Easily Entertained

Drive has cars going fast. In the first three episodes, they are supposedly to be going fast from the Florida Keys to Georgia. It’s pretty obvious it’s Southern California since the flora and fauna is of the “dirt with a few scrubby bushy things” rather than “crazed kudzu swampland with a baby alligator in the puddles” variety. The landscape isn’t important. Does anyone worry about the reality of the location filming in Cannonball Run? No, and you don’t mind here. I just wanted to get that point out of the way.

Even while it does lack Dom DeLuise, there are many element in Drive that are sadly missing in Cannonball Run like; good dialog, complex character development, the extensive use of Google Earth, an engrossing storyline which although enigmatic is logical, and sober actors acting.

Background history… I like Tim Minear (one of the executive producers,) alot. I loved Angel. I watched Firefly from the very first episode (which was really the third episode, but that’s a while other story.) When Wonderfalls was canceled I refused to watch a Fox show for the next six months. (Which included the whole Julie Cooper wedding in Las Vegas episodes of The OC. Sometimes one must suffer for their principles.)

So now, I like Drive.

There are elements of the first 3 episodes which make me think the producers were thinking… “We need a plot that can either go on for an entire season or more… but could also be wrapped up in 2 episodes when they decided to cancel us… which they probably will.” Television has changed since then though. When I first read a preview of House, I thought… “This sounds great… it’ll probably last 6 episodes.”

Now… back to the review…

A several dissimilar people somehow receive really nice Nokia phones, answer them, and are told to leave — in a car — for Florida in the next 15 minutes. And then they do.

• Nathan Fillian (who we love because he was in Firefly, Buffy, Lost, and even that movie Slither which I just moved to the top of my Netflix queue) gets in his car really fast, because his wife (who is Fred, an evil chick on Alias, and the reason why I Bit Torrent-ed my first TV show… and so must be adored) has just been abducted. He believes that the call has something to do with his wife.

• The new - maybe abused mom - does it because she doesn’t really want to go home with really new baby (and I mean really new… she hasn’t even left the hospital when she gets the call.) (Played by Melanie Lynskey who looked really familiar… and now I know it’s because she was in Heavenly Creatures with Kate Winslet.)

• The guy who just got out of prison goes, because he thinks it has something to do with a big-shot estranged father who may or may not have been responsible for getting him out of prison early.

But they aren’t the only ones… when Alex Tully (the Nathan Fillian character) gets to the Florida hotel, he is run over by a multitude of people exiting a …. real estate seminar for Bright Properties (that’s what it says on the hotel card… remember… it will come up in the future) which is really the orientation (complete with a Power Point presentation we hear was quite impressive) for a secret, exclusive, and possibly illegal cross-country road race.

“This was the orientation, which you have now missed. You’re feeling disoriented. Which is natural.”

Other players include:

• An astro-physicist with less than a year to live and his teenage daughter. (There is a fantastic section in episode 3 with her teaching him how to lie… not knowing he’s been lying amazingly well by not telling her about his condition.)
• A trio of Katrina survivor/hometown heros.
• Some mystery blond chick who may-or may not an actual race contestant.
• A young married military couple.
• … and many others who we may see more of in the future (who may or may not be named Nikki or Paulo… so be careful what you wish for)

Some have been coerced (kidnapping can be considered coercion, right?), others have no idea why they have been picked, but the winner gets 32 million dollars. No clue as to what the losers get. We do know the race has been going on for about 100 years or so (since there have been cars) and that many of those “invited” into the race have been sponsored or recruited (and are possibly being coerced) by an outside party.

… and most importantly… there isn’t a sign of a jumpsuit or goofy mask anywhere (on males or females)!

One warning: if you have already seen Grindhouse — which you really do need to go see since it is great fun –then you may find yourself looking up late 60’s - early 70’s Dodge muscle cars on wikipedia. It’s OK. That’s what it’s for.

You can watch the first three episodes (two were on Sunday and one was on tonight) on Drive’s MySpace page. Hooray for time-shifted television!