No Ordinary Family

Episode Report Card
Al Lowe: B- | Grade It Now!
For Truth, Justice and the Suburban Way

Cages: George joins Jim who gleefully shows off his mad skills. The ball is going so fast it disintegrates in Jim's palm. This is the moment I started liking the show. Because yo, if you could suddenly catch speeding bullets and baseballs, you would tell your best friend, and being your best friend, he would be fascinated, delighted and thrilled! Thank you Show for being real despite your fantastic premise. Next, Jim asks George to shoot him. Hee.

Stephanie calls Jim to cancel date night and is taken off guard when he's fine with that.

Cages: George, being a DA, is having doubts about shooting his friend, but Jim tells him that something extraordinary and impossible is happening to him and he needs his help in figuring out what it is. George is not anxious to kill his friend, because he's his friend and because he doesn't want to end up in the joint with a bunch of guys he put away. He refuses, and thank you for that too, Show -- because I would have lost all respect if a DA willingly shot at his friend, just because he could catch some blistering fastballs barehanded. It doesn't matter anyhow, because the gun accidentally discharges and Jim catches the bullet. George faints dead away.

Stephanie leaves to meet her boss and the chairman and there's more talking-headishness and narration, but the point is this -- the security guard tells her that traffic is really bad, so she exits her building at a trot, which becomes a run, which turns into a supersonic dash down the freeway. "In a life short on time, I suddenly found myself... fast." Covet.

George encourages Jim to fly. He finally agrees and takes a not-so-flying leap off the top of a building, but crashes to the ground far, far below. He's unhurt, but the street beneath his feet is going to need some major resurfacing. George hollers down to Jim, who suddenly has a revelation. He leaps up, up and away back to the top of the building and an amazed George. The guys hug in celebration. Meanwhile, Stephanie shares her abilities with Kitty Pryde-fan Katie, who is as adorable and awesome as George. We are so keeping them. They test Stephanie's speed the way George and Jim having been testing Jim's strength. The writers know what they're doing here, because they have Katie voice all the sorts of questions that fans more science-minded than I might ask. The ladies also conclude that Stephanie now has a super-metabolism. COVET MOAR! With her new speed, Stephanie now has time to fulfill the promises she's always making to her family, like helping JJ with his schoolwork.

Police Station; Exterior: George reviews his list of Jim's abilities. "You can jump just over a quarter of a mile in a single leap." Jim: "Single what?" George stops and shrugs. "Fine, single bound." Hee. On foot, Jim's no faster than average, but he can lift about 11,000 pounds and catch speeding bullets (which must involve some speed, yeah). George encourages Jim to share his new skills with Stephanie, but he's reluctant. He's not reluctant to use his new-bilities for truth, justice and the American way, though. He's swiped a police scanner and intends to help stop the crime wave washing over their city. George tries to talk him down, but they're interrupted when Stephanie calls. George keeps nudging Jim to tell his wife what's going on, but he doesn't.

Stephanie called to invite Jim home for a little afternoon delight. And their afterglow pillow talk is at first sweet and warm, but their problems soon bubble up. When Jim praises Stephanie for doing it all, she criticizes herself for always falling short. Jim laughs and says, "Honey, who could keep up with you?" Laying her head on his chest, Stephanie says, "Well, you couldn't, because you stopped trying." Yeouch. They move apart in bed, and Jim says they both stopped trying. He turns to her and engages in a little parental one-up-manship, disclosing that Our Maiden of the Hymen is afraid she'll lose her boyfriend to a girl who will sleep with him. No! Really? Huh. Why are we just finding this out now? Next, he tells her their son is struggling with school because of his learning disabilities that Stephanie refuses to acknowledge because she hasn't the time. Jim says she'd have known all this stuff if she was home more. Them's fighting words. Stephanie snarks back about how it's been her dream to work 80 hours per week to support the family. Thankfully, this extremely well-done, realistic and depressing little interlude is broken up by George, who calls Jim with a tip on a crime in progress.

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No Ordinary Family




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