TV Review: THE LIBRARIANS: Season 1, Episode 3: And the Horns of a Dilemma [TNT]

TNT’s The Librarians And the Horns of a Dilemma TV Show Review. The Librarians: Season 1, Episode 3: And the Horns of a Dilemma, marks the first episode where the new recruits have to handle matters without without the witty Flynn Carsen (Noah Wyle) watching their every move and preparing them for what is to come.

Episode 3 took a step in the right direction and put the team in a situation where they were forced to handle matters as a team. I always enjoy when Greek Mythology can be woven into a story. This question will keep coming up…did they sell it?

Lets start off with Eve Baird (Rebecca Rominj). Three episodes in and she is still not locked into this role. I think one of the issues is she seems to be confused on how to play this character. This is an hour-long show and there were plenty opportunities to build her character up. One door closes and another opens. We never see that light click in her head that this particular job is where she is supposed to be. We never get that click…I’m still waiting for it and it is needed. Character motivation sets them in place and we follow from there. So now we are in the third episode and Flynn has left her in charge. What we realize without Flynn’s quirky presence is…this show works for him and only for him. None of the other characters on this show can carry it like he can. He has the style down to a science. I have enjoyed Rebecca in the feature film roles she has been in. She’s not an Oscar worthy actress but she does get it done. That said, she still comes off too stiff in this role. The physical comedy is missing and she doesn’t possess the timing. Not to say she cannot get into the groove but if she is going to get going…now is the time. There are some nice attempts between Jenkin’s (John Larroquette) and Eve to play with comedy. John is a veteran with a great sense of timing. In this episode he appeared to be a bit subdued too. Most of these issues have to do with writing and possibly casting.

How did the rest of the team stack up? If you compare this episode to the last, they did much better. Once again this is a department where the show really needs Flynn’s presence. Ezekiel Jones (John Kim) on paper reads like a very interesting character. We got to see him using his abilities to contribute to solving the crisis and there was even a scene with him aiding Cassandra (Lindy Booth). The problem is, like Rebecca, he does not lock into this role. He is not playing his character to the fullest. The witty banter and attitude don’t come across big enough. Flynn’s character is still far more interesting than all of them and they need to be able to carry their own weight on screen. Ezekiel should be the outcast. He’s a thief by trade… clever but still a thief. He still has to remind everyone who he is and that means he hasn’t sold it. Cassandra delivered the best performance as she was put in a position where she had to reestablish trust with the team. The problem is she does have a tumor in her head. That’s a hard thing to joke about especially if you don’t have the comedic timing to make it funny. So when she mentions it…it throws the comedy off. She stepped up this week and it was good but it presented another problem. If Cassandra didn’t have the visual fx when working through problems and the tumor…would she still be interesting? Up to this point I would say she is still under performing. It’s a light show but there is a style and Cassandra’s character is taking herself too serious. By doing so she comes off flat and the scene losses its flow. Jake Stone (Christian Kane) is in the same boat as Ezekiel’s character. We do not believe him because he is not selling the character. They solved the crisis and used their combined abilities but do we care?

The worst scenes in the whole episode involved Jake, Eve and the Minotaur. The interpretation of the monster became a bad joke. When we first see the creature it has hooves and glowing red eyes. For some strange reason, he becomes a biker with red eyes. This takes the show one whole step back. We have already been informed magic has been set free in the world. Play it! We did not need to see them fighting the monster in broad daylight…it killed it. I expected to see them running for their lives in the labyrinth and it turned into something else. A case of another opportunity missed.

If there are more episodes that flow like 3, this show may end up in serious trouble. The formula is set but so far Flynn is the only actor who plays it right. Without him on screen none of the other characters are strong enough to carry it off. Yes, I want to see them go out and solve a mission but we don’t care enough about them at this point. What ends up happening is you may fast forward to the last 10 minuets to catch the formulaic ending and just by pass all the uninteresting performances in the middle. Flynn can save this. He needs to be on he show with them and they need to pick up his style before it’s too late.

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