E-Ring: Snatch and Grab

The second episode of E-Ring seemed to follow a template similar to the season opener: The Pentagon faces a problem; a person tries to bend the rules to solve said problem (and to illustrate the complexity of what the Pentagon must deal with); and the problem is resolved during the final edge-of-your-seat moments. It would take a lesser producer much longer to become this formulaic, so give Jerry Bruckheimer credit for that.

Last night's episode placed its focus on Uzbekistan, where a terrorist with close ties to Osama Bin Laden has been spotted. A special operations team must be sent in to snare him before he eludes them again. Unfortunately, this means JT must send his old unit into harms way, and extend their tour of duty, which has already been extended twice.

The key to enjoying anything by Jerry Bruckheimer seems to hinge on turning your brain down a couple notches so as not to notice how so many complex issues are glossed over. JT takes it upon himself to inform his friend's wife that he'll be needed in the region for longer than they thought. She gets angry, lectures him about being a cold, unfeeling tool of the military, and etc. It's as if the writers were given a box at the beginning of the season marked "Cliche War Scenes" loaded with pages that can be filled in like Mad Libs. The show boasts a cast with enough chops to keep this from becoming too unbearable, but the show can't bog itself down in introspection for too long, lest it loses the chance to throw in more emotional speeches and quick edits.

Of course, then there's Dennis Hopper, who I've never been able to decide is a good actor or not. Regardless, the man plays the part of Colonel McNulty with a kind of glee you can see just simmering below the surface. I imagine even during his most intense scenes that Hopper starts cracking up as soon as they yell "cut." He brings a nice bit of insanity to the role, as he tends to do with all his roles, and it's a nice departure.