Gnothi Seauton

The Sarah Connor Chronicles is nearly the end of the second season. One irony is that the cyborg characters are generally more interesting than the human characters.

The character of Sarah is stuck in a rut. She plays a perpetually angry, depressed woman. Given her past experience and future prospects, she has every reason to be angry and depressed woman. However, that’s not the kind of character you want to watch all the time.

Moreover, her function is superfluous. It was always unsuitable to make a woman play the muscle. And as long as John has a Terminator (Cameron) to serve as his bodyguard, it’s even sillier to have his Mom play the same part.

John doesn’t come across as a leader of men. He’s played by a young, lightweight actor. He has the demeanor of a pouty adolescent.

His ill-fated girlfriend (Riley) was a chore to be around.

Ellison plays the conscience of John Henry. While he does it well, it’s a role that doesn’t give him much legroom to stretch himself dramatically.

I’m puzzled by why the screenwriters don’t do more with Cameron since she’s the most compelling character of the lot.

John Henry has the malevolent charm of a serial killer. Outwardly affable, but inwardly devious and deadly.

At first I didn’t like the character of Catherine Weaver. However, she’s coming along nicely. There’s her clueless attempt to play a maternal role to the daughter of the woman she murdered and now impersonates.

She’s also developing a chilling rapport with John Henry. Mutual admiration between two calculating, cold-blooded AI machines. It’s a strange sort of marriage.