"Crusoe" Season One Talkback (Spoilers)

[Michael24]

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From Power, Muse and Moonlighting Films comes an ambitious adaptation of Daniel Defoe's masterpiece, "Crusoe," a new primetime series for a 21st Century audience. Following the novel and its treasured tale of adventure, this high-action, fast-paced, thirteen-part series will combine for the first time the pace and energy of network television while remaining faithful to the author’s original classic story. The drama explores the perils and challenges facing the world’s most famous castaway as Crusoe (Philip Winchester, "Flyboys," "Thunderbirds") and his native friend Friday (Tongayi Chirisa) struggle to survive on a desert island with little more than their wits. Overcoming marauding militias, hungry cannibals, wild cats, starvation and apocalyptic lightning storms, Crusoe dreams of the day he will be reunited with his beloved family.

Allowed to develop away from the bonds of 17th Century life, the ingenious Crusoe builds a breathtaking and altogether modern home high up in the trees to elude his enemies. Friday and Crusoe’s deep friendship is pushed to the limit as opportunities to escape their island paradise, and the people they meet there, consistently challenge them to choose between loyalty and freedom. As the series develops, the love story between Crusoe and his wife Susannah (Anna Walton, "The Mutant Chronicles," "Hell Boy II: The Golden Army") left behind in England will unfold from meeting to marriage, as will his relationship with his mentor and patron, the mysterious Jeremiah Blackthorn (Sam Neill, "The Tudors," "Jurassic Park").

"Crusoe" is being executive produced by Justin Bodle for Power, Jeff Hayes for Bluewater Productions, Michael Prupas for Muse, Genevieve Hofmeyr and Phillip Key for Moonlighting and Stephen Greenberg and Jean Bureau for Incendo Productions.

The show airs Fridays at 9/8C on NBC.

Official Website (http://www.nbc.com/Crusoe/)

[Michael24]

The last new show of the season I was waiting for to premiere, and overall I liked it. I thought the first hour was kind of sluggish. Once or twice, I was tempted to change the channel, but I kept holding off, and I'm glad I did, because things really picked up in the second hour.

I like Winchester as Crusoe and was glad to see that, at least so far, he wasn't a typical, "Woah, that was cool" surfer-type dude we normally see in these kind of adventure series, like Beastmaster: The Series. I also liked Tongayi Chirisa as Friday. I thought the pirates could have been played a bit more seriously, though. They never really felt like much of a threat until they teamed up with the Spanish guys to find the treasure. The climactic assault on Crusoe and Friday's treetop home was pretty exciting, especially near the end as the pirates were launching lit barrels of gunpowder. The use of flashbacks reminds me a little too much of Lost, but I guess there are only so many ways you can fill in backstory when your characters are stuck on an island. At least we get to see Sean Bean and the great Sam Neill in them. :) I had no idea they were in this until it started. I liked all of Crusoe's little contraptions and traps, too.

I've never read the book, so I don't know how faithful this is or wasn't, but I really enjoyed it thanks to the second half and will be sticking around.