"JERICHO" TOO SOAPY FOR ITS SUBJECT

October 27, 2006

Since the attacks of 9/11 five years ago, a dark question has lingered in the minds of many Americans -- will it happen again? And, if so, where? It's a rational fear, and one that's served as a dramatic catalyst for several television series. There's always a new national threat for Jack Bauer to prevent on FOX's "24." Showtime's "Sleeper Cell" took an insider's view at a fictional terrorist network.

However, no show capitalizes on the malaise of worry that still clouds our country today quite like CBS' "Jericho," which started with a nuclear attack on America and weekly plays a haunting game of what-if with its viewers (of which there are many, judging by the ratings).

After a mushroom cloud appears on the horizon, a small-town police officer, sorting the possibilities in his own head, remarks to his cop buddies: "They could be China. They could be Iran, Al-Qaeda, North Korea -- anyone who hates us. They could be coming here. And what's our line of defense? You're looking at it."

If my town was isolated from the rest of a bomb-ravaged country -- as is the case with Jericho, Kansas, here -- I'd probably have bigger worries other than "who did this to us?" Like, say, what are we going to do when we run out of food? But the residents of Jericho still seem to think national security is a top priority, even for a tiny community in Kansas. "If this country's at war, we need to know it," says Jake Green (Skeet Ulrich), a young man with a secretive past and the show's central character.

If you say so, sir. But about the radiation poisoning…

Actually, the citizens of Jericho don't have to worry too much about that since the writers of "Jericho" play fast and loose with the science. (Don't get rained on, and you'll be fine.) They seem more interested in exploring whether the popular teenage girl will break her clique to befriend a nerdy male classmate and if the mayor's son will end his marriage to live with the hot bartender he's seeing on the side.

Speaking of the bartender, business is booming for her since, in the wake of the show's nuclear attacks, it appears that most of Jericho's citizens prefer to drink their troubles away while waiting for the TV satellite to pick up some kind of signal. That's one part of the show that does ring true. If I was faced with a majority of the United States' major cities being decimated, I'd probably head straight for the nearest watering hole too.

Yes, "Jericho" (which airs Wendesdays at 8 p.m.) is one strange mishmash of holocaust drama, soapy plotlines and "X-Files"-esque conspiracies. Regarding the latter -- Jake's not the only character with a big secret. There's also Rod Hawkins, a new Jericho resident who knows way too much about the attacks and uses a portable antennae to log into the U.S. Department of State's computer network. Hmm, so maybe those cops better be on guard after all.

Ultimately, the show is unfocused, farfetched and seems to offer little commentary on today's terror-filled world other than to say, "Man, wouldn't it totally suck if this happened?" Yeah, it so would suck. Especially if that popular girl continues to be such a snob. Or if the acid rain comes back. Or worse -- both!