Sleepy Hollow

Pilot: Fall 2013 has finally started for television, and one of the first out is this new FOX supernatural, drama series based on the "Headless Horseman" legend. Admittedly, to a non-American audience, the most I know about the legend of Sleepy Hollow comes from the Johnny Depp-Christina Ricci movie back in 1999. Anyways, this pilot has got a few things going for it, but it is relying quite strongly on the supernatural hook which may turn off some audience members who are not that into the occult; however, if, like me, supernatural stories are up your alley, then this show may be quite promising. In particular, the two leads: Tom Mison and Nichole Beharie have a good, comfortable chemistry on screen which makes their exchanges pleasant to watch. It was something similar between Lucy Liu and Johnny Lee Miller that made "Elementary" enjoyable despite it being a procedural. Perhaps it is that combination of British and American accent? The one big issue I have with "Sleepy Hollow" is how are they going to continue this beyond one season. From the looks of it and the hints throughout, the headless horseman may just be the hook, and the eventuality of it will be a typical battle between Good and Evil, although if both Ichabod Crane and Abbie Mills are mere "mortals", what are their roles then? I see this ending up some sort like "Supernatural" meets "The X-Files" and "Elementary". Sadly, with EPs Kurtzman, Orci and Wiseman, I approach with cautious trepidation.

Episode #2, "Blood Moon": I like this opening credits. Looks like we are heading towards a supernatural case-of-the-week kind of format, with a larger overarching mythological arc. The chemistry between Mison and Beharie is still one of the best things of the show. At least the sister gets introduced early in the season, instead of holding her back. However, too much cheap tricks makes the plot too contrived: didactic memory, psycho sister who may not be psycho, secret tunnels, etc. Ken Olin directed this outing, I wonder if he will turn in the future? I miss his wife. John Cho is still sticking around, but what a waste of his talent, although that bit about his neck was a good bit of continuity. Still interesting enough to see where this goes.

Episode #3, "For The Triumph of Evil": So it looks like this will be how the filler episodes might look like. A demon-of-the-week case that needs to be solved by Crane & Mills with little to tie in with the overarching mythology of witches and horsemen. It's a bit like "Supernatural" but that was not stuck with "Sleepy Hollow" as a location. At least the chemistry between the two leads are worth it, and the Sandman does have its creepy moments.

Episode #4 and #5, "The Lesser Key of Solomon" and "John Doe": The main mystery is still progressing slowly, and this is always a big problem on network TV, even though this is only a limited order of 13 episodes. At least there were some scares but the key ingredient here is definitely the Mulder/Scully like chemistry that is going on between Mison and Beharie. I do hope more progressions with less fillers.