Threat Matrix - Alarmstufe Rot

In Germany we have this saying that goes 'it's better to do a good copy then to make a bad invention'. I guess this about sums it up for "Threat Matrix", ABC's new '24' like drama, which borrows a lot of the Fox's hit, minus the real-time dramatic. And this is where the good part comes in: You can watch it WITH the occasional chance of missing an episode. As for acting and stories, the episodes I've seen so far are fast-paced, well- acted and well written for a TV show. Come to think that there is a real Threat Matrix report out there, which would give material for endless seasons, one wonders why ABC put this against NBC's MUST SEE TV THURSDAY. I mean, HELLO?!

This show is so far away from reality, it can see the top of reality as it starts to dip below the horizon and sail far, far away. Don't watch it unless you want to experience the odd sensation of your brain running a white flag up a pole and trying to escape out of your ear lest it have to watch another episode.

Reading comments that suggest that this is based on real-life makes me realise just how much people's perception of reality has been warped by TV and movies.

Having said that, if you have an iron constitution, you might find it amusing in a precognitive kind of way: people in years to come might look on it the same way we look at King of the Rocket Men and the Batman serials of the 40s for their "realistic" interpretations of science, technology and the then-current affairs. Experience that feeling today with Threat Matrix!

I admit I haven't managed to sit through the pilot in its entirety. But my taste and decency wouldn't allow me to make that mistake. Every cliché in the book is trotted out for this sorry excuse of a drama. Playing "call to prayer" sounding music whilst showing clips of suspected terrorists. Hardly anyone in this so-called "elite squad" is anything other than nice middle class and white. From what I saw, it even made Independence Day look like it possessed a modicum of savvy.

My boyfriend at least seemed to enjoy watching it, so he could mock it in the extreme.

What worries me more is that there are people out there, believing the extremely prejudiced ideas spouted by such ridiculous programming. Oh well, there's no accounting for taste. Or intelligence for that matter.

I wouldn't be surprised if the newfound spokesman for young conservatives, former WWF wrestling champion, The Ultimate Warrior, wrote the first episode of Threat Matrix. Its just what the doctor ordered for his brand of dramatization of the political process. It says that we need wolf-like sheep to fight the wolves in sheep's clothing. Some other person commenting on this program suggested that this show is not afraid to make the bad guy brown-skinned. This show, on the other hand does cover the brown-skinned bad guy in the innocuous garb of white flesh and short hair with a friar's bald spot to demarcate his piety. In other words, he is a white guy. A white guy with the "evil" spirit of a fundamentalist. The message? An extreme Makeover does not actually change a person's soul. In this case, he is still accountable to Allah. For the neo-con, that Allah canbe translated into english as: Authority. Why suggest that you have faith in George W. Bush, or Donald Rumsfeld when they will be out of office before you are done serving your country? You might as well serve some more abstract authority, like the United States of America. This logic, transposed seems to be closer to what the Islamists do. That is why they are called Fundamentalists. They go to fundamental authorities. Let me just say that this show is stylish without saying much, and its plot is complex enough to allow the actors not to act.

This show is kind of funny, because it suggests that we should be glad to give other people access to our security so that they can make sure that it is, in fact, security. So that means trust no-one, except the Threat Matrix.

This show is just what we needed. The cast is great although they are mostly unknowns and the action scenes are awesome. The stories told are about what we are facing in the world today. Enough of these reality shows, they are getting old. This show deserves a chance and I hope ABC will give it one. This is the last season of Friends which should help it out in the ratings next season should it be renewed and kept in that time slot.