Review: Minority Report

Show: MINORITY REPORT
Network: Fox

This is a quick review of the pilot episode.

I didn’t dislike this show as much as I thought I might. There were several good things about this show, but unfortunately, the cons outweigh all the positives.

Pros:
The premise of this show is based on the film of the same name; and if you haven’t seen the movie, don’t worry—the show does an excellent job of setting up the world the characters live in and how they are a part of it. It’s a great idea, really: a detective trying to solve murders she knows is going to happen but does not know the identity of the victim or the killer. This kind of story delivers on the ticking clock and keeps the story moving towards the climax. So there is no shortage of tension.

Another positive thing in the show are the visual effects. These are top-of-the-line computer graphics for television productions (and are easily as good if not better than the effects in the big-budget film).

Cons:
One of the biggest downfalls of this show is the character dynamic between the two leads, the detective and her precognitive associate who can see the murders taking place before they happen. Now, my problem isn’t with how the characters interact with one another. It’s more with how quickly they fell into a “partnership.” At first the main character doesn’t know of the precognitive’s abilities, but she seems to too-quickly realize what is going on and then, suddenly, there’s this mutual respect and friendship. Honestly, it felt forced and inauthentic. Two years ago, Fox aired a show called Almost Human. It was a buddy-cop show about a maverick detective and his synthetic human partner. They spent most of the season at odds with one another. Their friendship took at least eight episodes and many trust-building exercises. The interaction on Minority Report isn’t really that organic.

As odd as it sounds, the effects are another con. Yeah, I know that I just said they were a good thing. But hear me out on this. Almost Human had an excessive effects budget and only mediocre ratings, so it got the boot (who would have thought that Fox would ever cancel a good show?). I really feel that if Minority Report doesn’t rocket to success, then it will follow the same fate.

Is it worth your time?

This show has potential, it really does. If the show doesn’t try too hard to keep screaming that it exists in the future, then it may balance out. But I honestly think that it will, like Almost Human, spend so much time exploring the possibilities of future tech and how everyday it seems to the characters that it will lose itself in its effects budget.

Will I keep watching?

For a third of fourth episode, this would have been a good story, but it fell short for an introduction to these two characters. I will probably give this another few episodes to find its shape and make a final decision on whether I will keep going or drop.