There’s no bigger fan of Human Target than I am. When my nickname is “unofficial president of the Human Target fan club” and the first thing friends I haven’t seen in months say to me is “I thought of you when I heard Human Target got renewed,” it became pretty obvious. This is a show I embrace and have supported staunchly since the pilot. Naturally, when a battle for its renewal ensued, I dug my heels in although I worried. When changes behind the scenes began to be announced, I worried more. What was happening to my show? I decided to use my press pass to do some investigating and find out. Chance would be proud.
Here’s a scorecard to all the changes you can expect in the second season of Human Target, and whether or not I think they’ll make the grade. (SPOILER ALERT: This article does contain spoilers for parts of season two.)
The Time Slot
The Change: The series moves from Wednesdays at 8 PM to Fridays at 8 PM.
Analysis: Human Target was regularly winning its Wednesday, pre-American Idol timeslot in the coveted 18-49 demographic, so moving it from there is a risky move, especially moving it to Fridays, also known as the night where most shows go to die.
I’ve had the chance to chat with my FOX sources, and everyone seems to be of a divided mind. On one hand, the show will be paired with Matt Nix’s quirky action-comedy The Good Guys, which is an interesting combination (though with Human Target being the darker show, I’m surprised that it’s the lead-in) for a Friday night block of fun. As Matt Miller has pointed out, The X-Files did well on Fridays for several years. However, as the rest of us would point out, a lot of shows have died on Fridays – on FOX alone, I’m looking at Firefly, Dollhouse and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. I also recall NBC’s Law & Order didn’t do too well on Fridays either. To be fair, Human Target isn’t exactly in the same genre as any of those shows, but it’s worrying anyway. Several fellow critics, including TV Guide’s Matt Roush, have already expressed concern over the show’s future.
The Bottom Line: Definitely worrying. Even in this age of DVR and online, the prime emphasis is still on live viewing. If the show’s loyal fanbase goes out on Fridays rather than tune in, Human Target could likely see an early second-season demise.
The Executive Producer
The Change: Executive producer and creator Jonathan Steinberg has stepped back from the driver’s seat, replaced by Matthew Miller.
Analysis: There’s probably no bigger fan of Jon Steinberg’s work than me, at least when it comes to this show. Having had the opportunity to interview him repeatedly, I can say that he was probably the showrunner who impressed me the most. It’s always been obvious that he really loves the show, and that attitude permeated everything he did. Not to mention it’s always a risky deal when you replace the person who created and oversaw the first season we all came to love.
That said, Matt Miller comes from another great show: NBC’s Chuck. I love that show, so at least he’s coming from a quality product. I’ve only had the chance to interview him once, but he seems like he knows what he’s getting into. We may disagree on certain things, but he’s open and honest about what’s going on, and not coming in just taking over and rearranging the entire show to his whims. He’s a legitimate fan of Human Target and thus has a respect for what makes the show so great. Fans can also breathe a sigh of relief because Jon Steinberg is still with the show, working with Miller and writing several episodes, so the two of them together could make a pretty amazing one-two combination. Conversely, if he takes completely over and Steinberg gets marginalized (which I don’t think will happen, but you never know), the show will suffer as a result.
The Bottom Line: Wait and see. I was prepared to go on the defensive here, but I like Matt Miller. Even so, he has a pretty high bar to live up to with the standard Jon Steinberg set before, and if the show spins out of control, he’s going to be the first person fans blame.
The Cast
The Change: The series has cast two new female regulars – Indira Varma playing the team’s new owner/boss, Ilsa, and Janet Montgomery as a young female thief named Ames.
Analysis: This is probably the most contentious change behind the scenes. In truth, the series was perfect and perfectly portioned with the three main stars – nobody was lacking for screen time, and the three of them worked very, very well together. This begs the question, why mess with what works? In a move reminiscent of early-season Law & Order, someone felt compelled to break up the boys’ club by adding women. It somewhat worked for that series; I’m not so sure that it’s going to work here. (It should be noted that as a woman, I really didn’t care that the three leads were men.)
