"Bionic Woman" (2007) TV series

User Rating:

5.8/10   

Seasons:

1

Genre:

Action | Sci-Fi | Thriller

Tagline:

Better. Stronger. Faster.

Plot:

A reimagining of the popular 1970s TV series about a female athlete who is given bionic strength.

Plot Keywords:

Female Protagonist | Based On TV Series | Cyborg | Little Sister | Clandestine

Awards:

1 nomination

Cast

Michelle Ryan	...	Jaime Sommers (14 episodes, 2007)
Lucy Hale	...	Becca Sommers (13 episodes, 2007)
Miguel Ferrer	...	Jonas Bledsoe (9 episodes, 2007)
Molly Price	...	Ruth Treadwell (9 episodes, 2007)
Kevin Rankin	...	Nathan (8 episodes, 2007)
Will Yun Lee	...	Jae Kim (7 episodes, 2007)

Also Known As:

"The Bionic Woman" (USA) (complete title)

Runtime:

60 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Certification:

Australia:M | Netherlands:12 | Singapore:NC-16

Filming Locations:

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

Company:

NBC Universal Television

Trivia:

At least 3 versions of the pilot episode were produced. The first version had Mae Whitman cast as Jaime's deaf sister, a character that sparked criticism from hearing-impaired rights groups when it was learned the actress wasn't deaf in real life. This version of the pilot was one of several widely circulated on the Internet during the summer of 2007; at the 2007 San Diego Comic Con, an edited-down, half-hour version of this pilot was shown to audience members as a preview of the new series. For broadcast, however, several scenes were filmed, and the cast changed with a new actress playing Jaime's sister, and the hearing-impaired subplot being eliminated.

Movie Connections:

Remake of "The Bionic Woman" (1976)

Lindsay we miss you...even more now.

OK first things first..Michelle Ryan looks the part, seems likable and is attractive...however there is some depth missing in her performance. The premise is modern, or maybe typical is a better word, as this time around Jaime Sommers works as a bartender, yes a bartender. Gone is the high school teacher / tennis player. Maybe that was too 70's. Also gone are Rudy Wells and Oscar Goldman. However Rudy does have a cameo of sorts as Jaime's middle name is said to be Wells in the episode...Hmm maybe Rudy will show up. This Jaime takes care of her troublesome kid sister ( is there any other kind on these shows )is engaged and about to possibly marry her professor boyfriend and we find all this out within the first 10 minutes when....well here is where circumstances cause her to become, the Bionic Woman. Here is my problem with this version. Its dark, brooding, and comes across as Spiderman meets Alias meets X-Men. And half the show appears to be a night. Can I get some daylight please!!!! And the sister is an annoying addition and unnecessary. Another head scratcher is that after finding out what she is now...there wasn't much delving into her discovering and acceptance of her current state. The woman goes straight back to work serving drinks for god sakes like she just had a boob job and that was it and oh well back to work. Maybe this new Jaime is OK for the new generation but I don't find it appealing in its present incarnation. Maybe its the times we live in but almost every show I see on TV is dark, brooding and depressing. The bionic woman of the 70's was about adventure and action and a touch of tongue and cheek. This version is about violence, death, hit men, and dark depressing characters with ulterior motives. Yes there is action in it too but it all comes with all the extras above. Give me Lindsay and the fembots any day!!!! One good thing about this version I will say is they spruced up on how they show and deal with Jaime's speed. It doesn't come across silly or anything. Sadly Alias, aside from the superhuman strength, has already charted these waters of the beautiful babe with kickass fighting abilities. Been there done that. They should have just gone the way of an adventure/action show and maybe, just maybe...then again who knows...Dark , brooding, depressing seems to be the in thing these days.