Starcrossed

Nathan Fillion ("Firefly", "Castle") is Rick to Angeline Ball's ("The Commitments", "Eastenders") Ilsa in this thinly veiled homage to Casablanca. "Star Crossed" is great fun for fans of "Casablanca", but this time the events take place 114 years after the original 1942 movie. Occupying aliens stand-in for Germans and Captain Louis Renault is now a Russian woman, all crossing paths at a coffee bar in a remote neutral city. Deals are cut, threats are made, and old romances are rekindled. It's all very familiar, right down to the crucial confrontation just before take-off. There's no piano player, but Angelina Ball displays the talents which made her a star in her native Ireland.

NATO freedom fighters make their way to Heaven, a bar owned by a man who is connected in his mission to Rick Blain in "Casablanca." He manages to hold a delicate balance with the Russians and the invading humanoids as they come and go at his place. There is danger all around and the evil invaders have ways of dealing with dissenters that go beyond pain. Two young people are searching for a small ship to escape in and enlist the bar owner's expertise. There are eyes everywhere and some people are incinerated when they are discovered. This involves some delicate alliances and grave danger. It's hard to watch some of this unfold. The plot moves along. One small issue that some may find nit-picky. The girl sings two songs from beginning to end. It's almost as if she is auditioning for the viewers. I know that the first time it must be proved that she can sing (since, as a stranger, she is under suspicion) but then the show is interrupted for nearly four minutes as she sings again. The dialogue is pretty stiff and there is some whining that goes on. Acts of kindness turn into deadly attacks and there is little compassion for the victims as long as the young couple gets its way. Still, it rings pretty true and is worth a watch.

They actually do two full 3+ minute soft rock tunes in this, skip. I'm not even sure what you would call music like that... its just awful. Not much happens in this story... its pretty boring. Weak episode all around. No boobs in this episode either, even thought there were a couple of obvious chances, and one the least erotic love scenes ever filmed. I guess by season 5 enough jealous housewives, who couldn't stand their husbands seeing better looking women naked on TV, had made their disapproval known.