Part of the problem is the new characters themselves, which don’t seem to add much to the series as they sit on paper. Ilsa is described as the widower of a billionaire, a client who eventually buys the company and therefore starts calling the shots. The phrase “romantic tension” has been thrown around regarding her and Chance a few times. Both these things are problematic. Fans have already expressed their distaste for a newcomer coming in and assuming authority; most of the ones I’ve surveyed would rather see Chance calling his own shots. Likewise, they worry what this might do to the character of Winston, who handled all the business affairs previously. Our boys are a band of self-sufficient heroes; they don’t need a boss. They can and should be able to be in charge of themselves. With Ilsa in play, it makes them all look like they’re just employees and that’s not cool.
Likewise, save the idea of “romantic tension.” Christopher Chance does not need a love interest. Every show seems to have a compulsory love interest, and the idea is now both forced and tired. Where’s the strong male character who can stand on his own without eyeing up a woman or having women fall over him? (And yes, I know Mark Valley is handsome, but still.) I do not need to see Chance making eyes at a woman all season, let alone his alleged boss. That’s a jump the shark moment for this show. Let him stand on his own. I miss the days of series (see Keen Eddie for a relevant example) where love interests developed organically and we didn’t know from the start that Character A was going to end up in bed with Character B. Back then we actually started rooting for them to get together. Now, it’s just more of the same, and Human Target avoids cliches, it doesn’t play into them.
I’m also not sold on Ames, who appears to be another “token young pretty allegedly badass” type character like we might see on the CW. Explain to me why these guys need a kid running around with them? What can she do that they can’t already do themselves? She’s her own walking cliché: young, attractive, with a bad past and attitude who gets taken in by the hero. If I had written her, someone would be crying Mary Sue about now.
The one and only positive thing I can say about this is that they cast Indira Varma as Ilsa. She is an amazing actress, and she can hold her own against very strong actors (see her recent turn opposite the magnetic Idris Elba in the BBC’s Luther). I don’t know if I could have thought of anyone better. As far as casting goes, that’s a coup, and at least we know there’ll be a strong actress on the show. Now if only they could get her a better character…
The Bottom Line: Watch out. This is a disaster waiting to happen. If these characters don’t change or develop better and continue to look like walking cliches, then they’re going to take the whole show down with them. Unfortunately, only time will tell.
The Guest Stars
The Change: Lennie James will return as Baptiste, Leonor Varela will return as Maria (from “Salvage and Reclamation”), and Tim Omundson may return (from season finale “Christopher Chance”). As of right now, Emmanuelle Vaugier is not returning as Emma Barnes.
Analysis: The return of Baptiste may be the best news to come out of Comic-Con. Every great hero needs an equally great bad guy, and Baptiste was the perfect bad guy for Christopher Chance. “Baptiste” was easily the best episode of season one. Lennie James plays him wonderfully and it’s my hope those two will continue to go head to head for seasons to come. I was hard on Tim Omundson in my review of the season finale, mostly because I associate him with his role as Carlton Lassiter on Psych, but I’m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.
However, when it comes to the women I’m not as thrilled. I was not very impressed by the character of Maria, and can’t see where her return would add anything but more unnecessary romantic headaches for Chance. I’m okay with Emma Barnes not coming back, as I likewise was not that interested in her or the hinted-at Chance/Emma relationship, but if one of the two had to come back I’d rather see Emma than Maria. Emma was a more developed character and could stand more on her own. Still, as stated earlier, I’m in no rush to see Chance hook up with anyone, so if a female character returns, I’d hope it would be for plot and leave the so-far unsuccessful romance at the door.
The Bottom Line: So far, mostly so good. Baptiste’s return is a coup for the show. It could also be worse – they could have brought back Moon Bloodgood and I’d just sleep through it.
Part of the appeal was the lack of cliches.Now it's "House, PI"?
I am hoping not. House jumped the shark for me after Season 2.We should at least give it the benefit of the doubt for now, because we haven't seen everything in execution. And at least we're getting a second season at all. But on paper, it doesn't look good. I am hoping to be proved wrong.
