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The Tufts Daily
Where you read it first | Friday, March 29, 2024

Resurrection' drowns potential in feel-good emotion

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It's a novel television premise: there are no ghosts, no spells, no eerie fingerprints of the paranormal. Instead, "Resurrection," ABC's new mystery-drama, forgoes conventional back-from-the-dead options, to center on an innocent little boy. Whether this decision is the right one, though, will depend on the length of time it takes for audiences to tire of pulled heartstrings and teary eyes over raw suspense.

Sure, an intriguing mystery is set up right from the get-go: eight year-old Jacob (Landon Gimenez) suddenly turns up in China with no recollection of a past or present following his apparent death 30 years earlier. Rather than playing up the creep factor surrounding the boy's out-of-thin-air return, "Resurrection" speeds through a string of glorified reunions drenched in all of the expected sentimental sap.

Within the first few moments of the pilot, viewers are jerked through an emotional rollercoaster as other characters realize that Jacob is alive. The newly awakened kid is picked up by an immigration agent (Omar Epps) assigned to the mystifying case, and winds up on his parents' porch several cuts later. The reunion is poignant and moving, brimming with enough awkward tenderness and shocked disbelief to get a response out of even the most skeptical viewer. It is these flashes of emotional veracity that form the cornerstone of the show's appeal. But it is a shame the writers of "Resurrection" do not press pause — there simply isn't enough time to let anyone soak in the moments for what they are worth.

The show's emotional aspects would not be so much of a problem if they focused more deeply on its primary mystery. Instead they pan around to every hollow corner of life in the sleepy town of Arcadia, Mo., where Jacob's mother (Frances Fisher) and father (Kurtwood Smith) ground the story with touching reactions to the return of a son lost for three decades. They're confused, shaken, jubilant and cynical at the same time, and both actors manage to convincingly pull it off. Unfortunately, the plethora of satellite characters — a doctor, Maggie (Devin Kelley), her equivocally deceased father (Matt Craven), and their peers — fail to hold up their end of the bargain.

In fact, the lack of believable reactions among Arcadia residents, and the world for that matter, is a serious hole in the overall credibility of "Resurrection." It is no longer acceptable for a show that takes place in the 21st century to leave out the persistent role that the media, the government or even word of mouth would have spreading the news that a fresh crop of seemingly deceased citizens are popping up around town. It's hard to buy that Jacob's family is somehow able to keep the shocking realization under wraps, staying calm enough to buy clothes and cook for their would-be ghost-child as if it were an everyday occurrence.

What this does is thwart the premise's full potential, which could be reached if all the obvious questions weren't circumscribed or pushed aside in favor of less consequential mysteries, like the deaths of other characters. "Resurrection" does not genuinely address any of the ideas presumably carried by its title, those of religion, loss, grief and suspense. Where did Jacob come from, and where is he going now? What will the family's fate be if people do find out? Is his return a miracle or a bad omen?

Luckily, the show is only a few episodes in and still has time to answer these questions — or at least devote itself to a more captivating approach before falling into the nebulous trap of ABC's standard lukewarm fare. The storyline is there, as is the talented acting. What "Resurrection" needs is to dial back its slow-scored sentiment and make room for some much needed bite. Unlike its fortunate characters, a show that lacks this much life is not likely to be given a second chance.