A Mission Impossible for the 21st century.

bluesman-20

There really is a Walter O'Brian . And he really does have a IQ of 197. And he does have a company called Scorpion that helps people. But there the facts and fiction take a different path. Like the Stuntman who called himself the Human Fly and dressed up like a superhero. His real life and his reel life had to take a different path. The human fly dressed up like a superhero does not mean he fought supervillans like MArvel comics had you believe.

The Real Story of Walter O'Brian may or may not have made for a good TV show. But the fact that he might've done a few interesting things along the path to heading up his own company is Not what's important. The Very words used at the beginning are this is BASED on the life of Walter O'Brian . It does not state that it's a accurate portrayal of Walter O Brian's life. The people who don't get that should just give up watching TV.

Like the Show Based on Colonal Greg Pappy Boyington's black Sheep Squadron that was fiction.

Anyways the premise is that Walter O'Brian is a genius with a IQ of 197 . He uses his genius to help the department of homeland security to solve crimes and take down bad guys when conventional means do not apply. The premise to me actually plays out like a Mission Impossible for the 21st century. Walter has his crew of Misfits/ genius who work for the company he started called Scorpion. Along the way we meet them. There is Happy a woman who is brilliant at machines and cars and tools not so good with people. There is Toby a psychological genius who can read people amongst other gifts. But he is a addictive personality. Slyvester a man who is simply a master of numbers and has a photographic memory. but is scared of life. Alongside their handler Cabe they are the ones you call on when things are too baffling and homeland security is on the line.

Now I enjoy the show for what it is. a hour of escapism and adventure nothing more. The chemistry amongst the cast is the strongest I've seen all year. That alone makes the show compelling TV because you get to care about them. When a single mother Kate brings her genius son Ralph to Scorpion to help her understand him. Kate's job is to provide a link to Walter and the rest to reality. while they help her understand her son better. KAte and Ralph provide a good strong grounding point here which is to say it gives this show it's humanity. I like this show a lot simply because it's not a cookie cardboard cutout. It's a show that's trying to use a brain with its heart. A rarity these days. Worth seeing. worth following just to see how it develops over the next year.

score 10/10

bluesman-20 20 November 2014

Reprint: https://www.imdb.com/review/rw3127610/