FlashForward returns this Thursday with a 2-hour episode. The ratings have plummeted since the premiere, so clearly something is wrong with the show. Here are my thoughts.
Micro vs. Macro
The writers expect us to believe that a random FBI field office in Los Angeles can unravel this mystery by itself, and determine the fate of the world. Give me a break. The most egregious foolishness stemming was Al's suicide. Somehow, he was the FIRST person in weeks to have died and seen something in the flashforward. Really? Thousands of people die all the time, and none of them saw a anything in the flashforwards?
Fate vs. Free Will
The only reasons why the flashforward is important is 1) the future is not set in stone and 2) the flashforwards allow them to change the future. The debate between fate and free will can only be resolved by empirical evidence: what actually happens 6 months later.
What's important?
There's "Suspect Zero," D. Gibbons, the pylons in Somalia coinciding with the crow deaths and mass blackouts, the Blue Hand, Nazis, and the military contractor. Each episode brings up something new, and there isn't resolution or advancement to the other plots.
Acting
Joseph Fiennes has to stop using that low growl all the time. It makes his character unlikable and unrealistic. The rest of the performances haven't been spectacular either, and the cast seems great on paper.
Dialogue
I'm not looking for a Joss Whedon or David Milch. At the very least, the writers have to stop putting obvious statements uttered in grandiose fashion at the end of every act. Then give the characters personality and positive qualities.
