"The Starting Line" just aired in Canada, & a fun two hours it was! Drive automatically gets points for putting Nathan Fillion on TV again. Richard Brooks (who played Jubal Early in an episode of Firefly) guested as a police detective.

It's about a secret, illegal race across America, and our cast consists of the racers, not all of whom are racing for the same reasons. Most are racing to win $32 million, but others are racing to protect loved ones, like Alex Tully (Nathan Fillion) who is trying to find out what happened to his kidnapped wife. The cast is large (6 teams of two in the main cast!) and fortunately, most of the characters are pretty interesting - with the possible exception of the Army guy and his girlfriend.

At the moment, it seems a bit Lost-like, in that there are flashbacks illuminating the motives of the racers. The organizers of the race are as Machiavellian as Lost's Others, and just as infuriating. Frankly, the biggest mistake the writers could do with this show is to pull a Lost and not provide any answers (always supposing it lasts that long, given that it airs on Fox!)

Thoughts?

All I care about is Nathan Fillion is back on television. I haven't been this excited about a television show since....ever. I don't care what the premise it. It being a car race is just icing on the cake.

So glad I looked at this thread. I had no idea Cap'n Tightpants has a new show.

Our local TV critic is saying he won't even bother to review it, that it sounds like it's doomed to cancellation before the pilot finishes airing. I think I'll watch anyway, just because Cap'n Tightpants will be on it. I am kinda worried, though, that this will be "The Amazing Race" with a script. Not looking forward to THAT, if it's the case. But I plan to give it a shot.

It looks like a Drama!Action! version of the Cannonball Run movies, which my eight-year-old self loved. Plus it has the original (and still the greatest) Dusty Donovan from As the World Turns, so I'll be watching.

awww, Schwa, I couldn't agree more. Brian Bloom is reason enough for me to tune in. Those eyes!

Ditto about Brian Bloom. When does it air?

It aired in Canada on Friday, it airs in the USA on Fox on Sunday with a double episode, before settling into it's normal timeslot on Monday's before 24.

If Drive is half as good and half as fun as I hope it will be, my head will probably explode after watching that and 24.
I'm worried I'm going to be disappointed. I never get my hopes up for a television show. I tend to stumble into the shows I watch.

Huh. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. It's an interesting concept, but I'm not sure if the super high adrenaline level can be sustained. I sometimes like a slow episode or two, to catch my breath.

Well, I'll give "Drive" one more shot on Monday night. I'm on the fence about it right now. I hate some of the characters, am intrigued by others (love the newly reunited half-brothers), but just don't know if the world needs yet another story about random strangers being manipulated by shadowy folks behind the scenes. So "been there, seen that".

My residual Firefly affection for Nathan Fillion made me watch, but I only made it through 15 minutes or so. It was a lot tenser than I thought it would be; for some reason I had imagined it as more of a comedy/drama.

I liked it enough to stick with it and give it a chance. It's rare that I'll write off a show after one episode, although that happened with "Smith".

I hope Taryn Manning's character grows into something more than "bad girl with an attitude". I like Manning even though I don't want to. Plus....Nathan! I am a fan girl.

With the ratings it got, Fox may not be giving it a chance though.

I watched the second hour of this last night, and while it does have a 'been there, done that' feel to it, I still enjoyed it enough. Whether or not I'll remember to watch it in its regular time slot is another story altogether.

Now tell me tonight's episode wasn't fun. Am I blinded by my Nathan love?

Tonight was a lot of fun. Nathan Fillion glowered as only he can, and Kristin Lehman was less annoying than usual. And I love the Dodge. Oh, yeah. But my main love is reserved for Los Hermanos Guapos. I love Winston.

If you are, so am I. Except I admit this is a dumb show. Then again, a show being dumb has never stopped me from watching it every week (see: "Jericho," "Prison Break," et al)

Little Joe Buchanan is ALL grown up now, heh.

Hell yeah it's a dumb show. But I also watch Jericho every week. So I make no excuses.

Gosh, is it ever dumb. Happy as I am to see Nathan Fillion getting work, he's really the only person on screen who (a) can act, and (b) doesn't make me want to drive an ice pick into my eye. (I'd settle for a producer's eye, were one available.) I've been watching it in the background because I'm bored, but so far it's not so gloriously, over-the-top stupid that I'm going to feel compelled to come back week after week.

What, EssPee, you're not mad for the Dodge and the Chevy?

My level of interest in it can be gauged by the fact that my attention was divided between it and reading the WGA television writers' handbook for the umpeenth time. I looked up at my TV whenever Fillion was onscreen and then went back to reading when he was off. I'd watch that man sleep.

Overall, meh.

I noticed something in last night's ep: the Salazar brothers are named after the Lennons.

John WINSTON Ono Lennon
SEAN Tara Ono Lennon

Anyone want to take bets on whether they have a sister named Yoko?

Damn. Nathan slips through my fingers again.

Anybody know if they are going to air the remaining episodes?

NatalieX, my brother e-mailed me yesterday (he never e-mails me!) to tell me that the last he heard, they would show six episodes, then pull the show for awhile, then air the rest later. I haven't check anywhere to find out if it's definitely been cancelled. Maybe something new came out today.

Boooo if they cancelled it. Fox should have run it in the summer. It's the perfect summer show.

From Variety. Boo!
I'm officially annoyed.

Me too! I mean, it wasn't the most super-fantastic show I've ever seen, but it was interesting and the cast was good. It was certainly more entertaining than, say, Are You Smarter Than a Fifth-Grader. I think it would have done better as a one-shot summer series, but hey, what do I know?

fernbeau, you know enough to recognize a fun show when you see one.

I wanted to like Drive, but there's something not right about it. I don't know if it's just bad acting or a lame storyline or what, but I haven't been able to enjoy any aspect of the show except for Nathan and the guest appearances from his wife. Everyone else is boring to me. Especially the mom. Boring.

I think Fox should have waited and premiered this show in June and had it run during the summer. Why did they premiere it in April? It's like they didn't want to give it a chance.

I didn't think this show was fantastic by any means, but it was mindless entertainment, and I was looking forward to having it to watch over the summer when nothing else is on. Oh well.

I think Fox hates Nathan Fillion. Fox is jealous of him.

Well, it's something anyway.