and the priest just stand there as the Horseman walks, not rides, towards them. They are cornered, but the scene just before they get slashed show them just standing still in shock. Don't even try to run or dodge?

Potential
Okay, the pilot's entertaining, but most pilots are and they usually have relatively higher budgets. I haven't read any press materials, trailers, or previews, so don't know what the show will be about. From seeing the first episode, it seems like it'll focus on Ichabod getting his wife back intertwined with an investigation of the Horsemen. Abbie's sister will probably come into play as will secret orders within the town -- at least one for the Horsemen and one against.

We'll see how long it lasts. I finally got sick of Bones -- characters irritate me now... I was trying to stop watching it last season, but nothing else was on.


Related
Sleepy Hollow: S1E2 "Blood Moon" Impressions
Once Upon a Time in Wonderland Series Premiere Review-ish
Hell on Wheels: Season 3, started Aug. 9/13
Hell on Wheels: S3E3 "Range War" Impressions
Hell on Wheels: S3E4: The Game Impressions

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