Wow, that is a lot of changes! If only they had a team like White Collar does, ie seriously sticking with what works and not majorly shaking up the cast just trying to fit what they think will be more appealing to general audiences (I assume that's the reason for the new additions).. I also worry about the timeslot- yeah, some other network shows have succeeded on Friday night (and cable ratings for certain shows like Monk & iCarly prove the audiences DO still exist for various demographics), but FOX has been one of the most unluckiest for it (HAVE they had any Friday night hits SINCE X-Files? o.o).. I'm not much concerned with the EP changing- for most of the reasons you said, there's potential for it to still go very well XD But, I'm not sure about the cast additions. Story-wise, I agree one of the best things about the team was that they worked for themselves.. freelance protectors / etc, loved that. Having a boss? Someone who tells them what to do.. what cases to take.. etc? Not so much. And then there's the "romantic" aspect.. eh, while I can see how Chance's charm on the various female guest stars is an integral part of his character (much like Neal on White Collar too ;P lol), I don't like the idea of trying to place a char he "will have romantic tension with" (ironically something that has also been implied will happen on White Collar- probably the one thing I won't like on that show, haha) just because someone feels the show ~needs that. If anything, I *did* really love Emma's char, and her chemistry with Chance, and I was hoping she'd be back as a regular guest to help work with them (she'd be a great federal connection XD). Last, the new, young thief girl? If we were gonna have a young, quirky regular, I'd rather have the tech girl Layla back, she was awesome! Or if we HAD to stick with the "token young pretty allegedly badass" thief girl type role, someone get Kristen Bell on this show!! :DD I think if anyone, she could definitely pull it off! And of course, try to get Kevin Weisman back- his char from the same ep as techgirl XD Their talents could complement the team nicely! (Okay, I admit, I'm also a former fan of vMars & ALiAS, but c'mon! lmao) Fingers crossed the second season still turns out to be as awesome as the first.. ;P xoxoxo
All we can do is cross our fingers and hope for the best. I was also hoping Layla the tech would become a recurring character, not to mention Emma Barnes. I wish they would dispense with the whole "romantic tension" idea. Not necessary! I am also looking forward to seeing Indira Varma and hope they don't muck up her character too much. She was amazing in Luther. I also enjoyed her guest starring role on Torchwood.
I agree with SimbiAni 100%. The team works great the way they are. Why is it producers or network execs always feel they need to change something? Especially something that already works. I think they should kill the ideas of 1) a new boss telling the characters what to do and what missions to accept or reject and 2) no female apprentice. Those ideas are both retarded. If they want sexual tension, bring back Agent Emma Barnes. She has nice chemistry with Chance and could be a good Federal connection as the icing on the cake :).
Ditto. I wasn't an Emma fan, myself (personal preference I suppose), but I'd take her over these two in a heartbeat.
Wow, that's a very well-thought out reply!
I totally agree with everything you've said. There's been some speculation (though I have no idea how we coud prove this without ticking off someone) that the cast additions were forced on the show by FOX, which makes a lot more sense to me. I've talked to both Jon Steinberg and Matt Miller and both of them are pretty smart; I don't buy either of them going "Hey, let's throw in unnecessary characters!" I will say that casting Indira Varma is the one plus, as I know she's an amazing actress…but again it comes down to what material they give her. Even she could suck if she's given nothing to work with.
And that's one of the things I hate about White Collar too…or a lot of shows IMO. Not every male character needs a love interest (even if they are gorgeous). So much of that seems forced nowadays.
Casting Indira Varma is the one thing that I actually like about all this. She'll be great, IF they give her good material. If she gets pigeonholed as 'the boss' or 'the love interest,' even she can't save it.
Hmm. This post has been very informative, but what I really wanted to hear about is about the music/composer change. Do you have any thoughts on that?
That was announced after this article went to press; at least, I wasn't given any information on it. I'm going to wait and see before I pass judgment, as with anything else, though I have to say it doesn't seem like too much of a big deal to me. (It actually kind of annoyed me, if only because someone decided to spam me and everyone else on Twitter to advertise that Tim Jones was the show's new composer.)
That was announced after this article went to press. It's another thing we'll have to wait and see on. My only feelings on it right now are mild annoyance, since someone on Twitter decided to spam me and everyone else with news about the change, which is not cool at all.