I watched Jericho last night, I had to wait until Jodie was out at Yoga to try out a new scifi series (she is pretty much by default not a fan of anything that smells like science fiction).  I really wanted to like this show because it’s an interesting concept of a nuclear attack on the United States and how a small town in Kansas deals with the aftermath.  Red Dawn is one of my favorite movies and I thought this could be an opportunity to re-tell that story. 
Unfortunately, like so many other good scifi concepts this one was just poorly executed.  The pilot felt like a poorly-done miniseries, which in my books is one step up in production values from an after-school special.  What do I mean?

• Everything is just a little too hyperbolic - the camera angles, the dialog, the dramatic pauses, everything
• The good characters are all spoon-fed good characters, the bad characters are all spoon-fed bad characters, and the ones you’re not sure of have a big “we’re not sure about this guy yet” sign on their foreheads.
• Character development is incredibly forced and predictable
• The writing is just terrbile
• Money was obviously spent on the effects, the equipment and even somewhat on the talent but someone skimped on the basics

I see this every season, and it’s frustrating.  I wonder if maybe the guy who comes up with an original scifi concept makes the mistake of thinking he can write it too.  I don’t know what it is, but it just feels fake.