By: Sean Lopez
Okay let me start off by saying ABC, you had me at “Starring Julie Benz.” Done. I’m in. What time? Though most of you know her as Rita from Dexter or possibly her short stint on Desperate Housewives last season, she will always be the hottest vampire ever to me, Darla from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel. So when I heard she was going to be in a show, it easily became the only must watch new show of the season.
ABC's No Ordinary Family stars the aforementioned Julie Benz as well as The Commish himself, Michael Chiklis as Stephanie and Jim Powell, who along with their children, survive a plane crash on a family vacation in Brazil. What they soon discover is that not only did they survive but they have each developed their own unique superpower: Jim has super strength and near invulnerability; Stephanie has super speed; daughter Daphne has mental telepathy and son JJ has super intelligence.
The Powell's already had their share of problems before they ever got powers: Marriage counseling, high school drama, overall family disconnect. But they soon learn that having super powers has own unparalleled set of problems. And with real life getting in the way, superpowers aren't all they're cracked up to be.
Most of the pilot episode is spent on the Powell’s figuring out their power. And Jim finding out that he isn't invincible though he seems the most comfortable playing the superhero. And one nice supervillian surprise near the end. We can't have superheroes without supervillians right? I find that most TV pilots are for the execs and not for the viewer and this one is somewhere in between. Most new show don't hit their stride for at least a few episodes sometimes longer and this one is no exception. But No Ordinary Family does have many highlights to build on. Jim's buddy, George St. Cloud, played by Romany Malco, is definitely one of them. He's the show's comedy relief. His teaching Jim how to fly was hilarious. I'm also a big fan of Autumn Reeser, formerly of The OC, who plays Stephanie's colleague Katie and the 1st person Stephanie tells about her new powers. Hopefully her role expands as the season goes on.
The inevitable comparisons to The Incredible's will ensue but honestly NOF is way better than that. The real family issues aside from the superpowers make this different. You really believe that this family exists as it struggles with real life and super powers. As Daphne put it, “I don't want new abilities, high school is hard enough as it is.” The only problem I have with this show is its time slot. I'm a certified Gleek so that conflict is there. I would say DVR and watch after Glee if you that is your show. But this show is worth watching live as I will do for now... Oh and did I tell you that it stars Julie Benz?
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