Miscellaneous Comments:December 26th, 1998 I was never a fan of Sliders. It was more a show my friends all liked and I saw occasionally. And when I did manage to see an episode, it did nothing for me. To begin with, the pilot failed to impress me. It seemed like a dead-end concept. A show about the most obvious parallel worlds imaginable, where every week's dilemma will be solved by one of our heroes trading places with a duplicate who (luckily) holds a position of power in that world.
After that, what little I saw of Season One convinced me that all my worst predictions were coming true.
Season Two, from what I've seen, is much better. In fact, the first episode I "enjoyed" came from Season Two: "Post Traumatic Slide Syndrome" has the sliders convinced that they are home, and attempting to adjust to life again, after all they have been through. I liked the way it was written, and I was very impressed by the ending. But it still never compelled me to watch the show on a weekly basis.
Season Three seems to have had the worst episodes of all. Dumb one-note adventures that drag on and on and on, while the heroes run around getting captured, escaping, getting captured, escaping, whatever. The stand-out exception (which I only saw two weeks back) is the two-parter that introduced Maggie. This is a real epic. Probably the show's first big big storyline and a taste of what was to follow in Season Four.
When the fourth season started running on Sky early in 98, I tuned in to the premier without any expectations one way or the other.
And I loved it.
Much to my surprise.
And delight.
Suprise because it was "Sliders".
And delight because it's a great pleasure finding a new TV series to hold your interest every week.
Fact is, I've been a dedicated viewer ever since that night.
Sliders now has a cool concept and a great cast. The stories are interesting and "big". More and more of them spanning multiple worlds, either through the Kromagg-aliens, or just through the events of a particular episode. The regulars are likable and gel together wonderfully. Quinn has evolved into a superb hero. I've caught lots of older episodes in re-runs and there's no doubt in my mind that the show is better now than it was back then.
Because the writing is better. The storys, and new backstory, are exciting and clever. More in tune what what you would expect of a 1990's sci-fi show. Before this, it seemed like a lost show from the 70's or something.
From the beginning I've thought, and still firmly believe, that the original concept is restricting and unworkable. I don't think you can do "every" episode about parallel versions of earth, and doubles of the characters, and maintain a fresh and interesting show. It would be somewhat akin to the first half of the first season of Millenium where every episode was about a serial killer of some type.
That's boring.
You can't do that every week.
As it stands now, Sliders is more and more about the actual act of sliding than it is about the worlds that are visited. Which is better. Sliding is an interesting concept. And the very fact that each episode is set on a seperate world opens the format up to a variety of sci-fi concepts that would stretch credibility if all played out on the same earth.
Plus the show is able to do episodes about parallel and "thought provoking" versions of Earth.
And best of all, we now have the backstory arc, with Quinn and co. trying to rescue Wade and defeat the Kromaggs.
Brilliant.
Shame it wasn't like this from the start.
Type of Series: Sci-Fi; Action-Adventure.
Similar Shows:Stargate SG-1; The Fantastic Journey; Otherworld; The Time Tunnel; Quantum Leap. Strengths:The big strength of Season Four are the scripts. High concept sci-fi stories. Cleverly told. Then there is the cast: Jerry O'Connell and Kari Wuhrer are two charismatic, likeable, attractive leads. O'Connell has matured into a perfect "hero."
Weaknesses: Impressive Characters:Quinn is the shows central character, principle hero and most impressive character. Especially in Season Four. The Season Four opener gave Quinn a background not-too-different from that of Superman (parents send their special baby to safety from doomed planet) and the similarity did a lot to make Quinn very much a superhero.
The other impressive character is Maggie Beckett. A gutsy military lady with a gung-ho attitude to the slides.
Impressive Actors: Jerry O'Connell and Kari Wuhrer are the best two actors in the show. Wuhrer is a very strong actress and absolutely gorgeous to boot!! No bad combo.
Impressive Episodes: Virtually all of Season Four is very impressive. Especially when compared to episodes from the earlier (mostly dreadful) seasons. But a quick list of my favourites would look like this: Genesis has to go on the list because it was the one that "converted" me. It took me, within it's hour, and turned me from being a casual viewer who occasionally caught the show, into a fan who wanted to make sure I saw every episode. Events conspired to make that impossible, so I still have about six to see (including some that got fantastic reviews).
World Killer by Marc Scott Zircree, deserves a mention because... well, because it's an absolutely incredible episode. Basically, the entire population of earth is, um, gone. Whoosh! Gone. And Quinn is to blame. But it gets better because there's this other earth, you see. Where everybody has a duplicate. Because they all showed up one day. Whoosh! It's just brilliant. Just Say Yes, by Richard Manning, shouldn't be a classic. Not really. Since, on paper is seems like such a lame, cliched idea. However, the script and execution make this another utterly delightful hour of television. With Kari Wuhrer and Charlie O'Connell doing some absolutely top-notch acting. Mother And Child, by Richard Manning, is another brilliant episode which starts out great and gets better and better as more and more elements are introduced. The Sliders rescue a woman who knew Wade (in fact, they narrowly miss seeing Wade) and return her to her world. With her baby. Her half-Kromagg baby. Back onto a world where Kromagg's were defeated, but are hated. This sets the scene for some gripping Father-Daughter discussions. But wait... there's more: turns out that the atmosphere has been infected with a virus to kill Kromagg's. And the baby is dying. And just as you are getting to grips with that plot-twist... the baby's father shows up. All making for an absolutely terrific climax at episode's end. Slide By Wire, by Chris Black, is another of those episode to feature a duplicate. But this is surely the best of the bunch. Kari Wuhrer (again) gives a top notch performance, and the script cleverly uses two seperate worlds to provide contrasting views/slants on technology. Data World, by Joel Metzger, is another high concept outing. The sort of thing "Sliders" never did when it aired on Fox. Episodes like this create a great sense of "place" and are the staple of cult tv, because they demand repeated viewings, and benefit from them My Brother's Keeper, by Doug Molitor & marc Scott Zircree, is like something from Stargate SG-1 or Millenium, and watching this dark, bleak world one really feels that Sliders has truly arrived are "adult" Sci-Fi drama. The Chasm, by William Bigelow, was -when I started writing this review- my most recent episode. And, as with so many others in this season, it really blew me away. First and foremost because of the narrative structure. Early scenes shown from the girl's point-of-view serve to heighten the mystery and explain nothing. Then (and here's what I really love) there's a "jump" in time of several minutes, to a point where Remmy is about to commit suicide that has the viewer totally baffled and totally engrossed. But, best of all, the episode plays fair by providing a satisfying solution to the mystery. Roads Taken, by Bill Dial, is the Sliders version of "The Inner Light," with both Maggie and Quinn taking the Picard role. This story has the added punch of their son making a sacrifice to save them. I loved it. O'Connell did a superb job directing it, and it successfully makes the viewer go misty-eyed.
Impressive Writers: Richard Manning has served up some good ones. As has Bill Dial, who will apparently be the executive producer for Season Five. Meanwhile, Marc Scott Zircree is a name familiar to me from another of my favourite shows: Friday The 13th. Less-Than-Impressive Characters: Less-Than-Impressive Actors: Less-Than-Impressive Episodes: Less-Than-Impressive Writers: Continuity: Not all that strong. Except for the "landmark" episodes that change the line-up or format, you could probably watch the episodes in any old order you felt like.
Episode Guide: Reviews: Other Info:
Three Things I Really Like About This Series:
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Three Things I Really Don't Like About This Series:
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