Painkiller Jane - NR
Contrived, violent action show doesn't connect.
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- TV Rating: NR
- Network: SciFi
- Cast: Kristanna Loken, Rob Stewart, Sean O. Roberts
- Genre: Science Fiction
Parents need to know
Families can talk about the role of violence in this show. Is it appropriate for the story that's being told? Which parts, if any, are gratuitous? Who sets (and enforces) limits for TV violence? Are standards different now than they used to be? Why? Families can also discuss the show's father-daughter relationship. Jane's relationship with her father is strained, which seems to have played an important part in the development of her icy-cool character -- good for a government agent, not so good for maintaining close friendships. When it comes to father-daughter relationships, is "quality time" an adequate substitute for "quantity time"? How can you help a child deal with the death of a parent?
Message
Social Behavior:
Jane is a member of a covert government unit assigned to tracking down people with unusual mental abilities. Being part of a quasi-military group means the team is used to following orders, but because they are a secret operation, there is a fair amount of "the standard rules don't apply to us" attitude. Jane is a strong woman.
Consumerism:
Drugs/Alcohol/Tobacco:
Some characters drink moderately.
Violence
Plenty of fistfights, guns, shootouts, and some self-inflicted damage. Some of the scenes can be bloody and graphic, including close-ups of wounds, but most of the fights are relatively tame.
Sex
No sex or nudity; some mild flirting.
Language
Common Sense says
What's the story?
Reviewed by Will Wade
Is it any good?
The problem with Painkiller Jane is that it doesn't make much sense. For example, although -- like Jane -- Neuros also spontaneously develop super-human abilities, the team's doctor vows that Jane isn't one of them -- and since there's not really any logical explanation for any of this, viewers have to take him at his word. And the storylines are held together with exposition, either from Jane or one of her fellow secret agents. Without these helpful hints, it would be nearly impossible for viewers to figure out what's going on.
It's not just the script that seems forced: Some scenes come across as low budget and fall flat. At one point, for example, the team is assigned to protect the president -- a task that apparently can't be that hard, given that only a few dozen extras are on hand to portray an unusually thin crowd greeting his arrival at a major event. And when the president's official security team notifies the Neuro hunters -- by radio -- that they won't be working together, it seems as if the goal was to avoid hiring additional actors to play the Secret Service detail. If only Jane could kill that kind of pain.
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