ABC’s No Ordinary Family: pilot script review

Every once in a while, you see casting announcements for a new pilot show that get you just plain damn excited. Sometimes they don’t live up to the hype or promise of their pilot (Studio 60), sometimes they never catch on despite turning in a quality product (V), and sometimes, just occasionally, the shows you expect the most out of actually live up to the excitement you felt in the spring (Heroes, at least in the first season). After having read through the script and seen the cast list, I think No Ordinary Family looks like one of the most promising new show this pilot season.

The logline is straightforward. It is basically a live action, hour-long dramedy of the Incredibles. There are differences, to be sure, but the core elements that made the animated film work so well show up here as well. A typical family with typical family problems suddenly find themselves infused with some very atypical abilities. Also, as is cliché, they slowly begin to realize that they may not be the only ones that are a bit special.

Julie Benz (Dexter, Angel) and Michael Chiklis (The Shield, Fantastic Four) star as Stephanie and Jim Powell, two people who are beginning to doubt the perfection of their marriage. He never really found his dream of being an artist, while she’s become too successful of a scientist for her — and her family’s — own good. In true comic-book style, the Powells experience the type of accident that should result in tragedy, but instead imbues the survivors with superhuman powers.

Their kids aren’t nearly as keen on the changes as the parents seem to be. Kay Panabaker (CSI, Summerland) plays Daphne, a teenage girl who, like all teenage girls, just wants to be normal. Jimmy Bennett (Star Trek’s car stealing, young James T. Kirk) is JJ who, despite his genius mother, doesn’t seem to be succeeding in school. The cast is rounded out by Autumn Reeser (Raising the Bar, The O.C.) as Stephanie’s lab assistant Katie, Romany Malco (Weeds, The 40 Year Old Virgin) as Jim’s best friend George, and Christina Chang (CSI: Miami, 24) as Officer Cho, a policewoman Jim works with.

The script is pretty fast paced. We get to meet the characters, from the meet-cute that brought Jim and Stephanie together in college, all the way to the rocky patch they’re now experiencing. The introduction of the abilities doesn’t solve their challenges; in fact the dynamic pretty much stays the same. The family as a whole will continue to deal with the normal problems; they’ll just have some abnormal ones to deal with as well.

The script includes an interesting use of voice over; instead of focusing on one character or the other, it is shared between both Jim and Stephanie, in different scenes. This helps develop the sense that they are distinct people with their own views on what is going on in their marriage. But it also serves to let the audience know that while there are problems, these two aren’t nearly as far a part as they think they are.

As the series develops, I expect we’ll see more and more of the family using their abilities for the good of others. We meet at least one other superpowered person in the pilot, and are left the impression that there are more out there, both good and evil. That good-evil struggle will be a part of the plot. However, I think where this show has the potential to succeed is in how it explores the nuclear family dynamic, writ superhuman. Think Parenthood meets Heroes.

Can it succeed? Well, like I said, it’s got a great cast. I’m looking forward to seeing Benz in a role I can get excited about (I missed out on Dexter, though I plan to cover it in the Virgin Diaries this summer). Chiklis is one of the more underrated actors out there today (ironically, I think I’ll be VD’ing The Shield this summer too), and it is great to see him get a role on network television. The rest of the cast is solid, and some heavy hitters are running the show. I’ve been a fan of Greg Berlanti, from Dawson’s Creek to the way underappreciated Jack and Bobby and Eli Stone. With that pedigree, I’ve got high hopes, and can’t wait to see No Ordinary Family on ABC this Fall.

Clacked by Ivey West
on Apr 29, 2010 @ 11:00 EST5EDT